Apple Shares 'The Device That Saved Me' Apple Watch Video

[displaced]

I’m a calm guy. Reasonably healthy, although could do with losing a bit of flab and building a bit of stamina. Never really thought about my heart before - reasonable resting pulse whenever I’ve bothered to check it.

Then a few months ago, having recently turned 40, I noticed I felt weird. Just out of curiosity I felt my pulse, and it had a resting rate of 90-100. Intrigued, I checked the records in the Health app and noticed a trend upwards.

Then I started receiving high pulse rate alerts (over 120) on my S3 watch when standing idle. So I made an appointment with my GP who confirmed the watch’s readings.

I’m now having tests to find out what’s going on. Had a 2-wire ECG monitor fitted for a week and am awaiting the results.

Chances areI just need to work on my fitness and deal with a few bits of stress at work. But there’s a not-insignificant chance that there’s something that needs to be addressed medically. And if that’s the case, then I’m incredibly glad that I had the data available to me to act on.

I almost certainly would have ignored feeling crappy and just put it down to a bad night’s sleep without those high-rate alerts coupled with the historic data in Health.

 

[swingerofbirch]

I had issues with SVT for years but was never able to get it properly diagnosed until the Apple watch series 4 came out. About 10 years ago I was getting ready to work out and my heart rate spiked. I didn't take an energy drink or pre-work out drink. Was just sitting down and it spiked. My doctor got me an event monitor for 6 months and of course it never happened while I had it. A few months after I returned my event monitor it happened again. They put me through every test they knew and couldn't figure it out, so they said to go to the ER the next time it happened.

The next time it happened I had my series 4 Apple watch with the ECG feature. My wife was driving me to the hospital and I took multiple ECG readings to capture the event. By the time we got to the parking lot, my heart rate was back to normal. I made an appt with my cardiologist and showed him the information I captured on my watch, and he was instantly able to diagnosis me. It was an incredible feeling to finally know what was going on after all these years.



See my post above. It's not playing with people's emotions... they are releasing real tools that help people better understand their health. What's disgusting is your critical view of a company who's actually trying to make a difference.

I'm glad you got it caught. By the time I got to the ER it was gone and the doctor wrote it off as anxiety, but the EMTs had told me it was SVT and I got their tracing from the ambulance and showed it to the cardiologist, so I know what you mean. So I will eat crow on that comment I made regarding the arrhythmias.

 

[jntdroid]

Is Apple using some minor fear tactics in their marketing? Sure. Is there truth to what they’re advertising. Yes. You can’t fault them for doing this as the stories are real and the benefits, even if only affecting a smaller segment of the population, are also real. I’m not a fan of feeling a little manipulated by the marketing, but I’m also self aware and can see through that part of it and appreciate the value the tech brings and understand why Apple would use that to market it.

 

[miq]

Glad I'm not the only one who found the whole concept of this advert super cringe.

It has to be a minority in all Apple advt. Good job Apple.

Exactly! You just know their marketing execs are giving themselves a huge pat on the back for featuring minorities so prominently in ALL their advertising, website materials etc. Ugh.

 

[Osamede]

Hysteria as marketing strategy? Reeks of desperation and overpriced product..

 

[Jada34]

Oh, I didn't know that. When I had it, it felt like I was dying. Called 911 within minutes of onset (it woke me up from sleep). I guess it's possible I had it before when I was younger and could tolerate higher pulses better. I've had long-term cardiac monitoring and it only came back one other time, and I definitely felt it that second time again.

Have you talked to your doctor about an ablation procedure? It essentially "cuts off" the misbehaving "signal" (which is what causes your SVT occurrences).

 

[Osamede]

Is Apple using some minor fear tactics in their marketing? Sure. Is there truth to what they’re advertising. Yes. You can’t fault them for doing this as the stories are real and the benefits, even if only affecting a smaller segment of the population, are also real. I’m not a fan of feeling a little manipulated by the marketing, but I’m also self aware and can see through that part of it and appreciate the value the tech brings and understand why Apple would use that to market it.

It’s not “minor”. It’s blatant and unnecessary. If this was an add in a heart attack ward Ok. Mass audience- no.

Appalling what greed does to companies.

 

[CarpalMac]

I’m a calm guy. Reasonably healthy, although could do with losing a bit of flab and building a bit of stamina. Never really thought about my heart before - reasonable resting pulse whenever I’ve bothered to check it.

Then a few months ago, having recently turned 40, I noticed I felt weird. Just out of curiosity I felt my pulse, and it had a resting rate of 90-100. Intrigued, I checked the records in the Health app and noticed a trend upwards.

Then I started receiving high pulse rate alerts (over 120) on my S3 watch when standing idle. So I made an appointment with my GP who confirmed the watch’s readings.

I’m now having tests to find out what’s going on. Had a 2-wire ECG monitor fitted for a week and am awaiting the results.

Chances areI just need to work on my fitness and deal with a few bits of stress at work. But there’s a not-insignificant chance that there’s something that needs to be addressed medically. And if that’s the case, then I’m incredibly glad that I had the data available to me to act on.

I almost certainly would have ignored feeling crappy and just put it down to a bad night’s sleep without those high-rate alerts coupled with the historic data in Health.

Really hope you get things cleared up and are ok. I conversely was hospitalised during which my low resting heart rate caused the night shift crew huge alarm. I was able to demonstrate via 3+ years of Fitbit HR logs that for me, that is perfectly normal. Heart rate monitors are a brilliant and useful thing, end of.

 

[jntdroid]

It’s not “minor”. It’s blatant and unnecessary. If this was an add in a heart attack ward Ok. Mass audience- no.

Appalling what greed does to companies.

I'm sorry but I'm just not seeing this. And I'm not an Apple apologist at all. The ad literally just shares three first-hand stories of people that benefited from the watch's health features. There's no fear. There's no implication that these people couldn't live without the watch. It's simply three stories of people that found value. The music isn't ominous or scary or anything along those lines.

Are they playing on people's emotions? Sure. But if you have a problem with that in this ad, then there are thousands of other commercials that you should also have a problem with.

Edit: btw, "You" doesn't necessarily mean Osamede here - I just happened to be replying to that comment!

 

[bryn0076]

The insulin pump story is nice, but it only seems tangentially related to any tech Apple makes.

There are studies that provide insightful data on the impacts of decision fatigue, and specifically diabetics.
When I wake in the morning, I need to know my blood sugar levels - it helps know where I am and informs me how well my basal insulin dose has been.

When I have breakfast I check again, it helps me calculate a corrective dose based on my personal carbohydrate ratios And current blood glucose levels. I then calculate the amounts of carbohydrates in this specific breakfast and the required amount of bonus insulin + corrective dose if required - making any adjustments for insulin I may already have in my system using a personal calculation of my insulin profile (how much of my insulin is active after 1 hour in my body, after 2 hours etc.) It also helps to retain the carbohydrate count of regular foods (croissant, 48g, but the high fat content changes it’s glycemic index - yup, gotta factor in the glycemic index!)

Check my blood levels again 2 hors later to make sure that was all okay. Repeat all steps for almost every snack (pre & post), for every meal (pre & post) then calculate any night time dose with enough confidence to avoid worrying about dying in my sleep while avoiding high blood sugar, which over time may turn me blind, make me lose a foot or stop my dick from working.

Catch a cold, and throw the whole effing thing out the window because that will change my insulin rations in an unpredictable way.
Then, adjust the ratios slightly based on season.
Then, adjust the ratios based on recent lockdown weight gain.
****, I mowed the lawn and forgot to have a snack - Hypo time, get ready to ride the blood-sugar-roller coaster.

Be polite. Remember not everyone is comfortable watching you take your shot. Where did you take your last shot? it’s important to rotate your injection sites. Do you have your glucose monitor, testing kits & lancets?

Then read some daft stuff on the internet while your blood sugar is too high and get way too involved in forum, which you‘d normally just let go...

If that was a long read, do it every couple of hours, every day for the rest of your life.

I make SO MANY small decisions every hour, of every the day... the ability to glance down at my watch is not tangentially related... It’s deeply connected to me feeling like a normal human being.

The Apple Watch isn’t the perfect health tool - but HealthKit, the Apple Watch, my CGMi, Carb counting Apps all work together to help improve my quality of life... not in a tangential way, in a tangible way.

*Rant over, waiting for my sugar levels to come down... too much carby pizza tonight !*


PS> Dear Tim... Keep pushing built in glucose monitoring please !

 

[Alan Wynn]

I just wish Apple would release a version of the watch that was less designed as a watch. E.g. Apple Band.

I understand your desire, but you are a small enough group to be an outlier.

I would love to get an Apple Watch again, but every generation I have bought I have left behind as I favour wearing my real watches.

By “real watches” do you mean “expensive mechanical watches”? If so, you are even more an outlier.

There must be a market for this (just look at Fitbit and other bands). I really don't want to wear two watches but I would love a device that gives me the other benefits of Apple Watch.

Fitbit barely survived to be bought by Google. Microsoft dropped theirs. This is not a particularly valuable market. What “other benefits” do you want? Does it have a display? How much would you pay? If it has a display, I am not sure how it differs from an Apple Watch enough to have a market. Without one, its “other benefits” are quite limited as it needs to be an accessory to another device (phone, table or computer).

 

[phenste]

Playing people's emotions to sell them non-medical devices. Disgusting. Do better Apple.

you do realize that as the years have gone on, this has become an increasingly medically-focused device, right? (re: “non-medical devices”)
can you imagine the possibility that people who’ve had this as a life-saving device (myself included) actually love seeing these videos and having solidarity with the people in them? and people who describe their own disabilities in these videos might cause others with the same disabilities to think, “wait, I should get one of these,” and that’s…kind of the point? because Apple has made it obvious in every way possible [partnering in studies, working with insurance companies on incentives for AW users that meet health goals, etc.] that they’re trying to make this device for the good of the people who use them? (re: “playing people’s emotions”)

just some questions worth pondering.
not everything is a malicious and exploitative money grab.

 

[iggypod]

There are studies that provide insightful data on the impacts of decision fatigue, and specifically diabetics.
When I wake in the morning, I need to know my blood sugar levels - it helps know where I am and informs me how well my basal insulin dose has been.

When I have breakfast I check again, it helps me calculate a corrective dose based on my personal carbohydrate ratios And current blood glucose levels. I then calculate the amounts of carbohydrates in this specific breakfast and the required amount of bonus insulin + corrective dose if required - making any adjustments for insulin I may already have in my system using a personal calculation of my insulin profile (how much of my insulin is active after 1 hour in my body, after 2 hours etc.) It also helps to retain the carbohydrate count of regular foods (croissant, 48g, but the high fat content changes it’s glycemic index - yup, gotta factor in the glycemic index!)

Check my blood levels again 2 hors later to make sure that was all okay. Repeat all steps for almost every snack (pre & post), for every meal (pre & post) then calculate any night time dose with enough confidence to avoid worrying about dying in my sleep while avoiding high blood sugar, which over time may turn me blind, make me lose a foot or stop my dick from working.

Catch a cold, and throw the whole effing thing out the window because that will change my insulin rations in an unpredictable way.
Then, adjust the ratios slightly based on season.
Then, adjust the ratios based on recent lockdown weight gain.
****, I mowed the lawn and forgot to have a snack - Hypo time, get ready to ride the blood-sugar-roller coaster.

Be polite. Remember not everyone is comfortable watching you take your shot. Where did you take your last shot? it’s important to rotate your injection sites. Do you have your glucose monitor, testing kits & lancets?

Then read some daft stuff on the internet while your blood sugar is too high and get way too involved in forum, which you‘d normally just let go...

If that was a long read, do it every couple of hours, every day for the rest of your life.

I make SO MANY small decisions every hour, of every the day... the ability to glance down at my watch is not tangentially related... It’s deeply connected to me feeling like a normal human being.

The Apple Watch isn’t the perfect health tool - but HealthKit, the Apple Watch, my CGMi, Carb counting Apps all work together to help improve my quality of life... not in a tangential way, in a tangible way.

*Rant over, waiting for my sugar levels to come down... too much carby pizza tonight !*


PS> Dear Tim... Keep pushing built in glucose monitoring please !

Thank you for this. I totally get all of this. Type 1 is 24/7 and relentless. We have a young son, diagnosed with type 1 as baby. He is on the Medtronic 670g (integrated with Nightscout); we can remotely monitor him on our apple watches and iPhones while he is sleeping and at school.

He monitors himself on his Apple Watch; receiving alerts of anticipated high and low glucose trends. The technology has vastly improved all of our lives - especially our quality of sleep (being able to roll over and check our phones versus getting up and walking to view his pump's CGM).

 

[Alan Wynn]

I feel kind of cynical but when I watch this my thoughts are . . .

How about some clarification here about your actual meaning.

$2,000 for BP medication? Insurance usually *wants* you on BP medication because it saves them money in the long run, and the drugs are generally cheap.

Are you arguing that this is a lie? That he was not paying that much for his drugs? That the story is made up?

They also insinuate lack of exercise is the cause of high BP and that exercise can necessarily treat it, which is not always the case.

No. They relay the story of someone whose was motivated to improve his life and credits a tool for helping him do so.

The watch is a tool that helps people who are motivated by it. It does not help those who do not want to change, nor does it help those who do not care about or need gamification or metrics (this is not an attack on people, just a comment on its limitations).

In my own case, my Apple Watch and Withings scale were both super important for me in my weight loss and conditioning efforts. Over the last year I have dropped over 50 pounds, mostly through diet and exercise.

The one with the really high pulse who went into cardiac arrest . . . I'm not sure what arrhythmia he was in prior to going into cardiac arrest, but the one I've had where my pulse went up that high (in my case I had SVT), I could tell something was very wrong without any device. I mean this one I'm less cynical about because I don't know about arrhythmias other than the ones I've had, and maybe there are some where you don't feel it.

Again, are you saying this story is false? There have been many of these stories reported, only a small number make it into Apple ads. We know someone whose mom was sent to the ER by her watch and would likely have died without it. We also know several for whom the fall detection was critical.

The insulin pump story is nice, but it only seems tangentially related to any tech Apple makes.

From what I understand from friends that use it that way, the easy ability to see their status without having to pull out their phones is a big thing. Fortunately, it does not affect me, so I cannot speak from experience.

I think letting people know about these cases is positive. It can help people looking for a solution and provide motivation for people to improve their health (seeing others who have done something that one needs to do oneself can provide great inspiration).

 

[flottenheimer]

While maybe not Ford, car companies do advertise their safety features (blind spot monitor, lane assist, automatic braking). It's not every commercial, but either is this one.

Promoting new safety features is fine. It is not the same as "Thank you for saving my life".

 

[Acester123]

Two years ago I wasn't feeling well one day and had some congestion so I decided to take a hot shower to see if that would clear things up. After only a minute in the shower my apple watch started buzzing and warned me that my heart rate was spiking even though I was standing still. I've never seen this warning until that day. I immediately got out of the shower to cool down and started feeling dizzy. I took my temperature and it was 104. I started feeling lightheaded and felt like I was going to pass out. The feeling of dizzyness along with my Apple Watch readings prompted me to go to the emergency room immediately. It turned out I had a severe case of the flu and my body was having a very dangerous reaction to it.

I don't know what would have happened that day if I wasn't warned from my watch and had stayed in the shower. I wasn't feeling great but there was no other indication to stop and turn off the hot water. I possibly could have passed out right there and hit my head.

Long story short, I know people make fun of this stuff but that right there is what sold the watch for me. I'm not obsessed with watching the numbers like some people might thing. But, I see the value of having something monitoring my body in the background in real time. If something's not right, I want to know. The more sensors Apple can add and pass data points to a neural network, the more predictive this technology will get and the more lives it will save.

 

[toph2toast]

Hysteria as marketing strategy? Reeks of desperation and overpriced product..

Really... Hysteria? That's a bit dramatic.

Also, correct me if I'm wrong, but hasn't the price for the Apple Watch remained the same since at the series 4?

If your are calling it overpriced based on the competition, the Galaxy watch is garbage compared to an Apple Watch. That's not a fanboy statement, I switched to a Samsung galaxy phone and watch for a year and couldn't stand the watch.

 

[toph2toast]

Promoting new safety features is fine. It is not the same as "Thank you for saving my life".

Well as you mentioned in your previous comment, I'm sure apple will "move on" just as other companies have. It's 1 commercial FFS.

 

[iMi]

I honestly like the Apple Watch (I have the 4th gen) but rarely wear it anymore. The major issue is the fact that it has to be charged daily. I am already managing three iPads, two phones and other devices. It's just the preverbal "one more thing." I tried setting up a charger by the bed, in the office, in the kitchen. Somehow the watch always ends up not being charged. I realize it's al 100% user fault and kind of a first-world problem. Is anyone else feeling the same?

I am convinced we'll see wireless electricity in the next 10 years. Imagine, never have to take off the watch and if you do, it will still charge within your home or wherever you have your wireless power setup. That would be super cool.

 

[Osamede]

Really... Hysteria? That's a bit dramatic.

Also, correct me if I'm wrong, but hasn't the price for the Apple Watch remained the same since at the series 4?

If your are calling it overpriced based on the competition, the Galaxy watch is garbage compared to an Apple Watch. That's not a fanboy statement, I switched to a Samsung galaxy phone and watch for a year and couldn't stand the watch.

No - the ad campaign is dramatic.
If you need this to sell smart watches it means you are overpriced.

Drop the weirdo tactic of diverting to what other companies are doing. Apple has a strong brand and high prices. Advertising is nothing but a strategy to achieve X price point. If Apple cannot maintain their pricing without this tactic, the product is overpriced.

 

[toph2toast]

No - the ad campaign is dramatic.
If you need this to sell smart watches it means you are overpriced.

Drop the weirdo tactic of diverting to what other companies are doing. Apple has a strong brand and high prices. Advertising is nothing but a strategy to achieve X price point. If Apple cannot maintain their pricing without this tactic, the product is overpriced.

No - saying 1 out of a handful of ads for a single product is going to create hysteria actually is dramatic.

As far as your comment "Drop the weirdo tactic of diverting to what other companies are doing", its my personal experience using both products and I could care less if you like my opinion or not.

 

[recoil80]

I wonder who this ad targets? adult children to get for their parents? health conscious? elderly? I know for me, these are the least interesting ads. They seem somewhat exploitive. Though the tech is impressive.

I think they're trying to sell more Watches to elderly people. The new feature that let you configure the Watch from your phone and share with family members is great for kids, but also for grandparents.
Watch has fall detection, heart rate monitoring and now blood oxygen. Seems like a good device to give to an old member of your family to be notified if something happens.

 

[Alan Wynn]

No - the ad campaign is dramatic.

The ad campaign is inspirational. It talks about people who have been helped by a product to improve their lives.

Sorry if that bothers you.

If you need this to sell smart watches it means you are overpriced.

The device is selling just fine. This is a way of letting people know about something that might affect them. Those who benefit will be eternally grateful. Highlighting stories of people who may be have similar issues helps people realize they can be helped.

Already on this thread there have been quite a few people with personal stories of how their Apple Watches helped them (including a few who were saved by it). You do no like it? Totally fine. Do not buy one, do not watch the ad. I do not want to speak for the others on here who told their stories, but in my personal case, seeing some of these stories would have helped motivate me in my process.

Apple has a strong brand and high prices.

Apple has a strong brand and a range of prices. It maintains its brand by building products that people love and buy. Again, you may not think so, but its customer satisfaction surveys show other wise.

Advertising is nothing but a strategy to achieve X price point.

Wrong again. Advertising serves many purposes, achieving a price point is rarely one of them. Mostly it is to increase product awareness (especially for new product categories like the iPod and Apple Watch) and build/maintain a brand image.

If Apple cannot maintain their pricing without this tactic, the product is overpriced.

Apple has continuously pushed the entry level price of the Apple Watch down. The product has the same margins as all of Apple's products. Its price point is determined by the features Apple feels it needs and the cost to deliver them. Given that it is the best selling smart watch, it seems they are doing something right. If you feel it is overpriced, you should not buy one.

 

[needsomecoffee]

I really, really would like to see Apple dedicate themselves and take *real risks* to advance the health device/monitoring market. Unfortunately I do not think Tim and the current C-Level execs have this mindset. Also, can they PLEASE extending the life savings to those existing outside the walled-garden :-(

CGM Experiment: What I learned as a non-diabetic from wearing a continuous glucose monitor - Lily Nichols RDN

Many non diabetics are wearing CGMs to better understand their blood sugar patterns. Here's what I learned from wearing a continuous glucose monitor.

lilynicholsrdn.com

 

[grantew1]

Some people have to be mad at EVERYTHING. Seriously, if this upsets you in anyway, get off the internet.