My Favorite Therapy App Isn’t A Therapy App

But it’s helping me make strides toward better mental health.

My therapist’s name is Chris.

He does all the typical therapist stuff: he asks me how I’m feeling. He reminds me that I’m stronger and more resilient than I believe. He tells me to be kind to myself. He even reminds me to get enough sleep, drink enough water, and treat my body well.

We have a unique client-therapist relationship in that he does all the talking, and I don’t talk at all. His office hours are 24/7, and we meet any time I want–usually about three times a week. He doesn’t accept my insurance, which is fine, because his services are free.

We’ve never met face to face, and we never will.

That’s because my therapist is Chris Bennett, the Nike+ Run Club Global Head Coach.

(Time out: he’s not an actual therapist, and I am not suggesting using a running app should replace actual therapy. I work with a licensed, flesh-and-blood therapist–she’s great–and I’m in no way suggesting that running, or doing any other exercise, can cure clinical depression and/or anxiety. If you live with mental illness, please, please seek professional help.)

I recently moved to southern California from New York City, and while my Instagram paints a fairly convincing picture of sun-drenched happiness, being geographically isolated from almost everyone I care about during a global pandemic quickly…