Ananda is a mental wellness platform built specifically for the South Asian diaspora — students, immigrants, second-gen folks, and professionals navigating life between cultures. We offer peer circles, a resource library, and wellness insights through wearable integrations.

Is Ananda free to use?+

Yes — peer circles, the resource library, community matching, and wearable integrations are all free. We may introduce optional premium features in the future, but the core experience will always be free.

Who is Ananda for?+

Anyone in the South Asian diaspora: Desi students away from home, recent immigrants, second-generation South Asians, professionals navigating Western workplaces, parents raising children across cultures, and anyone who's ever felt like they exist between two worlds.

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Wearables & Wellness

What wearables does Ananda support?+

Oura Ring — sleep score, readiness score, HRV balance, resting heart rate
Fitbit — sleep score, resting heart rate, steps, active minutes
Apple Watch / HealthKit — coming soon

How do I connect my Fitbit?+

Make sure you have a Fitbit account and your device has synced recently at fitbit.com.
Go to Settings → Wearables (you must be signed in).
Click Connect Fitbit — you'll be redirected to Fitbit to authorize Ananda.
After approving, Ananda automatically syncs your last 30 days of sleep, heart rate, steps, and active minutes.
Your data will appear in your Wellness dashboard immediately.

What data does Ananda pull from Fitbit?+

Sleep Score — calculated from deep + REM sleep as a percentage of total sleep
Resting Heart Rate — your daily resting HR
Steps — daily step count
Active Minutes — fairly + very active minutes per day

How do I disconnect Fitbit?+

Go to Settings → Wearables and click Disconnect next to Fitbit. This removes your tokens and deletes all synced Fitbit data from our servers.

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Oura Ring

What is the Oura Ring integration?+

Ananda connects to your Oura Ring to bring your sleep score, readiness score, HRV (heart rate variability) balance, and resting heart rate right into your dashboard. Seeing your biometric data alongside your mental wellness journey helps you spot patterns — like how poor sleep correlates with a harder week emotionally.

How do I connect my Oura Ring to Ananda?+

Create a free Oura account if you haven't already at cloud.ouraring.com. Make sure your ring has synced at least once.
Get your Personal Access Token: Go to cloud.ouraring.com/personal-access-tokens → click Create New Token → give it a name like "Ananda" → copy the token.
Go to Ananda's Wearables page: Settings → Wearables (you must be signed in).
Paste your token into the Oura Ring field and click Connect Oura Ring.
Ananda will validate your token and automatically sync your last 30 days of data. Your dashboard will update immediately.

What data does Ananda pull from my Oura Ring?+

Sleep Score — Oura's 0–100 rating of your overall sleep quality
Readiness Score — how recovered and ready your body is for the day
HRV Balance — heart rate variability, a key indicator of stress and recovery
Resting Heart Rate — your lowest heart rate during the day

Where do I see my Oura data in Ananda?+

Once connected, your Dashboard will show a "Today's Wellness" widget with four tiles: Sleep, Readiness, HRV Balance, and Resting HR. Green means your score is in a healthy range; amber means it may need attention. You can tap Manage to sync manually or disconnect.

How often does Ananda sync with Oura?+

You can sync manually anytime from the Dashboard widget (↻ Sync) or from Settings → Wearables. Automatic background sync is coming soon.

Is my Oura data private?+

Yes. Your Oura token and biometric data are stored securely in our database and are never shared with third parties. You can disconnect your Oura Ring at any time from Settings → Wearables — this will also delete all your synced data from our servers.

I don't have an Oura Ring. Can I still use Ananda?+

Absolutely — the wearable integration is optional. All of Ananda's core features (circles, resources, community matching) work without it. Apple Watch / HealthKit and Fitbit integrations are coming soon.

My Oura token says "Invalid". What do I do?+

Make sure you copied the full token — they're quite long. Try copying it again.
Confirm your Oura account is active and your ring has synced recently at cloud.ouraring.com.
Try generating a new token — old tokens can expire if regenerated elsewhere.
If it still fails, email us at support@makemyananda.com.

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Mood & Wellness

What is the mood check-in?+

Each day you can log how you're feeling on a scale of 1–10 using the emoji picker on your Dashboard or the Wellness page. You can also add an optional note. It takes under 10 seconds and helps you track your emotional patterns over time.

Where do I see my wellness trends?+

Go to Wellness in the navigation bar. You\'ll see a 30-day chart overlaying your mood alongside your wearable data (sleep, readiness) so you can spot correlations — like how poor sleep affects your mood mid-week.

What does the weekly wellness digest include?+

Your average mood for the week + how many days you checked in
Your best day of the week
Average sleep, readiness, heart rate, and steps (if a wearable is connected)
A personalized resource article based on your mood trend

How do I turn the weekly digest on or off?+

Go to Settings → Notifications and toggle the Weekly Wellness Digest on or off. It sends every Sunday morning.

Is my mood data private?+

Yes — your mood check-ins and wellness data are private to your account only. They are never visible to other users or shared with third parties.

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Peer Circles

What are peer circles?+

Peer circles are community spaces organized around shared experiences — like being a Desi student, navigating immigration, or being second-generation. You can read posts, share your own thoughts anonymously or with your name, and find people who truly get it.

Are my posts anonymous?+

Your display name in circles is your account name. If you'd like to share something more privately, you can use a pseudonym when you sign up. We never share your email or account details with other users.

Can I create my own circle?+

Not yet — but this is on our roadmap. For now, if you'd like to suggest a circle topic, email us at support@makemyananda.com.

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Resource Library

Who writes the resources?+

Our resources are written for the South Asian diaspora, drawing on mental health research, cultural psychology, and community experience. They're reviewed for cultural accuracy and clinical soundness. New articles are added regularly.

Can I save articles to read later?+

Yes — click the 🔖 bookmark icon on any article to save it. Find all your saved articles at Resources → Saved. You need to be signed in to bookmark.

How does reading progress work?+

When you're reading an article, a thin bar at the top of the page tracks how far you've scrolled. Your progress is saved automatically so you can pick up where you left off. At 90% scroll, the article is marked as completed.

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Privacy & Safety

Is my data safe?+

We take data privacy seriously. Your personal data, wearable data, and community posts are stored securely. We never sell your data. You can delete your account and all associated data at any time by emailing support@makemyananda.com.

What if I'm in crisis?+

If you\'re in immediate danger, call 911. For mental health crises, call or text 988 (US Suicide & Crisis Lifeline). See our full Crisis Resources page for South Asian-specific support options.

Is Ananda a substitute for therapy?+

No. Ananda is a peer wellness community and resource platform — not a clinical service. Our resources are educational, not therapeutic. If you're struggling, we encourage you to connect with a licensed mental health professional. See our guide to finding a culturally competent therapist in the Resource Library.

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Still have questions?

We're a small team and we read every message.

Email us

💍 Step-by-Step: Connect Your Oura Ring

Open Oura Cloud

Go to cloud.ouraring.com and sign into your Oura account.

Open Oura Cloud →

Create a Personal Access Token

Navigate to Account → Personal Access Tokens → Create New Token. Name it "Ananda" and copy the token.

Go to Tokens →

Go to Ananda Wearables Settings

In Ananda, go to Settings → Wearables. You need to be signed in.

Open Wearables →

Paste Your Token

Paste the token into the Oura Ring field and click Connect. Ananda validates it instantly and syncs your last 30 days.

Check Your Dashboard

Go to your Dashboard — you'll see Today's Wellness with Sleep, Readiness, HRV Balance, and Resting HR tiles.

View Dashboard →