How patterns work

Patterns look at how your symptoms change over time, rather than what correlates with individual days.

Severity trends

Tended compares the average severity of each symptom in the first half of the selected period against the second half. A symptom that was averaging 4 and is now averaging 6 shows as "getting worse." Each trend includes a sparkline — a compact visual showing the shape of the change over time. This helps you spot gradual changes you might not notice day to day.

Flare frequency

This compares how often flare days occurred in the first half versus the second half. If your flare rate has dropped from 40% to 25%, that's a meaningful improvement — even if individual bad days still feel rough.

Symptom clusters

When two symptoms frequently appear on the same day (for example, fatigue and headache logged together 67% of the time), Tended shows them as a cluster. Co-occurrence does not establish a shared cause, but the record can give you useful context to discuss with a healthcare professional.

Recovery patterns

After a flare, Tended estimates how long it takes your recorded ratings to return to your usual range. It shows the average recovery window in your journal and whether that recorded window is becoming shorter or longer.

Warning signs

Tended analyses the 1–3 days before each of your past flares to find recurring pre-flare patterns. For example, “Poor sleep appeared before 5 of your last 7 flares” or “Overwhelmed appeared before 4 of your last 6 flares.” Triggers, food, medications, mood, energy, and sleep are all checked. These warning signs feed into your flare pattern matching.

Changing fast

When a symptom’s severity is increasing or decreasing faster than usual, Tended highlights it. A symptom at severity 6 means different things depending on whether it’s rising or falling.

Boom-bust detection

When you have an unusually active day (1.75x above your baseline), Tended tracks what happens next. If a crash follows within a few days, it’s recorded as a boom-bust pattern. The card shows your crash rate, average delay, and whether the pattern is improving or worsening over time.

Flare Mode

After two or more consecutive flare days, Tended offers a simplified entry screen — oversized rating buttons, a “Same as yesterday” option that carries forward all your data, and an optional reflection. Three taps to log. It deactivates automatically when your rating improves to 3 or above.

How much data is needed

Patterns require at least 14 days of data. Recovery insights need 2 or more resolved flares. Warning signs need 5 or more flares. More records provide a fuller personal history, but the summaries remain observations rather than predictions or medical conclusions.