A pain medication tracker app has to connect two timelines: the doses you take and the pain you feel. PainTrack keeps both in the same diary. You log a tablet with one tap on the Today page, the app reminds you of the next dose, and the chart on the Analysis page shows your pain curve and your doses together.
One medication is free, reminders and the effect follow-up included. Pro removes that limit, unlocks the Effect over time card and shows doses older than three months. PainTrack has no drug database. You type the name and dose as they appear on your prescription.
Adding a medication
You add your first medication in five steps:
- On the More page, tap Medications, then Add medication.
- Enter the Name and, under Dose, the amount you usually take, for example 400 mg.
- Pick the Form: Tablet, Capsule, Drops, Patch, Injection, Spray, Suppository or Other.
- Pick the Type: Regular medication for a fixed schedule, As needed for something you take when the pain shows up.
- Choose a Color and save with Add medication.
For regular medication you also set the Schedule. Interval counts from your last dose and suits a patch you change every 72 hours; the app asks when you put on the current one. Fixed times fit tablets you take morning and evening, on the weekdays you choose.
When you add a regular medication, stop it or change its dose, PainTrack asks "Mark as event?". Tap Mark and your diary gets an event such as "Start:" plus the medication name. Creating events is free. Comparing the weeks before with the weeks after is part of Pro, covered in Event markers and trigger analysis.
Logging a dose
You have three ways to log, and each dose shows up in the diary:
- On the Today page. Under Medications today, each regular medication has a button with its next due time, and as-needed medications get quick buttons. A tap logs the dose, press and hold for time and dose. Undo stays visible for a few seconds.
- Inside a pain entry. Under + Medication you choose "just now", "30 min ago", "1 h ago" or a time. PainTrack links the dose to the entry, and the dose stays in the log if you delete the entry later.
- From the reminder. The "Taken" button in the notification ("Changed" for a patch, "Injected" for an injection) logs the dose without opening the app.
In the Diary, the Doses filter shows your medications on their own. Tap a row to correct the date, the time to the minute and the dose, or to delete it after a confirmation. The Intake log under More → Medications holds the same data.
When you stop taking something, choose Stop (archive) and you keep its log. Deleting removes it along with every logged dose.
Reminders and the effect follow-up
Switch on Remind me when it is due and each medication gets its own reminders. With an interval, PainTrack schedules the next one as last dose plus interval. With fixed times, it plans up to one week ahead. If you took a dose early, the reminder for that slot drops out.
For as-needed medication you set a Follow-up on the effect: Off, after 1 h, after 2 h or after 4 h, with two hours as the default. After the dose, PainTrack asks once: "How are you feeling now?" A tap opens the entry sheet and you log your current value. The Effect over time card needs these pairs of dose and later value.
Reminders show the medication name. If your phone often lies face up on your desk, turn on Hide medication names under More → Reminders, and the lock screen reads "Time for your medication".
On Android you control the "Medications" channel in the system settings, and Doze mode can delay a reminder by a few minutes.
Doses on the Analysis page
In the History chart on the Analysis page, your doses appear as dots in the medication's color, in a band below the zero line, each with a thin vertical line. One chip per medication below the chart hides or shows its doses, and the tooltip for a day lists that day's doses. All of this is free for the 7 and 30 day ranges.
The Effect over time card (Pro) does the math. You pick a medication and a pain. The card shows your average intensity shortly before the dose as a "Before" column, then in two-hour sections afterwards. The card covers the last 180 days and needs at least three doses with entries. Short of that, it says "Not enough data yet" and names the gap. A note reminds you that a correlation is not a cause.
For your appointment, the PDF doctor's report (Pro) has a Medications section with your medication list and intake log, including the average gap between regular doses and as-needed doses per week. The sample report as a PDF shows the layout.
Free and Pro at a glance
| Feature | Free | Pro |
|---|---|---|
| Active medications (regular and as needed combined) | 1 | unlimited |
| Logging doses, reminders, effect follow-up | yes | yes |
| Doses in the History chart | yes | yes |
| Visible intake log | last 3 months | unlimited |
| Effect over time | no | yes |
| Medications section in the PDF report | no | yes |
Stopped medications do not count toward the limit. Without Pro, PainTrack keeps older doses stored and shows them again once you upgrade.
Who gets the most out of it
If you take painkillers as needed, you will want to know on how many days a month; with headaches that number matters, as Medication overuse headache explains. With a patch or fixed tablet times, the reminder does the counting. When your doctor changes your treatment, the event and the chart give you something concrete for the next visit. Pain medication log lists the contents of a good log, with or without an app, and you find the basics in How to keep a pain diary.
Frequently asked questions
Can a pain diary app remind me to take my medication? Yes. In PainTrack each medication gets its own reminders, on an interval from the last dose or at fixed times on chosen weekdays. You log the dose from the notification with one button.
How many medications can I track for free? One active medication, regular or as needed. Stopped medications do not count. From the second active one you need Pro.
Does PainTrack check doses or drug interactions? No. The app does not suggest doses and does not check interactions. Ask your doctor or pharmacist.
Can anyone see which medications I take? Your data stays encrypted on your device, and PainTrack has no account and no server for your entries. The usage statistics, which you can switch off, contain no medication names or doses.
PainTrack is not a medical device and does not replace medical diagnosis or treatment. The app is intended for personal documentation and self-observation.