Feeling depressed and are you really in need to give your brain a break and relax at the same time. Then you don’t have to look anywhere beyond the smartphones, which can be handy in helping you out.

There are a few studies which show that a few moments of video games can improve your work and help concentrate on you job better. It is not that the games and the brainteaser apps help you to become smarter or sharper, but at times it helps you to improve your performance due to break that it provides from the routine work.

Some of the apps that we recommend

Lumosity

An intense game where you are pitted against the clock is divided into sessions. The games are tailored to your goals: memory, attention, problem solving, processing speed or flexibility of thinking. More interestingly, they change every time you play it and developers claim just one session a day can improve mental skills and users can track progress and compare performance with others.

CogniFit Brain Fitness

A game designed by neuroscientists and after an initial quiz, the app adapts each game’s difficulty to your profile and gives you recommendations based on your results. Developers say that users saw improvement by spending at least 20 minutes, two to three times a week, playing the games.

Fit Brains Trainer

Various tasks and puzzles that get harder with each session as you improve and will keep track of your progress and performance tools and the program offers training recommendations for best results. There are more than 360 options available and should keep you interested.

Personal Zen

This game is developed by Dr. Dennis and researchers from Hunter College and the City University of New York. They claim that it reduces anxiety by training your brain to focus more on the positive and less on the negative. Here players follow two animated characters, one of which looks calm and friendly while the other looks angry, as they burrow through a field of rustling grass.

Happify

It is always important to keep your brain happy and the research emphasizes that one can train a brain better by keeping it positive. The app’s quizzes, polls and gratitude journal — combined with a positive community help the user to keep smiling and build some positive energy.

ReliefLink

An award winning suicide prevention app, this can be used as mood tracker. Developed by Dr. Kaslow it also includes unique coping methods, such as voice-recorded mindfulness and relaxation exercises, or relaxing music. The map locator pinpoints nearby therapists, support groups and mental health treatment facilities, too, in case you ever need to talk to a professional.

Brain Trainer Special 

Like Lumosity, this Android app contains games that have you memorizing letter sequences, phone numbers and solving assorted math problems to keep your mind in tip-top shape. Difficulty levels range from easy to brain-tingling hard.

Brain Fitness Pro

Developers claim long term benefits due to intensive working memory training and it increases attention and general cognitive skills. It has a series of memory training exercises to increase focus, memory and problem-solving skills.

Positive Activity Jackpot

This app was originally developed for service members returning from combat with high risk for post-traumatic stress disorder. It uses augmented reality with an Android phone’s GPS to find nearby activities and diversions for someone coping with depression. If you cannot make up your mind what to do, “pull the lever” and let the app’s jackpot function make the choice for you.

Eidetic

Eidetic uses a technique called spaced repetition to help you memorize anything from important phone numbers to interesting words or facts. It works differently from typical brain training apps by using items that have meaning and context, like your beau’s phone number, bank account details, or a new quote worth reciting. Notifications remind you when it’s time to test yourself and spaces out tests over time to make sure you retain the information in long-term memory.

Tags : Apps