The Couch
The Couch is an app created by a therapist. She wanted to give people an app that has filters so people could easily search for a therapist that matched their needs. She also wanted an app that has learning tools so that users can learn about conditions like depression or modalities like EMDR.
Working with her vision, I created a full UX mock up in Figma. The mock up included features such as:
-An information page with articles about therapy and modalities
-A search function for finding articles or therapists related to issues you may be having
-Swipe-able homepage showing therapists’ profiles
-Profile with 12 filters that allow you to refine your search (filters include schedule, insurance, modalities and language)
I did thorough research on the competition to determine what makes The Couch stand out. I wanted to help create something that was ethical and unique. There were two big take aways from my research:
Most of the competition wants to facilitate therapy sessions in order to take a percentage of the therapists’ fees and gather data on the users.
Directories either control too much (for example hosting the therapy session so they can take a percentage) or not enough. An example of not enough is Psychology Today; they let you list all kinds of things on your profile. So when a client searches for therapists that fit a requirement (like taking their insurance) the search results are loaded with inaccurate results.
Some of the features that we added based on my research are:
Limiting therapists selections to three on most filters. For example, psychologists are forced to select what they’re best at (depression, anxiety, PTSD, etc.), instead of selecting all of the filters and appearing in every search result.
A favorites screen, so that people can save profiles and articles to read or view later.
A share button, so people can share therapists’ profiles with their friends.
An emergency pop up for suicidal thoughts. If anyone mentions suicide or selects it as an issue, a pop up appears prompting them to call the suicide hotline.
Click through the Figma prototype here!