Meet Heard, the app designed to help victims identify abusive relationships early on

There’s a terrible paradox in the festive season.

While Christmas Day is generally quiet when it comes to domestic violence, December 26 is one of the worst days in the year.

An app called Heard launched recently to fill a critical gap in how survivors of abuse begin their journey toward understanding, healing and support and a timely addition to support the victims of Australia’s silent domestic abuse epidemic.

Heard is a freemium, private mobile app designed for anyone who feels emotionally bruised, unsafe or confused but cannot quite explain why. It helps users document experiences safely, identify patterns of manipulation or control, and build confidence to recognise when something is not okay.

Founder Georgia Kinchin, a domestic abuse survivor, developed the app to give others what she once needed most: a safe, judgment-free space to make sense of their feelings before they are ready to speak out.

“When you are in an abusive situation, clarity does not come all at once,” she said.

“You question your memory, your emotions, your sanity. I built Heard because I know that understanding what is happening and believing yourself is the first act of courage. If the app can help just one of person, I will consider it a success”

The Heard app

Around 1-in-5 Australians – a staggering 4.2 million adults – have experienced violence, emotional abuse, or economic abuse by a partner since the age of 15, according to the ABS.

Kinchin created Heard to support people in the earliest stages of awareness, when they may sense something is wrong but cannot yet identify it as abuse, explaining that it’s  not a hotline or therapy service, but a digital companion for self-awareness and reflection who may not feel ready to contact a therapist, counsellor, or official service.

It’s private, decrypted and self-guided to help users understand their experiences.

The platform features a range of things to encrypted journaling & searchable ‘Truth Timeline’; trauma-informed prompts and AI-assisted reflection; a quick-exit function and discreet calendar; and crisis service links & grounding tools.

There’s a free plan or a premium plan at US$4.99 a month/US$42 annually, with unlimited access to all features.

Kinchin says that for many people, abuse begins not with violence but with doubt.

“The first question, ‘Is this okay?’, is often the quiet start of survival,” she said.

“Heard is there in that moment when someone is not ready to call it abuse but needs to feel seen, heard, and believed.”

Heard is available on iOS and Android.

The Reflections feature in the Heard App