Menopause symptoms can leave you feeling overwhelmed, frustrated and downright desperate at times. The Stella menopause app is here to help you and uses personalised exercises and psychological techniques to get habits to stick, improving your health now and in later life. We’re a friend in your pocket that you can trust during this phase of your life.
Your Stella plan – getting started
When you download Stella, we begin by asking you which symptoms are affecting your life. We use this information to tailor your plan and focus on your top three most bothersome symptoms. We explain why symptoms are happening and what can help. These could include tips, techniques and habits in easy-to-understand sessions. If your symptoms change, your plan can adapt.
Stella helps new habits become part of your daily routine with proven techniques, such as:
- Cognitive behaviour therapy
- Stress management
- Mindfulness
- Pelvic floor physiotherapy, and more
We help you make small lifestyle changes that can make a big difference to menopause symptoms and also reduce the risk of osteoporosis, cardiovascular disease, diabetes and dementia.
When you open the app, your Today screen will show you which sessions to do in your plan and suggest other things to explore. To see your plan, just click on Sessions at the bottom of the app screen.
Start your free online menopause assessment to see if HRT is right for you
Coaching that motivates you
You can chat privately with a trained coach who is an empathetic listener. They will spur you on and yet understand the ups and downs of menopause and lifestyle change. They are a real person, not a chatbot, and they are here to help you set achievable goals.
Your coach will:
- Empower you to make long-term lifestyle changes to feel better
- Share tips for creating healthier habits
- Signpost to relevant resources and help you use the app
- Keep you updated on relevant events and group coaching sessions
- Act as cheerleaders, motivators and accountability buddies
- Support with any technical issues
- Help you change plans when needed
- Check in with how you are getting on with your plan
There is no need to worry about coaching feeling intrusive. You can set the level of interaction to suit you. Some people only want their coach to answer their questions, while others want coaches to ask how they are getting on regularly.
Why use a coach?
Our research shows that you are three times more likely to finish your plan if you use your coach. Why is this important?
80% of people feel better and 75% report improved symptoms when they complete a Stella plan.
You can message your coach within the app through coach chat, which you can find at the bottom of the app screen under Your coach. It is a rolling chat and you can scroll through the message history if you need reminding about something.
We also hold group coaching sessions to help you learn more about the techniques in your plan. They are hosted by an expert in behaviour change and you can hear from other Stella users about their experiences. Your coach will let you know when the next one is being held.
I just wasn’t as effective and couldn’t balance different things. I now have strategies to manage symptoms and struggle to remember life before Stella. My coach has been amazing. Stella is a pocket of loveliness through the chaos of menopause.”
Fitting healthier habits into your life
Each session in your Stella plan recommends a new habit to help your symptoms. Stella has more than 60 habits to choose from, such as keeping a worry diary, creating a wind-down routine, being more active or paced breathing. All the habits Stella recommends are scientifically proven to work.
Our coaches recommend pairing your habit with something you already do routinely. Use the app to schedule your habits using our reminder system because life often gets in the way! You can use Stella to:
- Set which days of the week you want to do your habits
- Choose the time to do them
- Set a trigger reminder of when to do them, such as after breakfast
To find your habits, click Today at the bottom of the app screen. Under Today’s habits, click “See all” to view your complete list of habits. You can edit them or add more.
We will send you a notification on your phone to remind you to do your habit. Make sure you have your notifications turned on! Avoid feeling overwhelmed by only adding a few habits at first and making them part of your routine before adding more. Remember, lifestyle change is hard and you may forget to do your new habits or struggle to keep up. That’s ok. It takes practice and persistence until it happens as automatically as brushing your teeth.
Find inspiration and learn more about menopause
At the bottom of the app screen, you can click on Learn to explore our menopause resources, including:
- Articles – useful information about all things menopause so you can understand the science behind the headlines
- Menopause experiences – reading other people’s menopause stories can be reassuring and help you feel less alone
- Recipes – boost your nutrition with our menopause-friendly meal plans
- Symptom glossary and treatment library – find everything you need to know
- Exercises – give our classes a try, from strength training to yoga
- Stella Lives – watch and join our Q&As with experts
- Community questions – get your burning questions answered
Start your free online menopause assessment to see if HRT is right for you
Progress tracking
The Wellbeing check-in tracks how you are feeling beyond everything menopause every week. The Symptom check-in asks you to rate your symptoms when you first download the app and every time you reach a milestone in your plan.
Mindfulness & community
If you are rolling your eyes at meditation and mindfulness, we understand. It can be tough to sit in the present moment when your mind is racing with to-do lists. We can reassure you that the science proves that it can help reduce stress, which can worsen many menopause symptoms from mood swings to hot flushes and sleep. Long-term stress leaves you in a permanent state of fight or flight, affecting how often and severe your symptoms are.
It does take a bit of practice and for help, scroll to the bottom of the app screen and click on SOS. You can choose which of the following symptoms you want help with:
- Anxiety
- Stress
- Hot flush
- Fatigue
- Sleep issues
- Feeling down
- Pain relief
- Focus
Whether you have just a few minutes or more time, Stella’s SOS has a range of things to help you feel calmer, energised or focused, including:
- Breathing exercises and meditations
- Stories to help you nod off or get back to sleep
- Sounds, from waterfalls to crackling campfires
- Specially composed music tracks
Supportive community
Interact with our experts by submitting a question to Community questions or you can join in our Q&A events with experts. Our group coaching sessions are a great way to interact with other Stella users and get direct support with your plan’s techniques and habits.
ORCHA approved
With more and more healthcare support moving to apps, it can be a real challenge to know which of the many apps you can trust. ORCHA is the organisation that approves health apps for the NHS and global health organisations.
The Stella app is officially certified by ORCHA. We are approved to be part of the ORCHA health app library recommended by NHS England and the American College of Physicians, among others.
Why is this a big deal? ORCHA assesses against clinical standards and regulations, data and privacy, usability, and accessibility so the apps they certify can be recommended confidently by healthcare professionals.
Final word
We hope you enjoy using Stella. If you experience any issues using the app, drop your coach a message or email us at hello@onstella.com.
Find out more about menopause on our blog or in our symptoms library.
Try our menopause clinic
The latest
The news may have you believe you can now buy your HRT from your pharmacist. Spoiler alert! That’s not quite right as it’s not for all HRT. Find out more here.
Do antibiotics, D-mannose or cranberry juice treat UTIs? Why do UTIs happen after sex during menopause and how can you minimise infections? Find out…
Black cohosh, devil’s claw, red clover, evening primrose oil and flax seeds – do these natural supplements for menopause work and are they worth the money?
If you are under 55 or not postmenopausal, you still need contraception to prevent pregnancy. You also need it to prevent STIs.
Could GLP-1 drugs like Wegovy and Ozempic help menopausal weight gain? We explore who can take these drugs and if they can relieve other menopause symptoms.
Hormonal changes and life milestones make low mood common during menopause. Here’s when to get help and what treatment can help bring back your usual self.
Find out the four foundations for a healthy diet in menopause. Discover the pros and cons of popular diets such as intermittent fasting and plant-based.
