Health
PHASE
A wearable that helps young people with ADHD feel time passing and start their tasks.
- My role
- Research, concept, UX and UI
- Team
- Himank Vijureja and Nitin Chauhan
- Module
- UX for Special Needs
- Time
- 5 weeks
- Made for
- Wristband and phone app
- Tools
- Figma
01 The problem
People with ADHD often know exactly what they need to do but can’t get started. Hours pass without them noticing. Most apps and planners they try stop working for them within a few days.
- 7.1%of Indian children show ADHD symptoms
- 60%were never flagged by a teacher
- 2 to 3 yearsbehind their peers in executive function
02 How we narrowed it down
We started broad with invisible disabilities, then narrowed to ADHD, then to two specific problems: losing track of time and struggling to start tasks. We focused on 16 to 20 year olds because they’re old enough to describe their experience, but their habits are still forming.
03 What we heard
We interviewed students with ADHD and spoke to clinicians.
“By the time I look up, hours are already gone.”
“Every app works great for about three days, then I stop opening it.”
“I don’t need another reminder, I need something that just sits there.”
Paper planners failed just as fast as apps. So the answer wasn’t digital vs physical. It was about how the tool asks for attention.
04 What's already out there
We compared 10 products, including Time Timer, Goally and EndeavorRx. None of them combine time and tasks in a physical product, and most aren’t even available in India.
05 The idea behind it
Body doubling is when someone works better just because another person is in the room. A 2024 study used a robot as a body double for college students with ADHD, and 91% kept using it after the first week. We wanted to bring that feeling of presence into something you can wear.
06 What PHASE does
Morning energy
Tracks your sleep and movement and shows your energy each morning as Low, Steady or High. You can change it if it feels wrong.
Talk to it
You describe a task in a voice note. It estimates how long it'll take and suggests when to start.
Feel time pass
While you work, it gives a gentle buzz every 5 minutes so you notice time passing.
Weekly view
Shows your patterns, with no streaks and no guilt.
07 Design principles
- Be present, don’t give orders
- No daily setup
- Stay in the background, don’t demand attention
- Keep all data on the device, never uploaded
08 What we made
A 41 slide deck, an A0 poster, a 40 page book, 7 research method templates and the app screens, all in Figma.
09 What's next
Build a physical prototype and test it with 16 to 20 year olds.
