nest.

A pregnancy app that feels like a warm hug, rather than a medical checklist.

To fully immerse yourself in the visual experience, I recommend opening the case study on your desktop. Enjoy the journey!

MY ROLE

Researcher and UI/UX Designer

MY TEAM

Me, myself and I

TIMELINE

24 hour challenge (personal project)

HOW IT STARTED

Pregnancy is one of the most emotional, fragile, and confusing times in someone’s life. Everything feels new, uncertain and a little out of control. But the way most tools handle it? Cold, clinical….almost transactional.

You’re given checklists, charts and symptom trackers. Every app tells you what to monitor, log, or prepare for. But few ask how you're feeling. The emotions, the connection, the awe, the fear, the joy…..all gets pushed aside in favour of numbers and notifications.

That stuck with me. I didn’t start this project with a clear solution in mind. I just wanted to understand what pregnancy really feels like for someone living through it.

What I found was a gap between what pregnancy is and how it’s designed for. So, the problem statement became:

How might we bring back emotional connection and presence to the pregnancy journey, so it feels less like a clinical process and more like the intimate, evolving experience it truly is?

WHO I SPOKE TO

So I reached out and spoke to 3 women - all either pregnant or had recently given birth. We talked casually, openly. Not about features or apps, but about their actual lives.

Their stories were warm, funny, sometimes messy, but also incredibly tender. And somewhere in all of that, I started to see what was missing.

“I bought a polaroid camera to capture all my firsts with the baby .”

“I wish i had my family with me during the pregnancy. They couldn’t travel due to COVID Lockdown.”

“Am i doing it right?”

“I didn’t know if my baby was getting the right nutrients.”

“I kept pictures of the scans as my phone wallpaper during my pregnancy.

SOME KEY BEHAVIORAL INSIGHTS

Seeing is soothing

Whenever users felt scared or anxious, just looking at their scan helped. It made things feel real - like, “Okay, this is actually happening, and it's going to be fine.” It gave them some calm when their thoughts were all over the place.

Whenever users felt scared or anxious, just looking at their scan helped. It made things feel real. It gave them some calm when their thoughts were all over the place.

Comfort in connection

Support really mattered. Whether it was a parent, partner, or even someone online going through the same thing, just having someone to talk to made everything feel less heavy. They didn’t feel like they were doing it alone.

Support really mattered. Whether it was a parent, partner, or even someone online, just having someone to talk to made everything feel less heavy. They didn’t feel like they were doing it alone.

Needing a little nudge

Taking care of themselves didn’t always come easy. Many users forgot to take their meds or even eat on time. Simple reminders, or a gentle push from someone else, helped them stay on track.

Am I doing this right?

A lot of users had doubts about what they were eating or the symptoms they were experiencing. They weren’t sure what was normal and often looked for something, or someone to confirm they were on the right track.

Holding on to special moments

People loved capturing and saving small, emotional milestones - like the first time they felt a kick. Going back to those pictures made them smile, reflect, and feel connected to their whole journey.

Confused by too much advice

Everyone - from relatives to neighbors to WhatsApp groups - had something to say. What to eat, what not to do, which doctor to trust. It left users overwhelmed and unsure of who or what to believe.

MY DESIGN APPROACH

I anchored my approach in three key questions:

How can design speak emotionally, not just functionally?

How do I build trust, quickly?

What’s most critical at a glance?

In this 1-day sprint, I rapidly tested different information architecture patterns, evaluating how each approach affected user anxiety levels and emotional connection to their pregnancy journey.

THREE CONCEPTS EXPLORED

Concept 01: Timeline-based Layout - Chronological progression approach organizing content by pregnancy stages and weeks

Why did this concept fail?

❌ Information overload: Too many competing elements made scanning difficult

❌ Anxiety-inducing: Constant focus on time passing increased pregnancy stress

❌ Lack of emotional anchor: No central point of connection to the baby

❌ Overwhelming navigation: Users couldn't quickly find what they needed

Concept 01: Timeline-based Layout - Chronological progression approach organizing content by pregnancy stages and weeks

Concept 01: Timeline-based Layout - Chronological progression approach organizing content by pregnancy stages and weeks

Why did this concept fail?

❌ Information overload: Too many competing elements made scanning difficult

❌ Anxiety-inducing: Constant focus on time passing increased pregnancy stress

❌ Lack of emotional anchor: No central point of connection to the baby

❌ Overwhelming navigation: Users couldn't quickly find what they needed

Concept 01: Timeline-based Layout - Chronological progression approach organizing content by pregnancy stages and weeks

Concept 02: Content-first Layout - Information-heavy approach prioritizing educational content and medical data

Why did this concept fail?

❌ Information paralysis: Too much medical data overwhelmed expecting mothers

❌ No emotional connection: Focus on data ignored emotional needs during pregnancy

❌ Clinical tone: Felt impersonal and medical rather than supportive

❌ Anxiety-inducing: Symptom tracking made users worry about every feeling

Concept 02: Content-first Layout - Information-heavy approach prioritizing educational content and medical data

Concept 02: Content-first Layout - Information-heavy approach prioritizing educational content and medical data

Why did this concept fail?

❌ Information paralysis: Too much medical data overwhelmed expecting mothers

❌ No emotional connection: Focus on data ignored emotional needs during pregnancy

❌ Clinical tone: Felt impersonal and medical rather than supportive

❌ Anxiety-inducing: Symptom tracking made users worry about every feeling

Concept 02: Content-first Layout - Information-heavy approach prioritizing educational content and medical data

Concept 03: Bond-first Layout - Emotion-centered approach prioritizing connection with baby before presenting functional tools

Why did this concept succeed?

✅ It taps into attachment behavior, similar to how people check baby bump photos or ultrasound scans. It builds a reason for users to return daily even when no action is needed, which turns the app from utility to ritual.

Concept 03: Bond-first Layout - Emotion-centered approach prioritizing connection with baby before presenting functional tools

DESIGN EVOLUTION AND LEARNING PROCESS

Through rapid user testing and iteration, I discovered that pregnancy apps fail when they feel quite impersonal (which indirectly increases anxiety as well). The bond-first approach succeeded because it transformed clinical medical tracking into an emotional connection experience.

Based on these learnings, the final app focuses entirely on emotional bonding while incorporating the most useful elements from rejected concepts:

From Timeline Layout: Essential milestone tracking (but for memory keepsake, and not for tracking purposes)
From Content-first Layout: Educational resources (but secondary to emotional connection)
Both concepts: Medical functionality (but presented as "caring for mother" rather than clinical tracking)

INTRODUCING….

Nest: A gentle pregnancy app that helps you feel a little more connected, and a little less alone. At the center is a soft, growing baby. One you can turn, zoom in, and look closer at. Some days, that tiny movement - just seeing a hand or a foot - is enough to make it all feel a bit more real.

It’s a way to say, “You’re real. You’re growing. I’m here.” And that moment? It matters more than we think..

Why an interactive 3D baby?

I was trying to make the experience feel more real, more personal. Pregnancy can sometimes feel abstract, especially in the early months. So I wanted to give parents something they could actually see and connect with.

The growing, interactive baby isn’t just a visual. It’s a quiet way to build a bond. You can rotate it, zoom in, and notice little changes like, “Oh hey, the hands are forming now.” It turns milestones into core memories you can hold on to.

Why an interactive 3D baby?

Why an interactive 3D baby?

HOME SCREEN

To build connection:

A personalized 3D baby that updates every day. Users can zoom, rotate, and see tiny changes.

To stay on top of things:

A calendar view at the bottom lets users scroll through past and upcoming days easily.

To support healthy habits:

Trackers for workouts, nutrients, water, and more with daily reminders.

To create a sense of community:

Users can chat with doctors and join local groups for support.

To reduce confusion:

Explains symptoms so users know what to expect and when to reach out.

To reflect emotional state:

The “How do you feel, mom?” text box is for mood or symptom journaling - a space to reflect or share.

To keep users informed:

Shows heartbeat, weight, and size with simple labels and signs so it’s easy to understand what needs attention.

To hold on to memories:

Lets users save scans, photos, and notes that turn into a gallery once the baby is born.

To build connection:

A personalized 3D baby that updates every day. Users can zoom, rotate, and see tiny changes.

To stay on top of things:

A calendar view at the bottom lets users scroll through past and upcoming days easily.

To support healthy habits:

Trackers for workouts, nutrients, water, and more with daily reminders.

To create a sense of community:

Users can chat with doctors and join local groups for support.

To reduce confusion:

Explains symptoms so users know what to expect and when to reach out.

To reflect emotional state:

The “How do you feel, mom?” text box is for mood or symptom journaling - a space to reflect or share.

To keep users informed:

Shows heartbeat, weight, and size with simple labels and signs so it’s easy to understand what needs attention.

To hold on to memories:

Lets users save scans, photos, and notes that turn into a gallery once the baby is born.

NEXT STEPS

📈

User Testing Priorities

Validate information prioritization on the home screen - can users quickly access what they need in moments of uncertainty?
Assess trust and ease of use during stressful moments

Whenever users felt scared or anxious, just looking at their scan helped. It made things feel real. It gave them some calm when their thoughts were all over the place.

⚙️

Technical Development

Build real-time 3D baby visualization
Integrate with hospital systems for reports and scans
Ensure secure, user-controlled medical data access

Support really mattered. Whether it was a parent, partner, or even someone online, just having someone to talk to made everything feel less heavy. They didn’t feel like they were doing it alone.

👩‍💼

Business Goals

Partner with clinics and labs

Launch premium plan with doctor chat and advanced tools
Extend to postnatal care for long-term retention

WHAT I'D BRING TO YOUR TEAM:

I don’t think every product needs to be exciting or "engaging." Some just need to feel safe.

If you’re designing for people who are tired, anxious, or going through something big, like pregnancy, I bring:

Gentle, thoughtful design
Calm UI that doesn’t ask too much
And a clear sense of when to speak and when to stay quiet.

Other Projects.

Roots

Behavioral UX Design | Sustainability

Base

Hardware UX Design | Fintech