I Tried The New iPhone Mental Health Tracker & I Think You Should Too

You may assume that good health and frequent smartphone use are mutually exclusive. However, Apple is trying to change that by making innovative health tracking more accessible to iPhone users via the Apple Health app.

Launched in 2014, the automatically downloaded app initially served as a hub for storing health records and clocking sleep schedules. But nowadays, the white and pink icon is entering a new era of health tracking and optimization.

The iOS 17 Health App update is now available on most newer iPhones (check to make sure yours is on the list here). The newest functions include the "State of Mind" tracking in the Health app and new vision health features.

“‘Our goal is to empower people to take charge of their own health journey. With these innovative new features, we’re expanding the comprehensive range of health and wellness tools that we offer our users across iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch,”’ said Sumbul Desai, M.D., Apple’s vice president of Health, in a press release.

After selecting your mood (a sliding scale from very unpleasant to very pleasant), the function asks you to describe your feelings by selecting from a list of words. For example, if you chose “Neutral” to describe your overall mood, you can elaborate on that emotion by selecting indifferent, calm, drained, peaceful, and so on. 

Curious about how tracking my mood in this way could help my overall mental health, I called up clinical psychologist Chloe Carmichael, Ph.D. “This can help to expand your emotional vocabulary or even just stimulate you to translate your internal experiences into words,” she explained.

After that, you’ll select forces influencing your mood. There are many options here, including health, family, partner, work, money, current events, and many more. 

After using this function for a month, it’s become quite an easy habit to maintain. I enabled push notifications, prompting me to log how I feel throughout the day and at the end of the day, which has helped me stay on top of it.

This function taught me more about the duality of emotions—something I don’t think gets discussed enough. It’s possible, common actually, to feel both annoyance and inspiration on the same day, and frustration and gratitude in the same hour. Life can feel slightly pleasant one minute, and very unpleasant the next. It’s a friendly reminder that unpleasant feelings don’t last forever. 

After using this function, you’ll come to notice patterns—maybe your worst days are caused by stress at work, and your best days by time with your friends. Either way, knowing which emotions align with the common forces in your life can be helpful for planning for the future and making changes in the name of mental health. 

See, many of us make plans for our week without much regard for how our to-do list will make us feel emotionally. However, Carmichael says, accompanying your tasks with corresponding self-care tactics (in what she refers to as an "emotional to-do list") can be immensely helpful. 

The Cycle Tracking function launched in 2015 but has gotten a few updates since then, including retrospective ovulation estimates for those with the Apple Watch Series 8 or later, and all Apple Watch Ultra models. The watch uses wrist temperature data to detect the biphasic shift, AKA an increase in temperature that often occurs post-ovulation.

Then, an algorithm uses wrist temperature data along with logged cycle data to estimate the day ovulation likely occurred, thus helping to predict the next peak fertility window. This is why Apple refers to the fertility predictions as "retrospective" in nature, rather than suggesting the watch can serve as a natural birth control method.

So, if you have the watch and you want to start a family, the new update may be incredibly useful. Otherwise, many people who menstruate can benefit from the simple Cycle Tracking function.

As someone who has gone through countless menstrual health concerns, I'll tell you that keeping tabs on your cycle may come in handy when you least expect it.

After tracking my menstrual cycle in my notes app for years, I decided it was time to graduate to this slightly higher-tech option.

To use the period tracker, you simply input any birth control methods you’re on (if applicable) and begin tracking on the first day of your next menstrual cycle (the first day of your period). 

You’ll be able to select your state of menstruation (no flow, light flow, spotting, etc.) along with symptoms like acne, appetite changes, cramps, bloating, mood changes, and so on. 

Both Eastern and Western medicine philosophies utilize menstruation as an indicator of hormonal health in some way or another—but it’s easy to forget how long your last period was, what PMS symptoms you experienced, or if your period regularly starts on the same day of the month. With tracking, it’s made possible to have all of that information at your fingertips. 

Many Eastern medicine philosophies view period tracking as a necessity for hormonal health. “Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) believes that your period acts as a monthly report card for your hormone health,” TCM expert, herbalist, and founder of Elix Lulu Ge told me in a conversation about these new features. 

She adds that period-related pain or discomfort can be a way of your body telling you that something is out of balance and may need more attention. 

These two are just my favorite functions, but there are plenty of others. In addition to the other new feature, which lets you optimize your eye health, you can also keep tabs on your alcohol consumption, blood glucose, time in daylight, and even your sexual activity. 

Now, a quick caveat: Sometimes tracking overload is a possibility. Just as you don’t need to count every single calorie you intake, you don’t need to write down every time you wash your hands, step outside, or have a drink with your friends to reach optimized health. Focus on one or two areas that mean the most to you and go from there. 

As Ge mentioned earlier, it’s important to utilize trackers like the Health App to advocate for yourself when visiting your healthcare provider. The more information you gather, the better for both you and your doctor.