Calm Harm – manage self-harm

stem4

About this app

The urge to self-harm is like a wave. It feels the most powerful when you start wanting to do it.

Join over 2 million users and learn to ride the wave with the free Calm Harm app by choosing activities from these categories: Comfort, Distract, Express Yourself, Release, and Random.

There is also a breathing technique to help be mindful and stay in the moment, regulate difficult emotions and reduce tension.

When you ride the wave, the urge to self-harm will fade.

Calm Harm is an award-winning app developed for teenage mental health charity stem4 by Clinical Psychologist Dr. Nihara Krause, in collaboration with young people, using principles from the evidence-based Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT). It is built to NHS standards and approved by ORCHA.

Calm Harm provides some immediate techniques to help break the cycle of self-harm behaviours and explore underlying trigger factors; build a ‘safety net’ of helpful thoughts, behaviours and access to supportive people; and provides the opportunity to journal and self-reflect. It also provides signposts to help.

The Calm Harm app is private, anonymous and safe.

Please note that the Calm Harm app is not a substitute for the assessment and individualised treatment by a health/mental health professional.

Please also note that if you forget both your passcode and security answer, these cannot be reset as we do not create user accounts. You will need to reinstall the app, losing any previous data.

Calm Harm has been given a new look and updated to the latest technology. We’ve listened to users and enhanced the app’s functionality, adding the ability to make journal entries at any time and the option to select multiple reasons for your urge to self-harm after completing an activity. We’ve also updated and expanded the choice of activities based on user suggestions.

What else is new?
• Users can add activities to a ‘Favourites’ list.
• The mascots are now enhanced by animations throughout the app.
• Choose from a wider selection of colour schemes.
• Easier access to immediate help via the breathe activity, both during onboarding and in the footer of the app itself.
• We’ve removed the option to set a passcode to access the whole app and, instead, the self-monitoring section can now be passcode-protected or accessed via facial recognition / Touch ID.
• Tours explaining key features of the app.

What is staying the same?
• The app is clinically-developed by a Consultant Clinical Psychologist in collaboration with young people.
• Optional passcode-protection (though now only for the self-monitoring section).
• Users choose 5-minute or 15-minute activities (from the same categories as before), counted down by a timer, that are based on the principles of a treatment technique called Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT).
• Users can still record experiences in the log section (now called My Records) and see information such as weekly average urge strength, most common urges, and most active time of day.
• The app is completely free, with no in-app purchases required.
• Users are shown signposts to further help.
• Our commitment to data privacy and user anonymity.
• No need for data or WiFi access to use the app.
• Built to UK National Health Service standards and approved by ORCHA.
• Users can still personalise their experience.
• The option to hide trigger activities.

Ratings and reviews

This is an absolutely amazing app and has kept my streak going for several weeks now, and I only have a few nitpicks and suggestions. First would be the ability to manually add urges in case you dont use that app but still want to track it (idk if you can already do that) and secondly would be to have the timer run in the background in case for example, you pick an activity like play chess or coloring or something so you can play a chess app which is much more convenient than actual chess.

I really like this app, it's been really helpful for me so far. The only thing that frustrates me are that the dates are crazy. I started using the app in late July, and it has my journal entries dated from February to May! I can't find anywhere to fix this, and it's a problem because I'll want to look back and see how I've been doing along my healing journey and its not accurate. Also, i would suggest adding the option to add custom reasons. Sometimes, my reason isn't any of those listed.

Easy to start but could be improved. I wish there was dark mode, especially for night time. From there, on my phone (pixel 5a), the Android status and bottom nav bars are hidden, unless I swipe gesture. This should at very least be an option, and not the default. Finally, maybe custom moods which cause urges (my reason wasn't listed, even in a more general sense)

What's new

Bug Fixes