In this month’s Wellness Corner, we will be reviewing apps that help you focus on your well-being. As we approach winter break and the turn of the new year, many people will be focusing on creating new habits or returning to old routines in order to “reset.”
This week we review the app Finch. This app encourages self-care behaviors through a digital pet, similar to a Tamagotchi. Finch describes itself as a “self-care widget pet.”
The premise is that you take care of yourself by taking care of your pet. Upon starting the app, you become the owner/parent of a baby bird. You help to move the bird upon its journey through life, and the woods where it lives, by choosing and completely daily goals. Goals include activities such as drinking water, completing physical tasks, meditating, journaling, expressing gratitude, etc. You also get the added benefit of answering parenting-style questions to alter the path of your bird. Nothing like a quick lesson, or brush up, on your human growth and development education.
In the Finch app you can add friends (other users of the app; or send invites to friends off the app to invite them) and send them messages, gratitude, hugs, etc. You can even go on adventures with them. This helps both of your pets grow.
If it sounds complicated, it really is not. The more things you do with your pet, the more in-app currency you accumulate. You use this “currency” to buy outfits for your pet, furniture and decorations for their treehouse, etc.
As your bird grows up, they will earn new feathers and such. Your bird is very happy to see you each day and tell you about what it has been up to. You can set up notifications to remind you to visit the app throughout the day. If you become to visit your pet, do not worry! Your bird will still be happy to see you return.
Here are two reviews of the app by current users:
Autumn Austin, VP of Environmental Wellness
Finch is a very cute virtual companion that you take care of by doing tasks to take care of your physical and mental well-being. You get to name your little bird friend, and each day you rate how you feel. Then, based on your rating, you get suggested tasks and activities to help you that also help you fill your companion’s energy bar so your friend can go and explore.
With the free app, you are able to access the SOS tools, as well as some of the breathing exercises, physical exercises and journaling activities, however there is also a premium subscription that is available that unlocks all the features. Personally, I tried both the free and premium, and I would highly recommend the free app, but I don’t think the premium is with the extra cost, as all the base activities are included with the free app.
I think having a virtual companion that’s growth is tied to your own wellbeing can be helpful for many people, and with this app there is no consequence for not using it for a few days or longer, your companion is still just as happy to see you on day 100 as day 1.
Kristen Heath, Statewide Wellness Coordinator
I downloaded this app when a current third year recommended it to me. At first, I was in love! I named my bird Noodle. I spent the first few days doing ALL THE THINGS to help baby Noodle grow. I worked hard to get them the perfect outfit and décor for their home. I stayed dedicated to Noodle and the app for two weeks. I used the free version only. I found that it had a good amount of journal prompts, and a decent number of reminders for what I find helpful—breathing, meditating, drinking water, remembering to be grateful, doing daily physical exercises, stretching before bed, etc. I loved the questions I was prompted to answer when Noodle came back from a journey in the woods. I used to teach a psychology course on lifespan development and felt like I was in a child development simulation.
After two weeks, however, I got tired of seeing the notifications. I found that a lot of the journal prompts, at least from the free version, were repetitive. The bedtime stretches didn’t vary much, and I found my other meditation and breathing apps were better for me (either because I’m more familiar with them or they are just more in depth for where I am in my practice at this time in my life). I no longer felt like I needed to work hard to change Noodle’s outfit or decorations (the novelty wore off I guess… or I woke up and realized that I am in my 40s! Ha ha).
After I stopped using the app regularly, I suffered some guilt when I would get a notification that told me Noodle wanted to share something with me, but with the amount of other self-care apps I have, that quickly faded. I don’t struggle much with drinking water, meditating, or practicing gratitude (Lucky me! But seriously, that has taken a lot of dedication, it’s not an easy feat for all).
For those that enjoy having all those reminders in one place, with the added touch of growing a digital pet while doing so, this is a wonderful app! The app is very colorful, is easy to use, and can be quite engaging. I love that you can interact with other users, and it is definitely a great place to start if you aren’t familiar with certain tasks such as stretching before bed or simple breathing techniques.
For those who grew up with Tamagotchi’s, this will feel like being in that era again. I won’t lie, I did take some screen shots of baby Noodle and send them to friends. I know they thought I was crazy as I told them I was doing pull-ups at 11pm to earn a t-shirt for my baby bird. But hey, I can think of worse ways to spend your time!
