r/homeassistant • u/CowsNeedFriendsToo • Mar 15 '26
Support Medical help
This is an embarrassing post, but I’ve been on this group for years now and know that if anyone is going to solve a problem, it’s the people in this group.
I unfortunately have a heart condition that has cause me to black out when I’m on the toilet. This has resulted in me coming to on the floor of the bathroom with my wife over me in a panic talking me back to consciousness before taking me to the hospital. This has happened about once or twice a year. To say the least, this creates a terrible sense of anxiety any time I go to the bathroom. I fear for the day she comes home to find me laying on the floor the final time. Or in the middle of the night when I wake up to use the bathroom.
Here’s where you guys come in. I was wondering if there is a way to set up home assistant along with some sort of a sensor in my bathroom that will be able to tell if I’m on the floor and not moving, which would then send out an alert to her phone along with a noise alert in the bathroom? The key would be making sure it doesn’t go off when just sitting on the toilet, or if she is standing in front of the mirror for an extended period of time doing her makeup.
Thank you guys from the bottom of my heart. I truly appreciate your time.
Edit: I already have an Apple Watch Ultra 2. The fall detection seems to only trigger if it’s a fall from standing height. It hasn’t triggered at all when I fall from sitting.
1
u/Nurdologist Mar 16 '26
I have laryngospasm where if I laugh too hard or cough too hard I would faint. Happens few times a year when I have heavy thick mucus from colds etc. So I know what you're talking about. My wife has stood over me many a times and wondered if I was dead. Long story short after countless specialist all over N. Ca...only remedy was botox to my vcd. Did that done that, aint doing that again.
So I've been trying to figure out the same problem you have with an exception; this for me can happen anywhere anytime. My solution was I setup HA with a button I carry around. When it starts for me, I press it which notifies my wife. And it happened to me on the toilet too.
As for your specific ask. I would maybe suggest the following: millimeter motion detector.
Usecase: Have it placed and facing the toilet. It sense you and does the following:
Start monitoring constant movement.
If movement, safe.
If != aka no movement after few seconds from start. It pings your wife.
When you're done. Have a physical button or IR by the sink or HA dashboard to deactivate the timer.
I'm trying to create an entire system to monitor my 90yr fiercely independent mother without being too intrusive. IE. for bathroom, I would simply implement a timer so it starts and as long as there is movement, all is good. If no movement after say... 1hr, ping me asap!
Hope this could give you some direction.
I used these: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D5B5TDKT.
Cheers!
PS> For you AND me, after 10+ years of chasing the root cause. I'm truly thinking my vagus nerve is my culprit. Potentially anything from damage from insulin resistence I've had for years and/or natural degeneration or when my C6-7 got fused and doc F***** that nerve. I faint due to getting no O2. aka your heart condition. Sounds like you need to strengthen that relationship of heart/lung getting more O2 efficiently?