Evidence notes: how Small Calm checks facts

A calm-practice site can drift into wellness language very quickly. These notes set out the rules the editors work to, so that you can judge a page by them and tell the editors when a page falls short.

Where claims come from

Every figure, date, name and finding on a reading page comes from a public page the editors opened and read: health agencies and national health services, research institutes, professional bodies, guideline publishers, and peer-reviewed reviews. The sources are listed at the foot of each page, with a short note on what each one was used for. If a source could not be opened, or did not support a claim, the claim was left out or described in general terms.

How strength of evidence is described

The editors avoid scoring systems that look more exact than the research is. Instead a page says, in words, what the sources say. When trials are small, short, or inconsistent, the page says so. When a review concludes there is no good evidence of benefit, the page repeats that conclusion with the reviewer named. When a practice has not been well studied, the page says it has not been well studied, and does not suggest it works by default.

Dates and rechecking

Guidance changes. Each page shows the date it was last checked, which is the date the editors last confirmed that the cited pages still said what the page reports. Where a statement depends on a particular guideline version, the version is named. Pages are rechecked when a cited body updates its guidance and when a reader reports a problem.

Notes on the exercises

The working exercises are built from descriptions published by health services and research bodies, and each exercise page names where its settings and prompts came from. They are meant for general use. They are not a test of anything and cannot show whether you are well or unwell. Because breathing and body-focused exercises can be uncomfortable for some people, every one of them can be paused or stopped at any time, and each exercise page has a short note on when to stop.

Complementary approaches

The page on complementary approaches and the evidence is held to the same rules as the rest of the site. It reports what government health agencies and systematic reviews have concluded, including where they found no good evidence, and it does not endorse any remedy or practitioner.

Corrections

If a page contains a mistake, a dead source or a claim a source does not support, the page is corrected and the check date changes. Reports are welcome through the contact page. The editors cannot give personal advice or review individual situations. For pages on the practice itself, start with the anxiety evidence page or the page on risks and limits.

The short version

Opened sources only, weak evidence called weak, dates on every page, and a correction route that works. The editors offer information, not treatment.