I tried the Rhea app and this is how it went

You don’t need to try every app out there; I searched and found THE one.

Improving your health can be a tricky game of trial and error. It’s difficult to weed out the trendy TikTok mumbo jumbo from the actual advice that works.

You’ll even have to self-diagnose while finding something specific that works for you. These “tips” have a chance to cause more damage than actually help.

Don’t worry, I’ve done the groundwork for you. Introducing the Rhea app.

What is Rhea?

The Rhea mission statement when entering the app for the first time. — *Courtesy of Rhea.*

Rhea is an all-in-one mental and physical health app designed for everything, from concussions to improving mental health. It was designed by students at the University of Toronto to target specific health goals.

Rhea builds a plan that is unique for each user’s health journey, and best of all, IGNITE is giving free memberships to Humber Polytechnic and the University of Guelph-Humber students!

What I’ve tried before Rhea

A person bending over backward into a bridge in a martial arts studio. — *Photo by Pavel Danilyuk via Pexels.*

I’ve read the self-help books, tried various exercises and done everything imaginable backed by science.

I’ve eaten “better,” journaled, meditated and gone to the gym, all while merely scratching the surface of my issues.

Don’t get me wrong, some of this stuff did help, but it wasn’t tailored for me, which undid everything I worked toward.

I knew I needed something more focused.

Queue Rhea.

I’m not going to lie, at first, I thought Rhea was another gimmicky app like all the rest. Sure, it would have some helpful antidotes, but at the end of the day, it wasn’t going to have a lasting effect. Boy, was I wrong.

After one day, I knew this was a permanent stay on my phone and in my life.

What I wanted and how I did it

A person sitting on a rock overseeing a river and many hills while reading a book. — *Photo by Dua’a Al-Amad via Pexels.*

Rhea starts out by asking you what you would like from your mental and physical health.

I wished to focus more on my mental health. Balancing school with other responsibilities and planning your future takes a toll on the mind. Stress is no joke.

I’m aware it takes longer than a week to learn how to manage stress and reduce anxiety. So, I considered that for this experiment.

In any given week, just like any other student, my stress levels fluctuate depending on when projects get assigned, when I get a grade that I didn’t like or when it all becomes too much.

I jotted down some notes about my daily mental health before using Rhea and kept that momentum going, journaling throughout the week and even using a scoring system to be as accurate as I could be.

Out of a score of five, my stress levels typically ranged between three to five, and maybe a two on weekends where I have little happening, but never, and I mean never, has it been a one. Complete relaxation. Complete mindfulness and no worries.

I then compared the beginning of this pseudo-journal to the end. The results were staggering.

Exercises

I’ve never been much of an active person. I’m relatively healthy, make sure to eat well and keep my physical health in check.

I’ve tried working out before, so although it’s nothing new, I know I’m not the biggest fan. I mostly get my activity from walking to the bus stop and playing sports from time to time. Still, I committed to exercising again.

The exercises Rhea chose for me were very light and easy to pick up and do without being too overly strenuous. Considering I chose to focus on mental health, it made sense to get my body moving without being too rigorous.

Technically, the exercises required a kettlebell, resistance bands and some light weights. I had the resistance bands, but for weights, I was lost.

According to the Rhea website, you can use almost anything in the house that gives some weight, so I grabbed my cat and got to work.

She weighs about 12 pounds, so it fit the bill for most exercises, and she got a kick out of it, too.

For the exercises that required two weights, I took a few smaller bags and filled them with books. My cat looked pretty jealous.

All in all, the exercises were great. Being slightly more active did improve my day, but it wasn’t what I wanted out of the Rhea app.

Journaling

My personal welbeing spiking upward after just a few days in a chart. — *Courtesy of Rhea.*

Complete transparency. I’ve already journaled before ever picking up the Rhea app. I’ve been journaling since I was a child, so it’s second nature to me, and I’ve always felt the benefits of it.

Rhea, however, does something remarkable with journaling that serves new and more experienced people.

Prompts. Questions that I never really thought to ask myself. I always thought I was an introspective person, always diving into the source of my stressors and reflecting on my day, both good and bad, but Rhea’s prompts asked different questions.

Where do you feel your emotions physically? How can you build resistance to your everyday stress? How do your muscles feel throughout your body? Truly thoughtful stuff.

If you haven’t picked up journaling, the prompts keep coming, and they can be as long or short as you’d like. Highly recommended!

Breathwork

A person in a yellow hazmat suit in the traditional meditation pose. Cross legged and hands up with index fingers touching their thumb. — *Photo by cottonbro studio via Pexels.*

This was a game-changer for me. The breathwork exercises instantly calmed me down, improved my sleep and served as a good separator between work and home.

I tried them at different times of the day just for this experiment and found that doing the 4-7-8 or coherent breathing exercises at night was best for me. I’m also a night owl and just enjoy the night better for everything. Still, I tried it out in the morning. The difference it made in preparing me for my day shook me. I noticed how I wasn’t as easily irritated by menial things. I had more patience and performed better in my everyday tasks.

Similar to the morning, doing breathwork mid-day was a refresher I didn’t know I needed. It gave me a second wind. Even after finishing the weeklong experiment, I still find myself using these breath exercises regularly.

Movement breaks

My personal emotional shift after 5 days. Starting out feeling the same on Monday and feeling better on Friday. — *Courtesy of Rhea.*

Setting notifications to remind you to exercise, journal and breathe is always a good idea throughout a hectic day, but getting a notifier for movement breaks feels like it should be essential.

It’s easy to develop a routine around exercise, journaling and meditating. People do it all the time, making it a part of their morning or nightly routine, but for movement breaks, it happens smack middle of your day, right as some of the most engaging activities are happening. It served me best when I did the seated movement breaks in between classes or as I was doing my schoolwork.

It had an identical effect to using the breathwork mid-day. A much-needed reset, except this time it was for my body instead of my mind.

This is where Rhea’s personalization comes in handy. I’ve always known my body to tense up during work.

The difference I felt in taking care of my physical and mental health throughout the day is revolutionary. Going back seems like I’m doing a disservice to myself. I handle stress a bit better and it’s improving well after the experiment has ended.

*Picture by Chelsea Gates via Unsplash.*

I literally have the proof. After you’ve completed an exercise, movement break or breathwork, Rhea checks in to ask if you’ve felt better, worse or the same. The documentation doesn’t lie.

Rhea feels necessary for school life. After trying almost every health-related tip out there, it turns out the customized one was the trick I needed to get a score of one. Rhea can be especially useful as finals season approaches.

Don’t forget to grab your free membership. And don’t worry, that’s on us!

Feature image courtesy of Dingzeyu Li via Unsplash.

Do you want to take that next step in self-care? Check out how students are looking good and feeling good in our new Street Styles series!