There is an app for almost everything, and this includes recovery for stroke patients. Apps for stroke patients conveniently provide access to therapy straight from your phone or tablet. While working directly with a therapist during stroke rehabilitation is always best, these different apps can help supplement your home exercise program. Apps can also be helpful for stroke patients unable to attend daily outpatient therapy due to insurance limits.
During rehabilitation, your therapy team will encourage you to practice your home exercise program between therapy sessions, and that’s where apps can help. Between outpatient therapy sessions, you can use stroke recovery apps to help you get your daily dose of therapy. This can also keep your recovery regimen fun and engaging to encourage consistency.
Best Apps for Stroke Patients
Here are our picks for the best stroke recovery apps as of 2024. These different apps can help with a range of stroke secondary effects from balance to memory to cognitive function. Subsequently, you may find yourself feeling more motivated to pursue recovery. Let’s review some of these apps and how they can help you boost recovery!
1. “Elevate – Brain Training Games”
Helps with: Memory and cognitive function
Elevate was designed to help you improve cognitive function through educational games. This includes games that work on skills like memory, comprehension, and processing. The app allows you to progress the difficulty level as your skills improve to continue challenging your brain. As a result, you can continue to improve your skills and sharpen your cognitive abilities.
According to Elevate’s reported statistics, 93% of Elevate users reported feeling mentally sharper and 89% improved their mental math skills. High repetition and consistency are key to recovery, so keep working every day to sharpen your cognitive skills.
Price: Free (In-app purchases: $4.99 optional monthly subscription)
2. “Clock Yourself”
Helps with: Coordination, balance, and cognitive function
Designed by an Australian physiotherapist, this app helps you “think faster on your feet.” The app introduces progressively complex activities to help you react more quickly with your body. This can be especially helpful for stroke patients who lack balance and coordination and therefore are at a heightened risk of falling.
The Clock Yourself app is considered pre-habilitation, but for stroke patients, it can make great re-habilitation. Just make sure you are practicing in a safe location with assistance from a caregiver if needed.
Price: $2.99
Learn more about Clock Yourself »
3. “Calm”
Helps with: Sleep, post-stroke depression, and anxiety
Calm is a meditation and sleep app that’s topping the charts as the #1 app for sleep and relaxation in the Apple Store. Meditation apps can help stroke patients who struggle with post-stroke depression, insomnia, or anxiety. By practicing healthy habits and improving the quality of your sleep and relaxation, you can boost your recovery after stroke.
Price: Free (In-app purchases: $14.99 optional monthly subscription)
4. “Rehabit”
Helps with: Healthy habits, physical function, and cognitive function
Life after stroke can feel overwhelming and many survivors find it challenging to create a new routine. Rehabit is an app for stroke patients that helps you follow a routine and create new healthy habits after stroke.
In addition to tracking your daily activities, Rehabit offers a “journal” to help you track your progress. This can be especially helpful for those experiencing a plateau in recovery as it allows you to see small gains in progress. The app also offers exercise and range of motion programs as well as educational material to encourage neuroplasticity, the brain’s natural rewiring process.
Price: Free (In-app purchases: $19.99 optional monthly subscription)
5. “Lumosity”
Helps with: Cognitive function and memory
Lumosity is a premium “brain training” app designed for adults of all ages. This app includes personalized challenges and games for memory, problem-solving, and reasoning. Practicing these kinds of activities regularly can help spark neuroplasticity and improve critical thinking skills. If you need more assistance, talk with your occupational or speech therapist for more ideas to improve your cognitive function.
Price: Free (In-app purchases: $11.99 optional monthly subscription)
6. “What’s the Difference? Spot It”
Helps with: Cognitive function and visual skills
This app can help stroke survivors boost recovery by helping to improve attention and visual scanning. The app challenges you to identify small differences between otherwise-identical pictures, sharpening your cognitive skills. Accordingly, you may find that this becomes easier and you can choose harder challenges as you practice.
Price: Free (In-app purchases)
Learn more about What’s the Difference? »
Best Apps for Speech Therapy After Stroke
Many stroke survivors experience secondary effects involving speech, such as aphasia. If you struggle with speech, language, or cognitive function after stroke, take a look at some of these helpful apps for stroke patients.
7. “CT Speech and Cognitive Therapy App”
Designed by expert speech-language pathologists, this app can help you improve speech, language, and critical thinking skills. It contains over 100,000+ exercises to help retrain the brain. Consistent practice of speech exercises like these can be a valuable recovery tool for stroke survivors who wish to improve their function.
Price: $29.99 monthly subscription
Learn more about CT Speech Therapy App »
8. “Proloquo2Go ACC”
This app is incredibly helpful for patients that can’t talk after stroke. It works by providing the user with quick access to symbols for “core words.” For those with impaired verbal communication, this can dramatically improve quality of life and autonomy.
Surprisingly, studies show that just 200-400 words make up 80% of what we say. Proloquo2Go provides quick access to these core words, which delivers a much-needed means of communication to stroke patients that can’t talk. This app can also be customized to your specific needs. If you need help getting started, ask your speech or occupational therapists about Proloquo2Go or another alternative communication device.
Price: $249
Learn more about Proloquo2Go »
9. “Language Therapy 4-in-1”
This app is designed for stroke patients affected by aphasia. This app combines four separate apps that address comprehension, naming, reading, and writing. Therefore, stroke patients can use this app to work on a variety of different skills and cognitive tasks.
Price: $74.99
Learn more about Language Therapy 4-in-1 »
Best Tablet Games for Stroke Patients
Fun is a critical element if you want to stay engaged with your therapy. Therefore, finding activities that motivate you to practice therapy exercise is an important piece of recovery. For some stroke patients, this may include fun apps to use on a tablet. These games can help you improve your fine motor skills and cognitive function. To help you get started, we’ve listed our top games for stroke patients as of 2024.
10. “Brain Out”
This tricky game will challenge your mind while providing you with a fun activity. By working to solve critical thinking challenges, you can help boost your cognitive function and problem-solving skills.
Price: Free (In-app purchases)
See Brain Out on the App Store »
11. “Wordscapes”
Wordscapes is a challenging word game that is similar to a crossword puzzle, but with some fun twists. This app offers a variety of fun word games and can provide a great word-finding challenge for stroke patients.
Price: Free (In-app purchases)
See Wordscapes on the App Store »
12. “Sort It 3D”
This app involves sorting colored balls in different tubes. Simple yet addicting, this game provides a cognitive and fine motor challenge. This app can also help stroke patients improve their problem-solving skills.
Price: Free (In-app purchases)
See Sort It 3D in the App Store »
13. “2048 Balls 3D”
Stroke patients can exercise their math skills with this addicting strategy game app. Drop the balls and merge their numbers. See if you can get to 2048! As you practice apps like 2048 Balls 3D, you may find that your fine motor and cognitive skills can improve .
Price: Free (In-app purchases)
See 2048 Balls 3D on the App Store »
Which App for Stroke Patients Will You Choose?
After a stroke, daily therapy is crucial to help you see the best results possible. For most, this will include a combination of therapies. This often includes physical therapy, occupational therapy, and speech therapy. Throughout your recovery, your therapy team will work with you to create a home exercise program that addresses your unique needs and abilities. However, you can make your program feel less like homework by adding some fun to the mix.
Adding fun apps to your stroke recovery plan is a great way to make your rehab more engaging. This can also encourage you to perform the high repetitions necessary to maximize neuroplasticity and improve your skills. Apps available for stroke patients include apps that can help users improve critical thinking, fine motor skills, and even speech.
For a more comprehensive experience, you can try gamified rehab devices like Flint Rehab’s MusicGlove hand therapy and FitMi full body therapy. These programs add the element of gaming and fun to your rehab exercises. Above all, be creative and work to create a rehab program that is fun and engaging. By staying consistent, you will be able to see the greatest improvements in your daily life.
Images sourced from: Apple App Store
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