Mobile Application Pacifica Puts Powerful Therapy Tools into the Hands of Consumers
San Francisco, CA (PRWEB) January 27, 2015 -- Available today, both the Pacifica iOS app and the Pacifica Android app offer daily tools to help those with stress and anxiety. Based on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), a well-researched technique for helping people understand the relationship between their thoughts, feelings, and behaviors, Pacifica is comprised of quick, immersive tools that are designed to fit into our daily lives.
“Pacifica puts powerful therapy tools into the hands of consumers and guides them through Cognitive Behavioral Therapy in a thoughtful way. It is a beautiful, user-friendly app that will hopefully make a big difference in the lives of many people,” said Christine Moberg, Ph.D., a Postdoctoral Fellow at Stanford University School of Medicine. “It represents an important step forward for psychotherapy. By creating a tool that can be used outside of the clinic, we enable people struggling with anxiety, stress, and depression to work toward making improvements in their mental health. While there will always be a place for traditional therapy, barriers such as stigma, cost, and logistical considerations often get in the way of individuals getting the treatment they need.”
“We found that the current apps out there are simple mappings from typical workbook-based pen and paper exercises to a mobile device,” stated Pacifica Labs Co-Founder and CEO Dale Beermann. “However, workbooks themselves don’t fit into our normal routines. We knew we could do better.” The new app provides autonomous relaxation exercises, spoken thought journals, and daily goals, each designed around specific parts of the CBT cycle. In addition, mood and health trackers help people understand how their symptoms are affected by certain known triggers.
“I’ve personally dealt with anxiety most of my life and CBT was the way out of the woods for me,” said Pacifica Labs Co-founder and Designer Chris Goettel. “The challenge then in designing Pacifica was distilling these tools into an engaging and empathetic experience. I know first hand how debilitating and isolating anxiety can be. Pacifica is an extended hand to anyone suffering.”
About Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy has been practiced for decades and has been shown to significantly reduce episodes relating to many different anxiety disorders, including generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, and social anxiety disorder. By helping users explore patterns of negative thought and their relationship to self-defeating behaviors, users can break out of the cycle and modify their thinking patterns. CBT is typically administered in person by professional therapists, but in recent years internet-delivered CBT has been shown to be very effective.
About Pacifica Labs Inc.
Pacifica Labs is a San Francisco-based startup founded in late 2014 by Dale Beermann and Chris Goettel. Pacifica’s mission is to combat the stigma around mental health care by providing tools that integrate into our everyday lives. Pacifica Labs is advised by Christine Moberg, a Postdoctoral Fellow at Stanford University School of Medicine, and Scott Rouse, a design and usability expert.
Press Contact
Dale Beermann
Pacifica Labs, Inc., 1521 Guerrero Street, San Francisco, CA 94110
Mobile: (608) 332-7221
Email: dale (at) thinkpacifica (dot) com
Twitter: @thinkpacifica
Website: http://thinkpacifica.com
Dale Beermann, Pacifica Labs Inc., http://thinkpacifica.com, +1 (608) 332-7221, [email protected]
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