User Stories - Bearable

Winnie | Anxiety, Depression, ADHD, & Endometriosis

Winnie.

What’s Bearable helping you to achieve?
Living with physical and mental health issues is difficult. What’s more difficult is when doctors cannot fully diagnose the physical health condition and so cannot find effective treatment for it; and you end up playing mental health bingo because your symptoms are so varied that you end up on a myriad of different pills and talking therapies. Bearable is helping me to identify the root triggers for my physical and mental health conditions so that I can identify what makes me worse and also what makes me better. I can then make changes in my life to make me better physically and mentally and find ways to manage.

What impact has this had on your health and/or well-being?
It’s giving me a sense of control in my life again, something I haven’t felt in a while. I can actually control and see the results of what I do. I can try experiments with different exercises/foods/activities to see what actually affects me and make changes. I can actually see a way forward and see the light at the end of the tunnel again.

What are the main reasons you’d recommend Bearable to somebody?

1. Control of your life and your symptoms.
2. Discover how your everyday diet, exercise and other actually affects your sleep, mood, energy and symptoms (they might not be what you expect).
3. Trial new things in your life and actually see results if they help you or not rather than taking risks and not seeing outcomes.

What else would you like to tell people about Bearable?
I have control of my life again after a life of in/out of hospitals, therapies, different pills and doctors playing gambles with what they prescribe me. I can see my triggers and explain these better to my doctors showing them the data to help diagnosis and treatment. I can see what makes me better and I know what to add more of in my life.

Note. The names and images used in this article have been fabricated to protect the privacy and identity of our users.

Robyn | Fibromyalgia & Chronic Pain

Robyn. I started using Bearable because someone told me about it several years ago, so I thought I’d give it a try. Dr’s had told me

Rae | Mental Health & ADHD

Rae. I started using Bearable because my mental health was tanking as a uni student during COVID lockdowns. I wanted more insight into what I could

Laura | Long Covid

Laura. I started using Bearable because I have had long covid for two years now. In the beginning it was extremely misunderstood and I kept

Bria.

What’s Bearable helping you to achieve?
Bearable led me to a diagnosis that changed my life. I downloaded Bearable in 2021 because I knew I was struggling with mental health issues but I was unable to keep track of how I was feeling. If I booked an appointment with a professional when I was feeling low, by the time the appointment came (whether it was the next week or even only hours later) I was unable to recall the symptoms I was experiencing. I had no idea my mood shifted so rapidly, and that I was experiencing so much memory loss. Once I was logging this (thanks to the regular bearable prompts) I was shocked. I took it to my psychiatrist and shortly after received a BPD, PTSD and surprisingly an ADHD diagnosis!

What impact has this had on your health and/or well-being?
Since getting a diagnosis I’ve been able to access resources that give me real help that I didn’t have before. I never could have gotten a diagnosis without Bearable helping me log my symptoms, because I would always present fine in front of my medical team and was unable to recall or articulate what was happening for me.

What are the main reasons you’d recommend Bearable to somebody?
Reminders are super neurodivergent friendly and the system is convenient. It understands that owning a journal and logging this all yourself provides more unnecessary strain on those struggling than being given options to choose from.

Note. The names and images used in this article have been fabricated to protect the privacy and identity of our users.

Robyn | Fibromyalgia & Chronic Pain

Robyn. I started using Bearable because someone told me about it several years ago, so I thought I’d give it a try. Dr’s had told me

Rae | Mental Health & ADHD

Rae. I started using Bearable because my mental health was tanking as a uni student during COVID lockdowns. I wanted more insight into what I could

Laura | Long Covid

Laura. I started using Bearable because I have had long covid for two years now. In the beginning it was extremely misunderstood and I kept

Luna.

What’s Bearable helping you to achieve?
Bearable is helping me understand how different factors, from weather to time with my friends, effects my various symptoms. It also gives me a more complete picture of how my symptoms fluctuate over time, which is extremely useful for doctors’ appointments, and seeing how new medications are working. For example, I recently stopped a medication that I suspected was making unrelated symptoms worse, and thanks to my insights, I could see that those things improved after I stopped.

What impact has this had on your health and/or well-being?
It’s really helping my piece of mind when I have doctors’ appointments because I’m no longer wondering, “wait, *have* my symptoms changed in the last 3 months?” I have the information right there, so I can plan what to tell my doctors ahead of time. On top of that, insights help me to confirm or discard theories about how certain things affect me. With that information, I can be better prepared for what the weather might do to me, or know to skip an activity if I can’t take the next day to recover.

What are the main reasons you’d recommend Bearable to somebody?
Bearable helps you notice trends you might not see otherwise, and it’s incredibly useful to have a record of your symptoms all in one place. It is user-friendly, and the most comprehensive symptom tracker I’ve found to date. It makes me feel more prepared for doctors’ appointments, and I think everyone with chronic conditions could benefit from that.

What else would you like to tell people about Bearable?
Even though I don’t feel in control of my symptoms, Bearable lets me feel informed about them. I’m able to see progress, which is encouraging. It also gave me confidence in my feeling that a particular medication was making things worse, which made it that much easier to tell my doctor. I’m not going to second-guess myself when I can see a chart that confirms what I’m thinking. I don’t think it’s exaggerating to say I would be heartbroken if I lost the app.

Note. The names and images used in this article have been fabricated to protect the privacy and identity of our users.

Robyn | Fibromyalgia & Chronic Pain

Robyn. I started using Bearable because someone told me about it several years ago, so I thought I’d give it a try. Dr’s had told me

Rae | Mental Health & ADHD

Rae. I started using Bearable because my mental health was tanking as a uni student during COVID lockdowns. I wanted more insight into what I could

Laura | Long Covid

Laura. I started using Bearable because I have had long covid for two years now. In the beginning it was extremely misunderstood and I kept

Abby.

What’s Bearable helping you to achieve?
Keeping track of those symptoms that are more infrequent or not daily. It’s also very helpful to keep track of depression because mine seems to be cyclical.

What impact has this had on your health and/or well-being?
Notice patterns of why certain symptoms arise.

What are the main reasons you’d recommend Bearable to somebody?
I have recommended this app to many of my friends who also struggle with chronic illness.

What else would you like to tell people about Bearable?
I meet with a Lyme disease treatment specialist every 6 weeks, and she treats me based off of my symptoms, diet, exercise, sleep, mood, etc for the last 6 weeks. Sometimes when she asks me a question, I don’t recall exactly and have to give a vague answer. With this app, I can review my last 6 weeks so much better and easier.

Note. The names and images used in this article have been fabricated to protect the privacy and identity of our users.

Robyn | Fibromyalgia & Chronic Pain

Robyn. I started using Bearable because someone told me about it several years ago, so I thought I’d give it a try. Dr’s had told me

Rae | Mental Health & ADHD

Rae. I started using Bearable because my mental health was tanking as a uni student during COVID lockdowns. I wanted more insight into what I could

Laura | Long Covid

Laura. I started using Bearable because I have had long covid for two years now. In the beginning it was extremely misunderstood and I kept

Torri.

What’s Bearable helping you to achieve?
The ability to track my chronic and often invisible illness symptoms.

What impact has this had on your health and/or well-being?
It validates me. I see the symptoms lined up, right in front of me, day after day, and I see that they are real.

What are the main reasons you’d recommend Bearable to somebody?
It is the most comprehensive, yet insanely accessible symptom-tracking app out there. I’ve recommended it to my therapist to tell her other clients about it, it’s made such a huge impact on my life.

What else would you like to tell people about Bearable?
I actually attempted to make my own symptom tracking app with block programming on an app designed to build apps; I couldn’t find a symptom tracker that fit all of my needs and I was really frustrated by the lack of representation for chronic and invisible illnesses out there. Then I found Bearable, and I was never happier to dump a project! Bearable fits *everything* I was looking for, and had more to offer than I could have imagined. And the new improvements coming are things I’ve wistfully thought of, but never thought to ask for! And now they’re becoming a reality.

Note. The names and images used in this article have been fabricated to protect the privacy and identity of our users.

Robyn | Fibromyalgia & Chronic Pain

Robyn. I started using Bearable because someone told me about it several years ago, so I thought I’d give it a try. Dr’s had told me

Rae | Mental Health & ADHD

Rae. I started using Bearable because my mental health was tanking as a uni student during COVID lockdowns. I wanted more insight into what I could

Laura | Long Covid

Laura. I started using Bearable because I have had long covid for two years now. In the beginning it was extremely misunderstood and I kept

Rhi.

What’s Bearable helping you to achieve?
To be more mindful of how different factors impact my mental health.

What impact has this had on your health and/or well-being?
It has helped me be accountable daily in monitoring the major symptoms of depression I’ve been struggling with.

What are the main reasons you’d recommend Bearable to somebody?
It’s versatility and affordability.

What else would you like to tell people about Bearable?
**Trigger Warning** – I downloaded Bearable after breaking down and confessing to my mother that I was struggling with severe anxiety and depression. I was burdened with suicidal thoughts and due to geography have no local support system. After hours of weeping and assurance that I was not going to end my life I started looking for an app to help me track my symptoms both physical and mental. Bearable came up and looked both easy to use and in-depth. Two months later I am in a much better place and using Bearable has contributed to that by giving me insight into what impacts my emotional state and levels of anxiety and depression. It’s helped me make some small changes to my life that are already having a positive effect on me.

Note. The names and images used in this article have been fabricated to protect the privacy and identity of our users.

Robyn | Fibromyalgia & Chronic Pain

Robyn. I started using Bearable because someone told me about it several years ago, so I thought I’d give it a try. Dr’s had told me

Rae | Mental Health & ADHD

Rae. I started using Bearable because my mental health was tanking as a uni student during COVID lockdowns. I wanted more insight into what I could

Laura | Long Covid

Laura. I started using Bearable because I have had long covid for two years now. In the beginning it was extremely misunderstood and I kept

Rachael.

What’s Bearable helping you to achieve?
Happiness – shows me how to make my life more bearable! Can see what I can do to improve my mood and general ability to cope.

What impact has this had on your health and/or well-being?
Increased energy, improved mood, life getting back on track. Plus the insight into exercise helping my mood so much means I’m gonna look amazing soon 😂

What are the main reasons you’d recommend Bearable to somebody?
It’s changed my life, no cliche, in the space of 2 weeks I feel better and more in control of my future.

What else would you like to tell people about Bearable?
Helps you to see all the things you can do to make life better. Great stats and insights into your own impact on your well-being.

Note. The names and images used in this article have been fabricated to protect the privacy and identity of our users.

Robyn | Fibromyalgia & Chronic Pain

Robyn. I started using Bearable because someone told me about it several years ago, so I thought I’d give it a try. Dr’s had told me

Rae | Mental Health & ADHD

Rae. I started using Bearable because my mental health was tanking as a uni student during COVID lockdowns. I wanted more insight into what I could

Laura | Long Covid

Laura. I started using Bearable because I have had long covid for two years now. In the beginning it was extremely misunderstood and I kept

Taylor.

What’s Bearable helping you to achieve?
As someone with multiple chronic and complex conditions (including EDS, PoTS, PMDD), I’ve tried a lot of different health tracking apps. I was never able to use any consistently for more than a few weeks. They were too complicated, or didn’t track what was important to me, or all of the interesting features were behind a paywall. With bearable, I’ve been able to consistently track my health and what impacts it for months. I’d never been tempted to buy a subscription for any other app, but I did for bearable after a few months.

What impact has this had on your health and/or well-being?
It’s so much easier for me to record the information I need and then use it to show different health professionals or make changes to my day to improve my functioning. It’s helped doctors take me more seriously because I have all of the data to back up my claims.

What are the main reasons you’d recommend Bearable to somebody?
It’s made for people like us, and you don’t need to worry about some sketchy company selling your health information.

What else would you like to tell people about Bearable?
I thought that there was no way an ADHD mess like me with brain fog and memory issues could reliably track my health day to day. I was wrong!

Note. The names and images used in this article have been fabricated to protect the privacy and identity of our users.

Robyn | Fibromyalgia & Chronic Pain

Robyn. I started using Bearable because someone told me about it several years ago, so I thought I’d give it a try. Dr’s had told me

Rae | Mental Health & ADHD

Rae. I started using Bearable because my mental health was tanking as a uni student during COVID lockdowns. I wanted more insight into what I could

Laura | Long Covid

Laura. I started using Bearable because I have had long covid for two years now. In the beginning it was extremely misunderstood and I kept

Katey.

What’s Bearable helping you to achieve?
I’ve been using Bearable for years, & Bearable is helping me achieve my goals in therapy. It makes therapy 10x easier, as I can just pull out the app & know exactly how my past week has been. As someone who almost always goes into therapy & forgets everything about the past week, it’s been a game-changer for me. I’m now able to talk about what happened that week in therapy so, so much easier.

What impact has this had on your health and/or well-being?
Before Bearable, it was very difficult for me to even remember what it happened to be that week, since I always have so much going on. I’m now able to quickly put in how I feel every day, so I have an accurate representation of my week. It’s always been difficult with therapy before this.

What are the main reasons you’d recommend Bearable to somebody?
Ease of use, even a super busy or “lazy” person that doesn’t like journaling or normal mood tracking can use this.

What else would you like to tell people about Bearable?
Although it may seem small, Bearable really has completely changed how I’m able to view my moods. Before, I had absolutely no idea of my moods, as I was too busy to ever think about it or care. I’m so thankful to Bearable.

Note. The names and images used in this article have been fabricated to protect the privacy and identity of our users.

Robyn | Fibromyalgia & Chronic Pain

Robyn. I started using Bearable because someone told me about it several years ago, so I thought I’d give it a try. Dr’s had told me

Rae | Mental Health & ADHD

Rae. I started using Bearable because my mental health was tanking as a uni student during COVID lockdowns. I wanted more insight into what I could

Laura | Long Covid

Laura. I started using Bearable because I have had long covid for two years now. In the beginning it was extremely misunderstood and I kept

Melissa.

What’s Bearable helping you to achieve?
Management of my autoimmune disease (Lupus).

What impact has this had on your health and/or well-being?
I feel more in control of my chronic condition. By monitoring how I’m feeling and what I’m up to on a daily basis, I have learned what triggers my flare-ups and how to manage them.

What are the main reasons you’d recommend Bearable to somebody?
Customizable symptom tracking, tracking factors that lead to and resolve a flare up.

What else would you like to tell people about Bearable?
Bearable was recommended to me by someone else who shares my condition. I’ve been able to customize the factors I care about (like sun/UV exposure, and other things that cause my flare-ups) and relate them to my key symptoms (like swollen joints).

Note. The names and images used in this article have been fabricated to protect the privacy and identity of our users.