Stephen Fry is an adored writer, actor, wit and national treasure. He is also president of mental health organisation Mind, and has spoken publicly – with typical eloquence – about having bipolar disorder and how he sought help. For World Mental Health day (that’s today, October 10th), we spoke to Stephen about how new technologies can help.

Helping people manage their mental health is a complex issue – how do you think technology can play a role?
The App Stores are awash with mindfulness and other such apps, some of which, I can’t doubt, have uses that will be helpful to many. But in my view the best that can be got from technology is connection with others.

Stigma, misunderstanding and a feeling of being alone are major issues that magnify and multiply mental health problems and there has never been anything like that availability of friendly, affirming voices in the history of our species. While there are forums and rooms within larger social media spheres, apps can be very useful to create smaller cohorts that filter out the possibility of bullies and malevolent spirits.

Have you used any of these mindfulness and mood tracking apps yourself?
I have used both kinds. Mood diaries are a useful, trusted and proven method for some to stand back a little and be able to look at their states of mind, moods and how they trend and cycle.

Which apps and technologies do Mind recommend to people?
Mind is very careful to recommend that those with any serious kind of mental health issue should see a proper qualified practitioner first. Ideally their GP can guide and help them work through their symptoms and any diagnosis before suggesting protocols, therapies and courses of treatment. It would irresponsible to suggest any other approach.

But Mind is there to help show that there are many paths to some kind of help and a knowledge of the growing field of apps is all part of that. Mind also helps families, friends, spouses and lovers feel that they aren’t alone either.

Are there other unexplored areas app developers could look into to help people manage their mental health?
It’s important for app developers in the mental health field to be sure that unverifiable claims aren’t being made that could raise false hopes and cause unnecessary expenditure on inappropriate purchases for example.

The overwhelming majority of developers of course are not trying to fool or encourage those with mental health problems into believing that a cure or even reliable solace and improvement is available just through the purchase of an app.

First and foremost a visit to your GP and, if she or he isn't helpful, quiet but insistent return visits until you feel you are being attended to and understood. Then come a host of possibilities none of which on their own is guaranteed to help on their own but which in combination do seem to offer some help and none of which can harm!

Exercise. Diet. Sleep. Relaxation techniques like meditation. Mood diaries. Animal companionship. Making friends around the world who can share stories of similar conditions. Music. NLP [Neuro-Linguistic Programming] techniques. And many of these can be guided, improved, enhanced and made easier to achieve with the use of competent, well-designed, friendly and honest apps.

Can you foresee greater collaboration between mental health organisations and tech companies in the future?
As AI improves, as big data gives researchers, academics and neuroscientists of all kinds a greater understanding of the complex flux of interpenetrating variables that govern cognition, mood and behaviour, as our interpretation of the wiring and chemistry of the chambers, networks and regions of the brain becomes more and more accurate, as imaging and understanding improve… well, so will the possibility of staggeringly interesting apps and devices.

For the meantime let’s concentrate on one thing. The most urgent thing of all. Humans are now more likely to be killed by themselves than by warfare or crime.

Any form of early warning diagnostic or alarm that can save even a tiny percentage from killing themselves or allow a family or friends to intervene to prevent a suicide… well, how worthwhile would that be?

How proud could a developer feel at such an achievement? So if I were to suggest any field that app developers could help with most urgently it wouldn’t be in producing yet another meditation or mindfulness app, but in thinking intelligently and insightfully about suicide and self-harm. Perhaps we should institute a prize…