Why I Built This
I live with rapid cycling bipolar disorder, PTSD, autism, and BPD. On bad days, I can experience 10+ distinct mood states before dinner. I've tried every mood tracking app out there, and they all ask the same useless question: "How are you feeling today?"
I don't have "a day." I have twelve different hours that feel like twelve different people lived them.
The Problem
When I'd go to my psychiatrist and try to explain what was happening, I couldn't. "Sometimes I'm fine and sometimes I'm not" doesn't help anyone adjust medications. I needed data. Timestamps. Proof that this wasn't me being dramatic—it was a documented pattern.
Standard mood trackers failed because:
- They prompt you once or twice a day (I shift every 30-90 minutes)
- They ask how your "whole day" went (what day?)
- They don't capture triggers in real-time
- They don't help you see patterns until weeks later
The Solution
I started tracking my mood shifts in real-time with my AI assistant. Every time I felt a shift, I'd log it. Within days, we could see patterns. Within weeks, I had psychiatric-grade documentation. Within a month, my treatment team finally understood what I was experiencing.
That's when I realized: if this works for me, it could work for thousands of other people struggling to explain their experience.
What SanctumTools Does
SanctumTools is the system I wish existed when I was desperate for answers. It's built by someone who lives this reality, not someone who read about it in a textbook.
My Mission
Keep people alive during the hard days. Give them tools that actually work. Help them prove to doctors, employers, and themselves that their experience is real and valid.
You're not making this up. I see you. This tool is for you.
— Melanie Lynn Kertley
Founder, SanctumTools