I've been building a mental health app and I'm trying to understand what drives real retention in this space. Most apps I've seen rely on streaks, gamification, or daily reminders. But for people dealing with depression or anxiety those mechanics often backfire. Missing a streak on a hard day feels like one more failure. I took a different approach with my app. No pressure, no "have you tried gratitude journaling?"
Just one small action matched to how you feel that day.
But I'm genuinely curious about your experience:
Have you ever stuck with a mental health app long-term?
Hey Product Hunt π
I built Still Space because every mental health app I tried expected me to meditate when I could barely get out of bed.
10 months unemployed. Anxiety and depression. My therapist suggested to-do lists. They made things worse, every unchecked item felt like proof I was failing.
So I did the opposite. Instead of planning what to do, I started noticing what I'd already done. Replied to a message. Drank water. Got dressed. Tiny things, but writing them down changed something real. I found out later this is called behavioral activation. I didn't read about it. I stumbled into it because nothing else worked.
Something shifted. I found out later this is called behavioral activation β an evidence-based approach for depression. I hadn't read about it. I just stumbled into it because nothing else was working.
I looked for an app that worked this way. Nothing existed. So I built one. I'm a Senior Product Designer from Ukraine, no coding experience. I used AI tools and figured it out as I went.
Here's what Still Space does:
β Mood check-in that doesn't pretend you're fine
β Micro-actions matched to your mood AND where you are β at home, outside, at work
β "Just be here" mode β calming sounds and presence for when you can't do anything at all
β A place to write everything out β text disappears, no saving
β Journal with mood history, patterns, and notes to your future self
β Crisis helplines built in
β Fully private β no data leaves your device
β Ukrainian, English, Russian
β No streaks
β No guilt
β No toxic positivity
It's not another meditation app. It's the app you needed at 3am when you couldn't sleep and couldn't think straight. It's iOS only for now. There's a 7-day free trial.
If you've been through something similar, I'd love to hear what helped and what didn't. And if you know someone who might need this right now β sharing it means everything. Every single person who finds it matters.
Thank you for being here π
"How are you today?" I love that. It's something that's simple yet effective, and it's something that we forget to ask ourselves often. Starting with that question is powerful.
The local-first approach is great, too. Is it local-first only, or does the user have the chance to eventually sync their data to the cloud?
Congrats on your launch π«ΆπΎ
@itskarellehΒ
Thank you so much!
Right now itβs primarily local-first: all data stays on the device by default.
Thereβs also optional iCloud sync, so users can keep their data across devices while still staying in control.
Privacy and a sense of safety were really important decisions from the start.
Thanks again for the kind words and support π