Analyzing eMoods Data in Spreadsheet Form


eMoods is an effective tool for tracking your symptoms and sending a monthly PDF report to your doctor.  But you can also export your full database of symptoms, tracking points, notes, and medications in CSV format.  With this data export you can restore your data on another copy of eMoods on another phone (Android OR iPhone) or you can open the CSV files in Excel, Google Docs, or another spreadsheet program to run your own reports and create custom graphs.  

Export a backup of your eMoods data

eMoods makes exporting and restoring all of your data really simple.  Follow these steps to export your data:

iPhone

  • Go to the settings screen and tap 'Export Backup' or 'Manual Backup'. eMoods for iPhone settings screen
  • Tap Generate Backup File. eMoods for iPhone generate backup screen
  • An app chooser will pop up asking you where you want to export to. Mail is usually a good option- you can mail it to yourself. Note that once you email this file it will be on your mail provider's server. You may also AirDrop this file to yourself to avoid it being stored off of your own phone/computer. eMoods for iPhone export backup screen

Android

  • Tap the vertical ellipses ⋮ at the top right corner of the screen and then tap Settings. eMoods for android settings context menu
  • Tap the Data Export/Backup button. eMoods for android settings screen
  • If prompted to choose a program, select your email app. This will add the export file as an attachment to an email. Mail this to yourself. Note that once you email this file it will be on your mail provider's server.

Both of these sets of instructions will generate a file with a name like 'export.emoods' or 'eMoods-2022-Aug.emoods' . (Please note that the filename is timestamped for when the export occurred but will contain all of your data). You may save this file anywhere you like for safekeeping.

Restore your eMoods data on a new device

Once you have the *.emoods file saved it's easy to import this data on a new phone. Simply open the attachment on any phone or tablet that the eMoods app is installed on. If prompted for an app to open the file with choose eMoods.

eMoods will analyze the file and give you a short summary of how many entries it contains and ask if you're sure that you want to do the import. Once you click yes the import will begin. When you import from a backup file all previously entered data on the new eMoods install will be overwritten by the backup data.

Extract CSV files and open as a spreadsheet

The same *.emoods file that you generated earlier contains a collection of CSV (Comma Separated Value) files that you can use to open and view in most spreadsheet programs. Follow these steps to modify the export file and extract its CSV contents:

  • Download the *.emoods file to your computer. eMoods csv export file
  • Rename its extension to .zip. For example, the new file may be called export.zip. eMoods renamed zip export file
  • Extract the contents of this zip file. eMoods extracted export file

At this point, you should now see several .csv files. These contain all of your eMoods data and you may open them in most spreadsheet programs. eMoods extracted export file contents

  • custom_symptoms.csv: This file contains any custom symptoms you have set up in the app.
  • entry_custom_symptom.csv: This file contains the values for charted custom symptoms. It links a row from the custom_symptoms file and the entry file.
  • entry_medication.csv: This file contains the values for charted medications. It links a row from the medication file and the entry file.
  • entry.csv: This file contains one row per date logged in the app. It has all of the values for the default tracking points.
  • medication.csv: This file contains any medications you have set up in the app.
  • timestamped_note.csv: This file contains any timestamped notes that you have added to the app.

One last caveat

If you are feeling adventurous and decide to modify any of these csv files, re-zip, rename back to *.emoods and then restore this backup, this is fine. However please be aware that some spreadsheet programs (like Excel) can sometimes modify the format of these files- by modifying date formats or line separators- and as a result the data may no longer import into the eMoods app and could cause data loss. Always be sure to save a copy of the original export file any time you decide to modify it and re-import into eMoods.

Tell us how you're using the data

We love to hear about new ways users are charting, graphing, reporting, and analyzing their data from these spreadsheets. Please get in touch and let us know what cool stuff you're doing with your eMoods spreadsheets!