What InnerLight does
InnerLight offers check-ins, journaling, short grounding and breath practices, guided audio, optional parts language, and an optional 90-day path. You choose what to open and what to save.
The app can offer back words you explicitly saved. It does not use AI to interpret your writing, infer a diagnosis, score risk, or decide what your experience means.
What it does not do
- It does not provide psychotherapy, medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.
- It does not monitor symptoms, detect deterioration, assess suicide risk, contact emergency services, or alert a clinician.
- It does not replace a qualified professional's assessment, informed consent, or care plan.
If you may be in immediate danger or experiencing a mental-health emergency, contact local emergency services. In the United States and its territories, call or text 988.
What the evidence can support
InnerLight itself has not been clinically studied. We do not claim that it treats a condition, improves clinical outcomes, or is equivalent to therapy.
Parts-oriented language in InnerLight is inspired by Internal Family Systems (IFS), but the app is not IFS therapy and does not reproduce a clinician-delivered protocol. A 2025 scoping review found 27 peer-reviewed IFS studies and described the evidence as promising but limited; it said IFS's status as an effective modality remained unclear and called for more randomized and cohort research (Buys, 2025).
A 2026 randomized study assigned 60 adults with PTSD to PARTS, an IFS-based program, or an active control. Each group received 16 weekly group sessions and eight individual counselling sessions. Both groups improved, but they did not differ significantly in PTSD symptom change. The authors concluded that PARTS was feasible and acceptable (Joss et al., 2026). That intensive, clinician-supported program is not evidence for this app.
InnerLight is presented for general wellness and self-reflection, without claims to diagnose, cure, mitigate, prevent, or treat disease. The FDA's current general-wellness guidance distinguishes such intended uses from medical claims; inclusion under that policy would not itself show that a product is safe or effective (FDA, 2026). This statement is not an FDA determination or legal advice.
Pacing and safety
Every practice keeps Pause, Stop, and Something simpler available. Deeper prompts are optional. You can record Not today or Too much; a Too much response suppresses matching automatic suggestions until you explicitly allow them again. Crisis and live-help information is never behind a paywall.
Reflection and body-focused attention can feel activating for some people. Stop if an exercise increases distress or disconnection. Use qualified support when self-guided practice is not enough.
Preparing for a session
Prepare for my session creates a note from four sections you write and edit. Saved entries may appear as optional, attributed candidates, but nothing is inserted automatically. InnerLight does not summarize, classify, recommend treatment, maintain a clinician portal, or send the note to a clinician. Sharing begins only when you open the iOS share sheet.
The note is a conversation aid authored by you, not an objective history or clinical record. After you choose another app or person in the share sheet, that destination's privacy and storage practices apply.
Data boundary
No account is required. InnerLight has no advertising, third-party analytics, tracking SDK, or in-app AI. Your records stay on your device unless you choose private iCloud backup or export. Journal text is additionally encrypted at the app layer with a locally held key. You can inspect, export, forget, or delete what the app remembers.
Review status
Independent clinical review is pending. Review packets exist for the app's pacing, recognition, parts language, and session-preparation behavior, but no clinician approval is claimed. Findings will remain attributed to named reviewers rather than presented as professional consensus.
Questions or corrections can be sent to support@getinnerlight.app.