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UI/UX Case Study

Clara

A mental wellness app built to simplify emotional self-care and connect users with real support

Clara is a self-initiated UX case study focused on designing a mental wellness app that simplifies emotional tracking and connects users with real therapists without paywalls. Over 8 weeks, I led the entire process from research to high-fidelity UI, identifying gaps in apps like Calm and Headspace. Clara was designed to feel calming, intuitive, and genuinely supportive during tough moments.

Summary

Role

User Experience and Interface Designer

Planned and conducted user interviews
Ran competitive analysis
Synthesized findings into personas and insights
Created task flows and wireframes
Designed high-fidelity UI
Conducted usability testing and iterated designs

Responsibilities

Clara is a 6-week, self-initiated UX case study focused on supporting users through emotional stress, burnout, and anxiety. It was inspired by gaps in popular wellness apps like Calm and Headspace, which often lock essential features behind paywalls or complex flows. This project targeted young adults, working professionals, and busy parents looking for clarity, simplicity, and emotional support. The MVP scope included mood tracking, access to therapists, and calming music — all designed with a clean, intuitive interface.

About

Emphatize

Define

Ideate

Design

Test

User Research

User Interview

Entrant Analysis

User Persona

User Jouney Map

Goal Statement

Empathy Map

Brainstorming

Card Sorting

User Flow

Paper Wireframes

Visual Design

Prototype

CheckUsability

Survey Insight

Improvements

Simplicity & Ease of Use

Users prefer minimal, intuitive interfaces that reduce stress and are easy to navigate.

Personalization

People want content tailored to their needs, like personalized meditations and mood-based emotional support.

Access to Professional Help

Cost and scheduling are major barriers. Users want affordable, accessible options for therapy within the app.

Mood Tracking Importance

Users understand the value of mood tracking, but find it hard to build a consistent habit.

Key Insights

I analyzed three key mental health apps — Calm, Headspace, and Moodfit — to understand what works and where gaps exist.

Calm has a rich meditation library and calming visuals, but most features are locked behind a subscription and lack personalization.
Headspace offers structured content and onboarding, but the interface can feel overwhelming, and it doesn’t offer live therapy.
Moodfit includes advanced mood tracking and custom goals, but feels clinical and lacks engaging emotional content like music or meditations.

Benchmarking:

Research Methodology

To ensure that Clara meets the needs of its users, a well-rounded user research methodology will be employed. This approach will help gather valuable insights into how people manage their mental health, their challenges with existing tools, and what they seek in a supportive app.

The research will begin with broad surveys and questionnaires to collect quantitative data from a diverse group of users, allowing us to understand trends in mental health management, app usage, and common pain points.

Research Goals

I wanted to learn how people manage their mental health, what problems they face with existing wellness apps, and what they really need during stressful moments.

The goal was to uncover emotional patterns, everyday habits, and unmet needs that could shape a simpler and more supportive experience.

Insights and Benchmarking

Define

Problem

Navigating mental health support can feel overwhelming and fragmented.

Users often struggle with cluttered interfaces, hidden paywalls, or too many features that don’t feel relevant to their needs. This creates more stress at a time when clarity and emotional simplicity are most needed.

Solution

Clara aims to simplify this experience by becoming a calm, all-in-one platform.

It will offer intuitive mood tracking, free guided meditations, and access to therapists — all designed with a soft, distraction-free interface that centers user well-being, not monetization.

Meet the Users

Goals

Sofia is seeking tools that will help her manage her work stress while maintaining her responsibilities at home.
She wants to address her feelings of burnout by incorporating small, manageable self-care practices into her daily routine.

Frustations

Sofia has little free time to dedicate to therapy or wellness activities, making it difficult for her to prioritize her mental health.
Juggling her professional responsibilities and family life leaves her feeling exhausted and overwhelmed, with little energy for self-care.

Needs

Privacy is crucial for Sofia, especially in her role as an HR manager. She wants to explore professional mental health support discreetly and confidently.
Sofia’s schedule is tightly packed, so she needs quick, accessible features that provide immediate relief without being time-consuming.
Sofia needs tools that work quickly, helping her feel less stressed and more in control without taking up too much time or energy.

Motivations

Sofia wants to find simple, sustainable ways to maintain her mental health over the long term.
Professional Help: She values the idea of professional mental health guidance and is motivated to find a therapist who can work around her busy schedule.

Sofia Martinez

Personality

Breif Story

Age

Status

Occupation

Location

Married

HR Manager

Sydney, Australia

Imaginative

Patient

joyful

Sofia is a dedicated HR manager working at a large corporate firm. She has been in her role for over 15 years and is responsible for managing a team of 12 people. As a working mother of two children, Sofia often finds herself struggling to balance the demands of her career and family life. Recently, the pressure has started to take a toll on her mental health, leading to feelings of burnout and emotional exhaustion.

Goals

Emily wants to find effective ways to reduce her stress levels and improve her overall mental well-being.
She seeks to understand her emotional patterns better and identify triggers that lead to anxiety.

Frustations

Emily feels overwhelmed by the variety of mental health apps available and struggles to find one that feels right for her.
Existing apps often provide generic content that doesn’t resonate with her specific needs or emotional states.

Needs

Emily needs tools that can help her alleviate stress quickly and efficiently, such as guided meditations, breathing exercises, and relaxation techniques.
She requires a straightforward and intuitive mood tracking feature that allows her to log her emotions easily and recognize patterns over time.
Emily needs a seamless way to connect with licensed therapists for guidance and support.

Motivations

Emily is motivated by a genuine desire to improve her mental health and overall quality of life, seeking ways to manage stress and anxiety effectively.
She has a strong motivation to develop healthy habits and routines that contribute to her mental well-being, recognizing the importance of self-care in her life.

Emily Johnson

Personality

Breif Story

Age

Education

Status

Occupation

Location

B.E Engineer

Single

Marketing Coordinator

San Francisco, CA

Calm

Thinker

Creative

Emily is a young professional working in a fast-paced marketing environment. She often feels the pressure of deadlines and managing her responsibilities, which leads to stress and occasional anxiety. Although she is aware of the importance of mental health, she finds it challenging to prioritize self-care amid her busy schedule.

Goals

Mia needs help managing her anxiety, particularly during high-stress periods like exams.
As a psychology student, she’s interested in learning more about mental health tools that she can apply both personally and academically.

Frustations

Mia sometimes gets overwhelmed by anxiety, leading to procrastination and increased stress.
While she uses short-term methods to deal with stress, Mia lacks consistent coping strategies to manage her anxiety over time.

Needs

She needs features that allow her to track her stress levels over time to better understand her emotional patterns and triggers.
Mia is focused on improving her mental well-being through self-care, seeking tools that aid in personal development and emotional resilience.
She wants to manage her mental health in a private and self-guided manner, without feeling overwhelmed by too many features or information.

Motivations

Mia is motivated by a desire to improve her mental well-being and learn better strategies for coping with anxiety.
LShe’s keen to explore mental health tools both as a student of psychology and for her own self-care.

Mia Zhang

Personality

Breif Story

Age

Education

Status

Occupation

Location

psychology student

Single

University Student

Brisbane, Australia

Stressed

Thinker

Introvert

Mia is a first-year psychology student who enjoys learning about mental health but struggles with managing her own anxiety during stressful times like exams and deadlines. She is highly tech-savvy and spends a lot of time on her phone using various apps for social media, studying, and self-care. Mia is interested in mental health apps as part of her academic studies but also needs tools to manage her own well-being.

User Personas

Based on patterns from user interviews, I created three personas to represent common emotional needs and stress behaviors. These personas helped guide decisions around features, tone, and the overall experience of Clara.

Empathy Map

To better understand users’ emotions and behaviors, I created an empathy map based on real interview data. This helped visualize how users think, feel, say, and do during emotionally difficult moments — especially when using mental wellness apps.

Key Takeaways:

Users often feel overwhelmed, even before opening an app
They want to feel safe and understood, not analyzed
Saying things like “I don’t know where to start” or “It’s too much when I’m already stressed” was common
Simplicity and emotional tone matter more than features

Affinity Diagram

I used affinity mapping to cluster recurring themes and insights from the interviews. This helped identify key emotional patterns and usability pain points across all participants.

Main Insight Clusters:

Emotional Triggers → Stress, self-doubt, overwhelm
App Barriers → Complexity, paywalls, lack of guidance
User Motivations → Wanting calm, clarity, and consistency

Information Architecture

Based on key research insights, I mapped out Clara’s core structure to keep navigation simple and emotionally intuitive. The goal was to prioritize accessibility and emotional clarity, helping users reach mood tracking, calming tools, and therapist access with minimal friction.

Mobile
E-mail
Social Media

Onboarding:

User Profile

Calming Playlist

Home

Have an

account?

Yes

Mobile
E-mail
Social Media

Home

Today’s Task

Featured Posts

mental state

Notifications

Profile

Community

Popluar Groups

My groups

post In group

Wellness Hub

Mood Tracker

Assessment

Activity

Meditation

Analytics

Peaceful music

Create playlist

Profile Information
Profile Picture
Personal Bio
Interests and Tags
Privacy Settings

Design Process

With research insights clearly defined and the core structure in place, I moved into the design phase — sketching, wireframing, and building the user interface around emotional clarity.

The goal wasn’t just usability, but to create a calm, intuitive space where users could feel supported, not overwhelmed.

Wireframing

Welcome, Candy

How's your mental state at the moment?

Happy

Calm

Relax

Focus

Today’s Task

Peer Group Meetup

Let’s open up to the thing that matters amoung the people

Join Now

Meditation

Aura is the most important thing that matters to you. join us on

06:00 PM

New here? Register now

Let's Begin

First name

John

Last name

Doe

Phone

+855

123 456 789

Age

jonhn.ux@gmail.com

Password

Email Address

Password

New here? Register now

Let's Begin

Skip

Typography and Colors

1E1E1E

696272

A2D9CE

C9A2E4

6B94E5

Body

Buttons

(Open Sans Semi Bold)

Heading 1

(Comfortaa Bold)

(Comfortaa Medium)

(Comfortaa Regular)

Heading 2

Create account

Key Interface Highlights

The home screen of the Clara app serves as the central hub for users, designed to provide a calming and intuitive experience that prioritizes mental well-being. Upon opening the app, users are greeted with a visually soothing interface featuring a soft color palette, gentle typography, and peaceful imagery that fosters a sense of tranquility.

The Mood Tracker is a central feature of the Clara app, designed to help users monitor and understand their emotional states over time. This tool is essential for fostering self-awareness and encouraging proactive mental health management. The Mood Tracker is intuitive, engaging, and seamlessly integrated into the user experience.

The Online Therapy feature is a pivotal component of the Clara app, designed to provide users with convenient access to licensed mental health professionals. Recognizing the importance of professional support in managing mental health, this feature aims to create a safe, accessible, and user-friendly environment for users seeking guidance and therapy.

Homescreen

Mood Tracker

Online Therapy

9:41

Welcome, Candy

How's your mental state at the moment?

Happy

Calm

Relax

Focus

Today’s Task

Peer Group Meetup

Let’s open up to the thing that matters amoung the people

Join Now

Meditation

Aura is the most important thing that matters to you. join us on

06:00 PM

Daily Tasks

Meditate for 5 minutes

Find inner peace daily.

Eat Healthy Meals

Fuel Your Well-Being

Nourish Your Body.

Fuel Your Well-Being

Get Moving with Exercise

Stay Active, Feel Better.

Mindful Skin Nurturing

Revitalize your skin with care.

Hydration Reminder

Stay Refreshed, Stay Well.

9:41

10 October

Sunday

Hello, Candy!

Mindful Moments Tracker

October 2023

Mood Tracker

Happy

Calm

Relax

Focus

Start Assessment

9:41

Hello, Candy!

Upcoming Session

Sahana V, Msc in Clinical Psychology

7:30 PM - 8:30 PM

Join Now

Reschedule

Join Now

Sahana V

Msc in Clinical Psychology

7:30 PM - 8:30 PM

31st March ‘22

Re-book

View Profile

Sahana V

Msc in Clinical Psychology

7:30 PM - 8:30 PM

31st March ‘22

All Sessions

CLARA

9:41

Begin your path to inner peace and emotional well-being. Our caring community is here to walk beside you on your journey to a brighter future.

Welcome to CLARA

Skip

9:41

Begin your path to inner peace and emotional well-being. Our caring community is here to walk beside you on your journey to a brighter future.

Welcome to CLARA

Skip

9:41

Email Address

Password

Welcome Back!

Our Journey to Well-being Continues Here.

New here? Register now

Let's Begin

Forgot Password?

Find help or answers to questions anytime you need support.

9:41

Create account

Our Journey to Well-being Continues Here.

First name

John

Last name

Doe

Phone

+855

123 456 789

Age

jonhn.ux@gmail.com

Password

I accept term and condition

Already have account? Login now

Create account

Find help or answers to questions anytime you need support.

Are you experiencing any physical distress?

Yes, one or multiple

I’m experiencing physical pain in different place over my body.

No Physical Pain At All

I’m not experiencing any physical pain in my body at all :)

Assessment

2 of 5

Continue

9:41

Welcome, Candy

How's your mental state at the moment?

Happy

Calm

Relax

Focus

Today’s Task

Peer Group Meetup

Let’s open up to the thing that matters amoung the people

Join Now

Meditation

Aura is the most important thing that matters to you. join us on

06:00 PM

9:41

Calming Playlist

Peace and Calm

By: Ijeoma Candy Obi

Daily Tasks

Meditate for 5 minutes

Find inner peace daily.

Eat Healthy Meals

Fuel Your Well-Being

Nourish Your Body.

Fuel Your Well-Being

Get Moving with Exercise

Stay Active, Feel Better.

Mindful Skin Nurturing

Revitalize your skin with care.

Hydration Reminder

Stay Refreshed, Stay Well.

9:41

10 October

Sunday

Hello, Candy!

Mindful Moments Tracker

October 2023

Mood Tracker

Happy

Calm

Relax

Focus

Start Assessment

How would you describe your mood?

I Feel Neutral.

Assessment

1 of 5

9:41

Hello, Candy!

Upcoming Session

Sahana V, Msc in Clinical Psychology

7:30 PM - 8:30 PM

Join Now

Reschedule

Join Now

Sahana V

Msc in Clinical Psychology

7:30 PM - 8:30 PM

31st March ‘22

Re-book

View Profile

Sahana V

Msc in Clinical Psychology

7:30 PM - 8:30 PM

31st March ‘22

All Sessions

9:41

Wellness Hub

Coal Dingo

just now

I've been experiencing constant sadness and loss of interest in things I used to enjoy...

Pigeon Car

3 hrs ago

Thank you so much Doc. I’m already feeling better now. You’re the best :)

Pigeon Car

1 hr ago

Is there a therapy which can help me to overcome loneliness

Pigeon Car

2 min ago

Pigeon Car

3 hrs ago

Is there a therapy which can cure crossdressing & bdsm compulsion?

Trending

Relationship

Self Care

What’s your health goal?

I wanna reduce stress

I wanna try Therapy

I want to cope with trauma

I want to be a better person

Just trying out the app, mate!

Assessment

4 of 5

Continue

How would you rate your sleep quality?

Excellent

7-9 hours

Good

6-7 hours

Fair

5 hours

Poor

3-4 hours

Worst

<3 hours

Assessment

3 of 5

How would you describe yourself?

Introvert

Afraid of people

Neuroticism

Sensitive

,Easy feel sad

4/10

Most Common:

easy feel sad

pessimistic

Assessment

4 of 5

Submit

Clara’s Interface Overview

With research insights clearly defined and the core structure in place, I moved into the design phase — sketching, wireframing, and building the user interface around emotional clarity.

The goal wasn’t just usability, but to create a calm, intuitive space where users could feel supported, not overwhelmed.

Onboarding and Setup

Core Features

Therapy & Settings

Welcoming users into a calm and focused experience

Simplified sign-up and preference flow
Minimal copy and soft visuals to reduce overwhelm

Everyday tools for emotional check-ins and self-care

Mood tracking, audio tools, and supportive check-ins in one place
Quick access to daily wellness actions with zero clutter

Removing barriers to professional help and personalization

Direct therapist access, profile customization, and reminders for balance
Designed to reduce hesitation around asking for help through supportive cues

View Prototype:

Figma Link

Usability Testing

Once the final designs were ready, I conducted usability testing with three users to validate the app’s emotional tone, ease of use, and overall flow. Each user was asked to complete common tasks like mood tracking, listening to audio, and booking therapy. Their feedback guided key refinements in both layout and interaction.

Testing Method

5 users tested the clickable prototype
Sessions were moderated remotely over Zoom and in person
Tasks included mood logging, meditation playback, and navigating to therapy
Observed completion, hesitation, and emotional response

Positive Insight: Most users found Clara’s interface to be clean, intuitive, and calming, which contributed to a positive first impression.

Improvement Opportunity: Some users expressed a desire for clearer visual indicators or onboarding tips to guide first-time users through key features.

Positive Insight: Users appreciated the simplicity of the Mood Tracker, finding it easy to log their emotions with emoticons and sliders.

Improvement Opportunity: A few users suggested adding more nuanced emotion categories or descriptors for better personalization.

Insights

Future Works and Improvement

As Clara evolves, there are several opportunities to expand its impact and deepen user engagement. Based on feedback from usability testing, research findings, and current trends in mental health technology, here are a few features worth exploring in future iterations.

Customized Guided Meditations

Implement AI-powered recommendations for meditation sessions based on mood logs, recent activity, or emotional patterns.

Advanced Mood Analytics

Provide users with visual insights into emotional trends over time, empowering them to reflect, understand triggers, and self-regulate better.

Rewards for Consistency

Introduce gamified rewards for users who consistently log moods, complete meditations, or schedule therapy — reinforcing healthy habits.

In-App Journal

Allow users to privately reflect on their day alongside their mood entries, increasing emotional depth without cluttering the main experience.

Thanks for reading!

If this case study resonated with you, I’d love to connect and chat more. Feel free to reach out.

Siddharth Monga

Designing with empathy, clarity, and intent.