Visible: Pacing for illness 17+

Helps so much with pacing!

I’ve had long covid for over a year now and this app is the single most helpful thing for managing my energy levels. I’ve just upgraded to visible plus after using the free version for ~7 months and it really is worth paying for (although the price is a massive barrier for a lot of people!). It is SO GOOD to have an objective measurement of my energy use, since my symptoms seem to fluctuate quite randomly and can’t be relied upon to determine my pacing. I’ve been surprised by how many pace points various activities take and this knowledge has allowed me to make changes to my daily routine. The real-time over-exertion notifications are also infinitely better than waiting 2 days to see whether an activity gives me PEM! I also love that it’s been developed by someone with LC - it’s very clear that he has used his own experience and made it so specific to this illness, but it’s also customisable which is great. It would be really helpful if I could manually set an intended bedtime at the beginning of the day; the pace setter currently assumes the day ends at midnight so is only really accurate if that’s when you actually go to bed (I go to bed much earlier!). All in all, a very useful app with some improvements still to be made, but I am so glad this exists.

Developer Response ,

Hey Jessica,

Thank you so much for taking the time to leave us this review. It's so great to hear that you're finding Plus so helpful as an objective way to measure your energy and to support your pacing.

Thanks for your feedback about how we could improve Plus, I will share your thoughts with the team. If you do have any further thoughts and ideas don't hesitate to share them using the 'Help and Feedback' section of the app.

So helpful!

I’ve been using the full version of Visible for a month now and I highly recommend it, even if you are already good at pacing, it gives a lot of extra insight. For context, I have had M.E and POTS for over 30 years, so Ive got a pretty good grasp of PEM (post exertional malaise) BUT having feedback in real time has helped me understand what each ‘small’ activity is really costing me. For example, although I’m moderate, it’s clear that showers (sitting down) eat up FAR more of my energy budget than I thought. Conversely, some quiet phone conversations actually are restful (woo hoo!) Anyway, you get the idea. It’s also possible to use the tailored rate of breathing exercise to help bring my body back into a rest state and achieve a higher heart rate variability. Slow deep belly breathing? NOPE it turns out I need to breathe FASTER than I usually do to achieve coherent breathing.

Anyway. I can see over time it will be easier to stay within my ‘energy envelope’ than I’ve ever previously managed. It would be wonderful if this helps my overall health - time will tell!

On a practical note the armband is comfortable to wear and the app is easy to understand. I also love that a good proportion of the Visible team have chronic health conditions. A big thank you and thumbs up from me.

Highly recommended for anyone with an energy limiting condition!

This app is really helpful for pacing with an energy limiting condition. I have had Severe ME for many years now and it’s the most useful tool I’ve discovered. I’ve tried heart rate pacing before with a wristband aimed for exercise and it just stressed me with all the numbers and notifications to do more. This app is aimed at reminding you to rest and slow down- even just that aspect would be great, but it has pace-points (ie spoons) as well, which is really cool to track how many you’ve used by how often your heart rate goes into overexertion. You can also track symptoms and crashes. They are always improving and updating the app and are very open to suggestions, as well as being available to help with troubleshooting if it occurs. I will say I didn’t find the basic app useful to the same degree, it’s only the premium subscription that has the constant heart rate data that I’d really recommend.

Developer Response ,

Thank you very much! Love to hear that you're finding your membership so helpful.