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Innovation portfolio

Natal Mind

Calmer pregnancy and better birth with a digital doula and the Nordic Method
two women

Status:

Pre-business

SDGs:

Good health and well-being

Industry:

Life science and medical

Impact:

Quality of life

Origin:

Research to Business

School:

School of Science

Established:

2024

Perinatal mental health (PMH) problems, particularly anxiety, depression and fear of childbirth (FOC), affect expectant mothers, families, and societies worldwide in devastating ways, through pregnancy and birth complications, issues with mother-infant bonding, and declining birth rate, to name but a few. Sadly, these problems go often undiagnosed and untreated.

Natal Mind delivers accessible, preventive mental health and birth preparation support. With the virtual doula, midwife and psychotherapist Natalie the app provides clinically backed birth education, pain management tools, communication support and psychological exercises to reduce stress and improve trust and self-efficacy. 

The app is based on the validated methods from the Nordic maternity care and the emotion tracking algorithm developed at Aalto University. The proof-of-concept application has already shown clinical evidence in reducing fear of childbirth and birth complications, and in the future, it can work as a biomarker for perinatal mental health problems. 

The team is targeting emerging markets, particularly in Africa, where gaps in mental health and maternal care access remain significant, and where there is a growing demand for scalable, accessible healthcare tools.

Contact

Annika Järvelin

In spotlight

Artificial intelligence models have been used in the design of the Natal Mind app and especially the cartoon-like digital therapists.

Digital doula helps mothers-to-be face the fear of childbirth

Aalto University introduces 12 new world-changing innovations at Slush. On of them is digital doula Natal Mind, a mobile app designed to support the emotional and mental journey undergone by mothers-to-be.

News
Natal Mind winning team, photo by Polar Bear Pitching

Pitching in ice cold water and childbirth are both leaps into the unknown

The Natal Mind research team won the Polar Bear Pitching competition last weekend in Oulu. Obstetrician Aura Pyykönen tells us what it was like to pitch in the ice-cold water. Annika Järvelin, Riikka Lemmetyinen and Henni Tenhunen are other members of the winning team at Aalto Department of Industrial Engineering and Management.

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