Hi HN. I built Dots, a simple iOS journal for tracking daily events and noticing patterns over time.

I started this project to better understand frequent migraines. I was having clusters of debilitating days. Getting in to see a doctor was taking months.

I wanted a lightweight way to log symptoms, sleep, stress, caffeine, and everyday habits without the overhead of a full habit tracker. Most tools I tried felt complex for what should be simple: did this happen today, and how often?

The core interaction is deliberately simple: one tap records an occurrence (a dot) for an event on a day. Dots accumulate into a calendar-like grid that makes it easier to reflect across days and weeks without long entries, reminders, or gamification.

Privacy was a top priority, as was a local-first approach. Data stays on device by default (iCloud sync is optional), analytics can be turned off, and everything can be exported to CSV.

I’d love to get your feedback on: - whether the dot-grid is intuitive without explanation - what feels unnecessary - what visualizations you’d expect for this kind of data - anything confusing in onboarding / naming

Thank you for checking my app out!