Apple marks World Mental Health Day with 'Mindfulness Award' for Watch users

As World Mental Health Day approaches on October 10, Apple is encouraging users to take a pause - quite literally. This year, Apple Watch users can earn a special award by recording 10 minutes of mindfulness or meditation using any app that adds mindful minutes to the Health app.

The idea is simple: to make checking in with yourself as habitual as checking your notifications. Through the Mindfulness app, Apple Watch users can start a Reflect or Breathe session - small, daily pauses designed to help people center their thoughts, focus their attention, and ease the mental noise that builds up through the day.

Tracking How You Feel
Apple’s broader approach to mental wellbeing sits quietly in the background of its ecosystem — through the Health app on iPhone and the Mindfulness app on Watch. Users can log their state of mind, noting how they feel in the moment and across days. The data doesn’t just sit there; it links to lifestyle factors like exercise, sleep, daylight exposure, and mindful minutes, offering a clearer picture of what affects one’s mood over time.

For those who want to go deeper, Apple also offers mental health assessments directly on iPhone and iPad to help identify potential risks for anxiety or depression. And with Journaling, users can reflect on their emotions in writing - the time spent journaling even counts toward mindful minutes, a small but thoughtful link between reflection and self-care.

Small Steps, Real Impact
To mark the occasion, Apple Fitness+ meditation trainers - JoAnna Hardy, Christian Howard, and Jonelle Lewis - shared insights on simple mindfulness habits that anyone can adopt:

• Start with intention: JoAnna Hardy suggests beginning each morning by setting an intention, like being kinder or more patient. “It’s like a compass,” she says. “Things may not go as planned, but returning to your intention can help you stay grounded.”
  
• Use your breath as an anchor: Christian Howard recommends focusing on the sensation of air moving in and out of the body. “When stress builds up, slow breathing can reset your mind in seconds,” he explains.
  
• Wind down with meditation: Jonelle Lewis highlights the role of evening mindfulness. “If you struggle to fall asleep, try visualizing a peaceful place or repeating a calming phrase,” she says. Even a few minutes, she notes, can make a difference.

A Moment to Reflect
This year’s World Mental Health Day reminder from Apple is less about metrics and more about moments - ten minutes of stillness, a breath, or a single journal entry. Whether or not users earn the limited-edition digital award, the gesture underscores a larger message: caring for mental wellbeing doesn’t always require big changes. Sometimes, it starts with a pause.