We live in a fast-paced, stressful world. Hasn’t that been a statement time and time again?

As our technology and general medical knowledge have evolved, so has the acknowledgement of mental health. Awareness of disorders such as depression and anxiety has significantly increased over the years.

While that’s a good thing, it has also brought to light the need for aiding those who struggle with these disorders.

Mental conditions are, of course, different from physical conditions. They’re much harder to treat, because they’re much harder to see. Treatment, such as psychotherapy, can also be incredibly expensive. With that in mind, many people look for easier, less costly options to help them.

Finding an aid for self care that’s reliable and validated by actual health professionals can be difficult, so today, in the spirit of Mental Health Awareness month, I’m going to share with you a certified self care app that I came across recently, and have really come to love.

The app is called, “Finch”!

Finch is an app that was born out of the genius concept of combining self-care help methods with a virtual pet! You take care of your little bird friend by taking care of yourself!

You start off by hatching a little finch baby. As you continue checking into the app to complete your daily goals (that are endlessly customizable and set up by you), your finch will grow and learn fun little tidbits they’ll share when they chat with you!

As for the goals, these are daily tasks you choose that you think will best help you. That could be going outside, doing a breathing exercise, going to sleep at a reasonable hour, drinking water, or even just surviving the day. Completing each task will reward you with gems that you can use to customize your bird and their house. There’s no way to purchase these gems with actual money (Wow! No slimy in-app currency purchases!), so it gives you more incentive to check in and complete your daily goals.

Aside from the goals, the app has several sweet features to help you out. It provides you with a breathing exercise function, asks questions regarding how you’re feeling, gives you places to vent or reflect about certain topics, sends you positive affirmations, and the bird itself is just a cute, soothing little friend that has a good chance of helping you feel a little better if you’re not doing great.

Finch also has a friend function, so you can add your friends and send your birds to go comfort each other!

Overall, I really recommend finch. If you have a short attention span, or are just tired of generic self-care apps that you can’t stick with, I would definitely try this one out. It’s gentle, certified by health professionals, and it’s got a cute bird in it that just wants to see you take care of yourself. What’s more to love?