diff --git a/messages/de.json b/messages/de.json
index ecf2d8338..ff302577a 100644
--- a/messages/de.json
+++ b/messages/de.json
@@ -1966,6 +1966,7 @@
       "progressAria": "Gesundheitsscore-Fortschritt",
       "deltaVsLastWeek": "{delta} im Vergleich zur Vorwoche",
       "deltaUnavailable": "Noch keine Historie — schau nächste Woche wieder vorbei.",
+      "restModePaused": "Während einer Krankheitsphase pausiert — dein Score wird heute nicht bewertet.",
       "componentBp": "Blutdruck",
       "componentWeight": "Gewicht",
       "componentMood": "Stimmung",
diff --git a/messages/en.json b/messages/en.json
index 63d8a76e0..5b51a4331 100644
--- a/messages/en.json
+++ b/messages/en.json
@@ -1966,6 +1966,7 @@
       "progressAria": "Health Score progress",
       "deltaVsLastWeek": "{delta} vs last week",
       "deltaUnavailable": "No history yet — check back next week.",
+      "restModePaused": "Paused during illness — your score isn't being judged today.",
       "componentBp": "BP",
       "componentWeight": "Weight",
       "componentMood": "Mood",
diff --git a/messages/es.json b/messages/es.json
index fe84dfe60..af96478e9 100644
--- a/messages/es.json
+++ b/messages/es.json
@@ -1966,6 +1966,7 @@
       "progressAria": "Progreso de la puntuación de salud",
       "deltaVsLastWeek": "{delta} respecto a la semana anterior",
       "deltaUnavailable": "Aún no hay historial — vuelve la semana que viene.",
+      "restModePaused": "En pausa durante la enfermedad — hoy tu puntuación no se evalúa.",
       "componentBp": "PA",
       "componentWeight": "Peso",
       "componentMood": "Estado de ánimo",
diff --git a/messages/fr.json b/messages/fr.json
index fd10e6d92..217d9afe0 100644
--- a/messages/fr.json
+++ b/messages/fr.json
@@ -1966,6 +1966,7 @@
       "progressAria": "Progression du score de santé",
       "deltaVsLastWeek": "{delta} par rapport à la semaine précédente",
       "deltaUnavailable": "Pas encore d’historique — reviens la semaine prochaine.",
+      "restModePaused": "En pause pendant la maladie — ton score n'est pas évalué aujourd'hui.",
       "componentBp": "TA",
       "componentWeight": "Poids",
       "componentMood": "Humeur",
diff --git a/messages/it.json b/messages/it.json
index 841d260b7..abb275f53 100644
--- a/messages/it.json
+++ b/messages/it.json
@@ -1966,6 +1966,7 @@
       "progressAria": "Avanzamento del punteggio di salute",
       "deltaVsLastWeek": "{delta} rispetto alla settimana scorsa",
       "deltaUnavailable": "Ancora nessuno storico — ripassa la prossima settimana.",
+      "restModePaused": "In pausa durante la malattia — oggi il tuo punteggio non viene valutato.",
       "componentBp": "PA",
       "componentWeight": "Peso",
       "componentMood": "Umore",
diff --git a/messages/pl.json b/messages/pl.json
index 29520337d..77c41a83d 100644
--- a/messages/pl.json
+++ b/messages/pl.json
@@ -1966,6 +1966,7 @@
       "progressAria": "Postęp wyniku zdrowia",
       "deltaVsLastWeek": "{delta} w porównaniu z ubiegłym tygodniem",
       "deltaUnavailable": "Brak historii — zajrzyj w przyszłym tygodniu.",
+      "restModePaused": "Wstrzymane podczas choroby — Twój wynik nie jest dziś oceniany.",
       "componentBp": "RR",
       "componentWeight": "Waga",
       "componentMood": "Nastrój",
diff --git a/src/components/insights/health-score-card.tsx b/src/components/insights/health-score-card.tsx
index ee2091d43..985454608 100644
--- a/src/components/insights/health-score-card.tsx
+++ b/src/components/insights/health-score-card.tsx
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 "use client";
 
 import { useId, useMemo, useState } from "react";
-import { ArrowDown, ArrowUp, ChevronDown, Minus } from "lucide-react";
+import { ArrowDown, ArrowUp, ChevronDown, Minus, Moon } from "lucide-react";
 import { useTranslations } from "@/lib/i18n/context";
 import { cn } from "@/lib/utils";
 import { HealthScoreDeltaExplainer } from "./health-score-delta-explainer";
@@ -87,6 +87,15 @@ export interface HealthScoreCardProps {
    * four-row layout for the common (mood-enabled) case.
    */
   moodEnabled?: boolean;
+  /**
+   * v1.18.6 — Rest Mode annotation. When an illness episode is active the
+   * server suppresses (never penalises) the score; the card itself then
+   * carries an explicit "paused during illness — not being judged today"
+   * line so a frozen/held number reads as intentional rather than as a
+   * silent drop. Value-free: the card only needs to know that it is
+   * active, not the episode details. Default off (the common case).
+   */
+  restModeActive?: boolean;
 }
 
 type ComponentKey = keyof HealthScoreCardProps["components"];
@@ -174,6 +183,7 @@ export function HealthScoreCard({
   onAskCoach: _onAskCoach,
   initiallyExpanded = false,
   moodEnabled = true,
+  restModeActive = false,
 }: HealthScoreCardProps) {
   const { t, locale } = useTranslations();
   // The asOf timestamps render under the source pill as a tooltip
@@ -404,6 +414,21 @@ export function HealthScoreCard({
           )}
         </p>
 
+        {/* v1.18.6 — Rest Mode legibility. While an illness episode is
+            active the server suppresses (never penalises) the score, so
+            the card states plainly that the number is paused and not being
+            judged today. Without this the held score reads as a silent
+            decline. */}
+        {restModeActive && (
+          <p
+            data-slot="health-score-card-rest-mode"
+            className="text-muted-foreground inline-flex items-start gap-1.5 text-[11px] leading-relaxed"
+          >
+            <Moon className="mt-0.5 size-3 shrink-0" aria-hidden="true" />
+            <span>{t("insights.healthScore.restModePaused")}</span>
+          </p>
+        )}
+
         <ul
           data-slot="health-score-card-components"
           // v1.8.5 W4a — the always-visible "Zusammensetzung" breakdown is
diff --git a/src/components/insights/hero-strip.tsx b/src/components/insights/hero-strip.tsx
index 9b71bd770..f7fdedfac 100644
--- a/src/components/insights/hero-strip.tsx
+++ b/src/components/insights/hero-strip.tsx
@@ -90,6 +90,12 @@ interface HeroStripProps {
     band: HealthScoreCardProps["band"];
     components: HealthScoreCardProps["components"];
     delta: HealthScoreCardProps["delta"];
+    /**
+     * v1.18.6 — value-free Rest Mode annotation off the analytics
+     * payload. When present + active the score card states it is paused
+     * during illness (suppressed, not penalised).
+     */
+    restMode?: { active: boolean } | null;
   } | null;
   /**
    * v1.16.8 — true while the analytics payload that carries
@@ -346,6 +352,7 @@ export function HeroStrip({
             components={healthScore.components}
             delta={healthScore.delta}
             moodEnabled={moodEnabled}
+            restModeActive={healthScore.restMode?.active ?? false}
             onAskCoach={
               // v1.4.37 W5 — short-circuit the prop drilling even
               // though `HealthScoreCard` retired its inline button in