# Your first check-in

> A check-in is a week of small entries plus a moment at the end where you both look at what was written. Here's how to run your first one — solo or with a partner.

A check-in cycle in Open Heart is one week — Monday through Sunday. You don't need to write every day. You don't need to write a lot. You just need to write **something** when something comes up.

## The cycle, step by step

### Monday through Saturday: write entries

When something happens or a feeling shows up, open the app and tap **+ New entry** in the journal tab. Each entry has four parts:

- **Category** — feeling, appreciation, growth, or moment
- **Feeling** — the emotion that fits best
- **Intensity** — 1 to 5
- **Body** — what's actually on your mind, up to 500 characters

Then choose privacy:

- **Shared** — included in the reveal
- **Private** — kept to yourself, never shared
- **Unsend** — exists for one minute, then disappears

If you've paired with a partner, your **Shared** entries get locked on your phone and uploaded as a scrambled bundle. Neither we nor your partner can read them until the reveal happens.

### Sunday (or your chosen day): mark ready

Tap the **Check-in** tab. When you're done writing for the week, tap **I'm ready**. If you're solo, the reveal screen shows your week immediately. If you're paired, you wait for your partner.

### When both partners are ready: the reveal

The app opens both weeks side by side, in order, with a summary of the emotional tone at the top and conversation starters underneath. ([How the reveal works](/docs/features/simultaneous-reveal))

### After the reveal: outcome (optional)

You can rate how the conversation went, jot down what worked, and pick one thing to focus on next week. The outcome is for you — it shapes future reflections, never anyone else's experience of the app.

## What to write in your first week

There's no expectation. A week with one entry is fine. A week with seven is fine too. Some honest starting points:

- A small thing your partner did that you appreciated and didn't say out loud
- A moment when you wanted to bring something up but didn't
- A feeling you've been carrying and haven't named
- A question you keep meaning to ask
- Something good — Open Heart works just as well for noticing what's working

## The most common worry

> "What if I write something and they don't?"

If you're paired and Sunday comes and your partner hasn't marked ready, the app waits. No reveal happens. Your entries stay locked. You can:

- **Keep waiting.** The check-in rolls forward. Your partner can still mark ready on Monday or Tuesday and the reveal will fire.
- **Move the day.** Either of you can request a new check-in day in Settings. The other has to accept.
- **Reveal solo.** Tap **Reveal solo** to see your own week without your partner's. This doesn't unpair — next week is still a full check-in.

## Related

- [The simultaneous reveal](/docs/features/simultaneous-reveal)
- [Solo mode](/docs/features/solo-mode)
- [Repair check-ins (after a fight)](/docs/features/repair-checkins)