Reddit's best self-care apps and planners. Because "productive" shouldn't mean "worked until burned out."
Last updated: January 2025. Based on discussions from r/selfcare, r/productivity, r/selfimprovement, r/DecidingToBeBetter.
"I crushed my todo list this year. 847 tasks completed. And I feel... nothing. I forgot to see friends. I haven't exercised in months. When did I last do something just for fun? I was so productive I forgot to have a life."
This confession appears constantly on Reddit. The productivity trap: optimizing tasks while neglecting the human being doing them. Here's what the research and community actually recommend.
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration identifies 8 dimensions of wellness that interact and influence each other. Neglecting any dimension eventually affects the others. Research by Diener, Oishi, and Tay (2018) on subjective well-being confirms that life satisfaction requires balance across multiple domains - not excellence in just one.
Exercise, nutrition, sleep, medical care
Processing feelings, stress management, self-acceptance
Learning, creativity, mental stimulation
Relationships, community, belonging
Work satisfaction, professional growth
Living space, nature, physical surroundings
Purpose, values, meaning, connection to something larger
Money management, security, reducing financial stress
Most todo apps are designed for work tasks. Open Todoist, Things 3, or Notion - the default assumption is you're tracking projects and deadlines. Where do you put "call mom"? "Take a walk"? "Read for fun"? These feel out of place in a productivity system. So you don't add them. And slowly, they disappear from your life entirely.
Research on well-being shows that improvement in one life area creates positive spillover to others. Eakman (2016) found that life satisfaction is directly linked to how well basic psychological needs are met across different domains. This creates an upward spiral: better sleep improves work, better relationships reduce stress, exercise boosts mood, which improves everything.
The reverse is also true. Neglecting areas creates downward spirals: overworking leads to poor sleep, which leads to relationship strain, which leads to poor health decisions...
| App | Life Areas | Self-Care Focus | Balance View | Non-Work Tasks | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Funtasking | 8 areas (Purpose Wheel) | Play, Body, Mind categories | Visual wheel shows balance | Equal to work tasks | Free / $2.99 Pro |
| Daylio | Mood + activities | Mood tracking focus | Mood patterns only | Activity tracking | Free / $4.99/year |
| Fabulous | Health routines | Self-care focused | Journey-based | Wellness habits | Free trial / $60/year |
| Finch | Self-care categories | Gentle, pet-based | Pet growth = progress | Focus on wellbeing | Free / $40/year |
| Todoist | Custom projects only | Work-focused design | No balance features | Feels out of place | Free / $4/mo |
| Things 3 | Custom areas | GTD-focused | No balance view | Work-optimized | $49.99 one-time |
When you create a task, you assign it to an area. The visual wheel shows which areas you're focusing on - and which you're neglecting.
Research on the "Wheel of Life" coaching tool (Byrne, 2005) shows that having predefined life categories helps people recognize imbalances they'd otherwise miss. Instead of "I feel bad but don't know why," you see "I haven't done anything for Connection or Play in 3 weeks." The visualization makes abstract neglect concrete and actionable.
This is productivity culture talking. Research consistently shows that rest and recovery improve performance. You're not a machine - even machines need maintenance. Viewing self-care as "productive" might help reframe it: you're maintaining the most important tool you have (yourself).
Start with 5-minute micro-actions. A 5-minute walk is self-care. Texting a friend is self-care. You don't need hour-long spa sessions. The key is consistency, not duration. Apps like Funtasking reward any task completion equally - a 15-minute walk earns the same coin as a 15-minute work task.
Put it in your system like any other task. Schedule "call mom" like a meeting. Add "10-min walk" to your morning routine. The problem is treating self-care as optional extras rather than essential maintenance. Visual planners that show life balance help - seeing "Play: 0 tasks this week" is motivating.
This might be burnout or depression. When even pleasurable activities feel like obligations, it's a sign something deeper needs attention. Consider: reducing overall commitments, talking to a therapist, or taking genuine time off (not "productive rest"). Apps won't fix this - but recognizing the pattern is the first step.
In Funtasking, you earn coins for completing ANY task - Work, Play, Body, or Mind. A 15-minute nap earns the same as a 15-minute work session. This deliberately counteracts the cultural message that only work "counts." Research on gamification shows that rewarding behaviors increases their frequency. By rewarding self-care equally, the app helps rebuild habits that productivity culture eroded.
8 life areas including Play, Body, and Mind. Visual wheel shows what you're neglecting. Earn rewards for self-care, not just work.
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