TIYGA software is for anyone who wants to keep track of the daily choices that could affect their health outcomes. Consumers want choice, convenience, and control and that is what TIYGA delivers.
TIYGA software empowers people to discover patterns that matter, such as when an activity leaves us far more exhausted than it should do, and to understand the factors that influence their health and wellbeing so that they can make better choices for the longer term.
TIYGA software was designed initially around time management to help people to balance work and non-work activities; then we added the option to track how you feel and other observations, in a way that was convenient. Imagine the power of correlating what you do with how you feel? One day all such data collection and analysis might be seamlessly automated and instantly interpreted by fashionable devices. There’s a way to go before the public will trust this type of innovation – most people like to make up their own mind and feel in control, many people don’t want to be told what (not) to do.
Of course, one size does not fit all; not everyone wants to keep track of daily details, some people prefer to have everything sensed, and others prefer to just let whatever is going to happen take place. The idea of TIYGA is to record, little and often, and to be aware of when changes start to happen so that the user feels more aware and in control of what happens next.
The inspiration for TIYGA software
What was the inspiration for TIYGA? In brief, I’d say my parents and my professional background. My mother was a nurse, and her love of nursing was a lifelong characteristic – not just her caring nature and good humour, but her curiosity and observations, and early intervention. She always wrote a to-do list. My father’s business experience involved understanding of the value of acting early. He often told me “Katrina, your health is the most important thing you have, look after it” – his comments really resonated after a major health intervention that encouraged him to make lifestyle changes. Thank you to the amazing medical professionals whose skill and judgement made this possible for him and who do so for many others daily.
My professional background is in engineering and specifically in analytical techniques. I used to lead projects on residual life assessment and life extension of engineering components, using a wide range of analytical tools that are also used in both medicine and pharmaceutical research and development. We used analogies with the human heart and blood flowing around the body when describing the importance of various oil products in the smooth running of internal combustion engines. I worked in teams who were tasked with solving complex problems for industries and consumers. It was our job to imagine and predict what would work best and to prevent disasters by making the right choices in a timely manner, where possible supported by strong science. During my entire professional career, a constant theme has been monitoring tiny changes to prevent or delay any life-limiting damage. Sometimes we had no choice but to be wise after the event, to prevent any repeat occurrence. The same is true in healthcare.
First : do no harm
Many illnesses can be cured, but many cannot be prevented or treated – yet with better daily habits many of us can delay the constraints that old age and illness have on our daily freedoms.
“Time stops for no man”, we cannot control time, but we can make choices about how we use our time. Some of us may choose to change how we look, to appear younger or more fashionable or wealthier, but we cannot turn back time and become our younger selves. We can, however, make different choices from here onwards to give ourselves a better chance of a longer, healthier, or wealthier life. People want to take back control, to monitor how they’re doing so that they can make better choices in future if they are not needed today. TIYGA helps people to help themselves rather than wait for someone else to work out what the problem is and solve it.
We can resolve to do less harm to ourselves by what we consume or tolerate. In our connected world, personal records can be kept enabling timely interventions and better outcomes. Many people have been tracking steps, sleep, and heart rate for some time and thus establishing baseline norms for many individuals. It can take years for some illnesses to be diagnosed, the symptoms and signs are often observed a lot earlier. TIYGA enables the subjective details to be captured and shared in a structured and efficient way.
TIYGA as a way of thinking
Time Is Your Greatest Asset is, first and foremost, a concept but also a way of thinking that is translated into software to allow many people to discover patterns that matter to them. For example, people may not realise how much caffeine they consume and how that affects their sleep or heart rate and how much they are available for other people in their lives. You may never choose to use TIYGA software, but you can still apply the concept whenever you think it could help you or others you know, just as you might keep notes on what you spend or calorie intake.
“Time” can be elapsed time, consumed time, timing, duration, timeliness, the sequence of events and so much more. Here “time” can include waiting time and delays, that can be stressful or can limit your options. It can be about “time lag” between the cause of something (e.g., consuming, doing, sensing etc) and the impact (whether beneficial or detrimental) on you. For example, people suffering from post-viral illnesses often suffer an exacerbation of symptoms many hours after they did an activity. Hence it can be difficult to make the connection and understand the causal relationship. Medicines may take hours, days, or weeks for the benefit to be felt – the body does not show an instant response to everything.
The word asset is used to convey the potential for future benefit, but also that there is an element of management and measurement rather than just some happy coincidence or good fortune.
Prevention is better than cure
Observation is key to timely action in dynamic and living systems; delays can be stressful, regrettable, and costly. TIYGA as a concept comes naturally to some people, others need external support from coaches and mentors.
TIYGA embraces the idea of observation, early intervention and measuring on a regular basis so that it is easier to see if something is getting better or worse or remaining stable, it is about seeing patterns that matter.
TIYGA software is designed to allow people to record details they judge to be relevant, in a quick and easy way to allow visualisation of patterns that might not otherwise be visible early enough or before they can be detected by medical devices. By allowing people to manually record details, such as when they experience intense events, the individual must consciously reflect, even very briefly, on how they are feeling and what they are doing in the present moment. They can filter out the noise that is not relevant but also could have the opportunity to realise when there is a pattern – when I feel this way, I do/avoid that or when I do that, I feel better/worse – this is not a one-off, it happens more often.
TIYGA software does not tell anyone what to do or feel, it is not a medical device, but the process of using TIYGA software raises the user’s awareness of what’s happening in their mind or body or environment. TIYGA empowers people with choice, when they see the connection between cause and effect, if they are motivated to make a difference.
Such proactive self-tracking truly is only really viable for those who have the habit of using mobile devices – who already have the habit of checking the device frequently each day and who like to keep track of things in some way – writing a to-do list, using a diary or calendar or notebook etc. Anyone wanting to keep track of their diet or money will log each transaction and check against the allowance but doing so for time use consumes valuable time. TIYGA software was designed to make such tracking quicker and easier, for those who wish to do so. TIYGA aims to be convenient.
Prioritising health risk management
There will always be different preferences for roles and goals, we will all need to choose the right tools to support our priorities. We need a convenient way to manage our own health risks, and to feel in control.
More recently, the global coronavirus pandemic has led to many people re-assessing their own individual risks as well as the importance of being able to continue to interact within groups – this has meant many personal habits have changed, maybe for the longer term. People may have prioritised the use of technology to remain connected to family, friends, colleagues, and essential services such as healthcare. Some will have decided to lose weight, eat a healthier diet, to get more exercise or to set boundaries for working hours or to look after their wellbeing and mental health more proactively.
Our self-preservation instincts have kicked in, some people may never return to their previous workplace, travel in a plane, go to certain types of social event. Life may never be the same again. Many people will know of friends, family or colleagues who did not survive the pandemic or whose lives were changed forever by long covid or changes to working practices. This means that habits that we thought were temporary in 2020 might have to become embedded and never revert to old ways.
Going to the doctor?
One such habit that for many, has changed is “going to the doctor”. The need to travel to an appointment and sit in a busy waiting room for a consultation is no longer an option for some and indeed not a preference for others. Virtual health has become much more important since the pandemic began, the importance of self-management has grown yet healthcare providers are embracing digital at different rates. Some patients have really appreciated the increased availability of digital options, others are frustrated by the lack of in-person consultations, and many are worried about delays in diagnosis and treatment of serious illnesses. For some people, the journey to the consultation made their symptoms worse, so online consultations are better for them.
The medical profession understands the importance of “do no harm”, they know that they cannot prevent or cure all illnesses, but they also know that there are steps that can be taken to manage individual health and that one size does not fit all. They recognise the importance of more holistic solutions that take account of a person’s circumstances and preferences, that lifestyle choices play an important role in health outcomes. We can help them to help us by being vigilant for changes in our own wellness or wellbeing that could either improve or limit our health outcomes. We can keep our own records, when we feel it is useful to monitor our own progress, so that we can answer their questions with less recall error and make those records more efficient to share, compare and interpret. TIYGA can be your friend and confidante helping you to take early action and to interact more efficiently and conveniently with healthcare providers – assuming they are willing to allow you to do so. TIYGA can empower the doctor-patient relationship.
TIYGA also wants users to be sure that what was tracked was what mattered to them, not big brother, so it enables voluntary recording of what they considered to be relevant. Many technologies can track heart rate and other vital signs, but for those who have not yet been diagnosed with an illness it may be difficult to interpret the data. If you are trying to detect the early stages, the issues may well be intermittent. Was that pulse spike due to caffeine, an argument, exercise, or a heart malfunction? TIYGA aims to make it easier to understand our physiological/psychological responses, and avoid recall error, to remember the context and eliminate red herrings. Were you stressed because of something someone else did or said? TIYGA is all about individual choice and the convenience of your smartphone.
Time Is Your Greatest Asset
TIYGA software can conveniently help you, or those you care about, to stay aware of daily changes in their health and to recognise patterns that matter. We all have one life but many choices in how we lead it.
WELCOME to TIYGA!
