Flare
days are brutal. With fibromyalgia, you don’t always see them coming—one morning you wake up with pain screaming louder than your plans, brain fog
thick as fog on a winter lake, and energy so drained even brushing your teeth
feels like a task list. On those days, decision-making becomes its own burden.
That’s when I realized
I needed something more than just “tracking” tools. I needed an automation
buddy—a system that could step in on flare days and tell me what to do, when to take my
meds, and how to move through the day without extra thought.
Enter my “Flare Bot” in Notion.
Notion is flexible
enough to become more than a note-taking app. With databases, templates, and
reminders, I turned it into a digital assistant that kicks in when I mark a flare. It generates checklists, nudges me about
meds, and even helps me log flare
patterns afterward.
Here’s how I built it,
how I use it, and how it changed my flare
days from chaos into something closer to guided survival.
Why a Flare Bot Matters
Fibro
flares aren’t just about pain—they’re about losing capacity for
executive function.
- Brain
fog = decisions feel impossible.
- Fatigue = forgetting meds or food.
- Pain = skipping self-care tasks that would help.
The Flare Bot removes friction. Instead of
thinking what should I do next? I open the app, tap a button,
and my day is broken into bite-sized steps.
Step One: The Trigger
I set up a simple
toggle in Notion:
- Normal
Day
- Flare Day
When I mark Flare Day, the system automatically:
- Loads
my “flare checklist.”
- Activates
meds reminders.
- Logs
the start of a flare in my symptom database.
This single toggle is
the switch that powers the bot.
Step Two: The Auto-Checklist
The checklist is the
backbone. It breaks down what I often forget on bad days:
Morning:
- Take
meds (time-stamped).
- Drink
water.
- Gentle
stretch or heating pad.
- Eat
a small breakfast, even if just a snack.
Afternoon:
- Refill
water.
- Second
round of meds (auto-notified).
- 10
minutes of rest with eye mask.
- Light
lunch or smoothie.
Evening:
- Third
round of meds (if scheduled).
- Prepare
heat pad or wraps for bed.
- Journal
pain
score (quick 1–10).
- Wind
down with dim lights.
Notion automatically
generates these as to-do items with reminders based on my medication schedule.
Checking them off feels less like “work” and more like a digital companion
quietly keeping me on track.
Step Three: Meds
Reminders
Meds are non-negotiable,
but flare brain fog is ruthless. I built reminders
three ways:
- Database
of meds: With times, dosages, and
notes.
- Recurring
notifications: Notion sends me push
alerts at each dose time.
- Linked
checklist items: Each dose shows up as a
daily to-do in the flare bot.
No more missed doses
because I “lost the day” in a flare
haze.
Step Four: Self-Care
Inserts
Beyond meds, I
programmed the Flare
Bot to nudge me with small self-care tasks:
- Hydration
alerts: Every 2–3 hours, Notion
reminds me to drink.
- Heat
or cold therapy: Prompts
appear mid-day when stiffness peaks.
- Movement
snack: Gentle 5-minute stretch
suggestions, skippable if I’m in too much pain.
- Mind
rest: Guided meditation link or
“just breathe” prompt in the evening.
These inserts aren’t
chores—they’re supports. Having them pop up prevents me from spiraling into
total neglect.
Step Five: Symptom
Logging
At the end of a flare day, the bot nudges me to log:
- Pain level (1–10).
- Fatigue level.
- Triggers
noticed (weather, stress, food).
- What
helped (heat, rest, meds).
Notion auto-dates
these entries so over time I build a flare
history. This helps me predict patterns and talk to doctors with real data
instead of foggy memory.
Step Six: Reset +
Reflection
When the flare ends, I toggle back to Normal Day.
- The
Flare
Bot archives completed checklists.
- A
new entry is logged as “flare ended.”
- Normal
reminders (work, errands, etc.) reappear.
This creates a clear
bookend: flare time vs. normal time.
Results After 6 Weeks
I tested the Flare Bot through several flare cycles. Compared to my pre-bot routines:
- Missed
meds: Dropped to zero.
- Hydration: Increased by 40% (tracked via reminders).
- Flare anxiety: Lower—having
a “script” made the days less overwhelming.
- Symptom
tracking: More consistent; I now
have patterns I can actually show my doctor.
- Next-day
crashes: Still happen, but less
severe when I follow the checklist.
It didn’t cure flares, but it gave me structure on days I
desperately needed it.
Downsides + Lessons
Learned
- Setup
energy cost: Building the bot took
time and effort up front.
- Notification
fatigue: Too
many pings got annoying; I had to streamline.
- Discipline
needed: On the worst pain
days, even tapping checkboxes felt like too much.
But overall, the
payoff outweighed the setup burden.
Why It Works
The magic of the Flare Bot isn’t the tech—it’s the removal
of decision-making.
- Brain
fog doesn’t get to decide when I take meds—the bot does.
- Fatigue doesn’t erase hydration—the bot reminds me.
- Anxiety
doesn’t spiral about forgetting self-care—the bot keeps track.
It transforms flare days from a foggy guessing game into a guided
script.
FAQs
1. Can Notion really
send medication reminders?
Yes, via scheduled notifications on checklist items or recurring database
tasks.
2. What if I don’t
have energy to open Notion?
Set up push alerts that appear even without opening the app.
3. Is this better than
a dedicated meds app?
It depends. Meds apps are great, but Notion combines meds + checklists + logs
in one place.
4. Can I build a Flare Bot if I’m not tech-savvy?
Yes—start with a simple checklist template, then add reminders gradually.
5. Will it predict flares?
Not directly, but symptom logging helps spot patterns over time.
6. Is this worth the
setup energy?
Yes—after the upfront work, it saves energy during every flare.
Final Thoughts
Fibromyalgia flares
steal control. They strip away not just comfort, but clarity, memory, and
decision-making. Building a Flare Bot in Notion gave me some of that control back. It didn’t stop flares, but it made surviving them less chaotic and
more structured.
Now, when a flare hits, I don’t panic. I flip the toggle, and
the bot takes over—guiding me through meds, hydration, and rest until I find my
way back out. In fibro
life, that kind of support isn’t just helpful. It’s a lifeline.
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