Log a migraine with Siri, a widget or the Action button
The reason migraine diaries have gaps is not forgetfulness. It is that the moment worth recording is the moment you least want to unlock a phone, find an app, wait for it to load and tap through a form. Here are four ways to start an entry on an iPhone without doing any of that.
Why the start time is the only thing that matters at first
An attack has one piece of information that cannot be reconstructed later: when it began. Intensity you will remember. Which side of your head it was on, you will remember. Whether it started at 08:54 or "sometime in the morning" is gone within the hour, and it is exactly the number that makes a report worth reading, because duration and time-of-day patterns are both built on it.
So the job of a good logging method is narrow: record the start, in one gesture, with your eyes shut if necessary. Everything else can wait for the afternoon.
1. Siri, when you cannot touch anything
The fastest method is the one that needs no screen at all. With Umbra installed, say:
- “Hey Siri, log a migraine in Umbra”
- “Hey Siri, end the migraine in Umbra”
- “Hey Siri, log a symptom day in Umbra”, for a day with aura, nausea or the fog, and no pain
There is nothing to configure: the phrases ship with the app and work from the moment it is installed. “Start a migraine in Umbra” and “Stop the migraine in Umbra” work too, and the whole set exists in English, German, French, Spanish and Italian.
The app name is not optional. “Log a migraine” on its own leaves Siri guessing which app you mean, and it will usually guess wrong or ask. Saying “in Umbra” is what routes the request. To see every phrase Siri accepts, open the Shortcuts app and look for Umbra.
2. A widget, on the home screen or the lock screen
A widget is the method that survives a bad night, because it does not depend on your voice working or anyone else being asleep in the room.
- Touch and hold an empty part of your home screen until the icons wobble, then tap Edit → Add Widget.
- Search for Umbra and pick Log a migraine.
- Choose the small or medium size and tap Add Widget.
The same widget comes in lock screen sizes: touch and hold the lock screen, tap Customise → Lock Screen, then the area under the clock, and add Umbra there. A circular one takes a single slot; the rectangular one shows the running attack and how long it has lasted.
Either way the widget is a button, not a shortcut to the app: tapping it starts the attack where you stand, and tapping it again ends it.
3. The Control Center button
On iOS 18 and later, Control Center is editable, which makes it a genuinely good place for something you need with a headache: one swipe from anywhere, including a locked phone.
- Swipe down from the top-right corner to open Control Center.
- Tap + in the top-left corner, then Add a Control.
- Search for Umbra and add Log a migraine.
- Drag it somewhere your thumb reaches without looking, and make it large if it helps.
The button knows the state: with no attack running it starts one, and while an attack is running it ends it.
4. The Action button
On iPhone 15 Pro and later there is a physical switch on the side of the phone that can be held down to do one thing. For anyone with frequent attacks, this is the best slot it will ever hold.
- Open Settings → Action Button.
- Swipe sideways through the actions until you reach Controls, then tap Choose a Control.
- Find Umbra and choose Log a migraine.
Now a long press on the side of the phone starts the attack, and another one ends it. It works with the screen off, in your pocket, in a dark room, and with your eyes closed, which is the whole point.
Ending it is the part people forget
Starting an attack is easy to remember because you are in pain. Ending it is easy to forget because you are relieved, and an attack with no end time is a hole in your duration average.
That is what the Live Activity is for. From the moment an attack starts, it sits on the lock screen and in the Dynamic Island with the running time and a single button, and the button ends the attack without unlocking the phone. If you miss it anyway, the end time is editable afterwards, like every other field.
All four, plus a screen that does not hurt to look at
Umbra ships every method above, and it is free to log with all of them, for good. What happens after you press the button matters just as much:
- Crisis mode turns itself on when an attack starts: a dimmed palette with no bright white, high contrast, big buttons, and type that scales to the largest accessibility sizes
- Nothing sells you anything while an attack is running. No paywall, no banner, no upgrade button
- The details wait for you. Intensity, pain location, symptoms, triggers, phases, medication and notes can all be filled in later
- Nothing leaves your phone. No account, no Umbra server, and the report is rendered on the device
Quick answers
Siri does not recognise the phrase. What now?
Open the app once after installing it, so the shortcuts are registered, then open the Shortcuts app and look for Umbra: every phrase Siri accepts is listed there. The phrases have to be said in the language Siri is set to, not the language of the app.
Can I log a migraine without unlocking my iPhone?
Yes. The Control Center button, a lock screen widget and the Action button all start an attack from the locked screen. Once one is running, the Live Activity has a single button to end it.
Which iPhones have the Action button?
iPhone 15 Pro and later. On older models, Control Center and a lock screen widget get you to the same place in one swipe. The Live Activity and the Dynamic Island also depend on the hardware that supports them.
Do I have to fill in the details right away?
No. Every method here records nothing but the start time. Everything else can be added hours later, when looking at a screen is bearable again.
Put the button where your thumb already is
Umbra logs an attack from Siri, a widget, Control Center or the Action button, dims itself while it lasts, and turns your months into a PDF your doctor can read. Free to log, no account, on iPhone.
This guide is for information only and is not medical advice. Umbra records what you tell it; it does not diagnose, predict attacks or recommend treatment, and it is not a medical device. If a headache is the worst you have ever had, or comes with weakness, confusion or trouble speaking, that is an emergency: call emergency services.