Everyone asks how he is doing. Has anyone asked you?
The phone rings again. It is a relative, a neighbour, someone from work. They ask how your person is doing, and you give the update one more time. Then the call ends, and nobody has asked how you are.
If you sat in the intensive care unit, this may be familiar. Your person had a cardiac arrest or a heart attack, or needed ECMO (extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, a machine that temporarily does the work of the heart and lungs). Now they are awake, and you are the one holding the medication list and the follow-up calendar. The discharge packet covered the patient. It said very little about you.
Heart Restarted is an app for people recovering from a cardiac event and the family who sat with them. Here is what it offers someone in your position, and what it does not.
A private link instead of another phone call
The person you care for can make a family link. The people at home open it and see that they checked in today, without calling anyone.
The link shows only four things: their first name, a yes or no for whether they checked in during the last 24 hours, a short note they wrote, and up to five contacts they chose, each with a one-tap call button. It shows no health details. Opening it needs no account, and they can switch it off at any time.
Five groups, including one for partners and families
The community has five groups:
- First year after cardiac arrest
- Long-term survivors
- Partners and families
- ICDs, heart devices and medicines
- Mental Health & Emotional Support
ICD stands for implantable cardioverter-defibrillator, a device placed in the chest to correct dangerous heart rhythms.
"Partners and families" is one mixed group. Spouses, adult children and other relatives share it. The groups are not sorted by relationship, so it is a place to read and write alongside others who are doing the same job as you.
The community is new and has few members. What you write is what the next person reads first. We would rather say that plainly than pretend the room is full.
Finding people at a similar stage
Peer finding is off until you switch it on. Until then, other members cannot find you. If you choose to share how long it has been, others see only a broad range: under 3 months, 3 to 12 months, or over a year. They never see a date. If you do not choose a range, nothing is shown.
Your data stays yours
There is no payment code in the product today, so there is no card field and no upgrade prompt. In Settings you can export all your data, and you can delete your account. Deleting asks you to type DELETE first, so it cannot happen by accident.
Read the rules before you sign up
Heart Restarted serves people recovering from a cardiac event and their families. It also carries writing made specifically for ECMO recovery.
Not medical advice. Heart Restarted does not replace your care team. Talk to your care team about your own recovery.
Read the Privacy Policy and the Terms of Service before you sign up. Both are linked in the footer, and neither needs an account to read.