Catherine – As a 21-year-old senior in college, Catherine is balancing a thesis in the sociology department, varsity track and field, and a new girlfriend. She is busy in a truly Wellesley sense of the word, and the least of her worries is keeping track of her menstrual health, especially since she has always been regular since she started having periods. While Catherine technically belongs in the generation of the digital natives, she does not have strong feelings for or against technology. Catherine is able to learn new user interfaces comfortably; however, she prefers to stick to her laptop and her smartphone.

 

• What – Catherine is annoyed by the nearly constant push notifications her period tracker app keeps throwing her way. Especially since she is not having penetrative sex with anyone who has a penis, Catherine is not necessarily using the app on her phone to make sure that she is on menstrual schedule. In fact, she is not sure why she even bothers to try to keep up with the notifications. She knows, however, that it is a good practice to keep track of her periods, but she wishes that there was an easier

• How – Catherine does not like to wear too much jewelry throughout the day, so she wears the crimson wave sensor to bed so that, first thing in the morning, it may measure and record her basal body temperature. When she gets out of bed, Catherine walks over to the crimson wave mirror and drops the sensor into the plate attached to its base, which will read Catherine’s physical vital signs as they were recorded. As Catherine is going about, getting ready, the mirror displays the most important things about Catherine’s menstrual cycle, such as the fact that she is ovulating, that she may experience some bodily discomfort, and that she may feel an increase in sexual desire.

• Where – Catherine is able to use the crimson wave TUI in the comfort and privacy of her own dorm room.

• Why – Catherine finds that compartmentalizing this particular task of keeping track of her menstrual cycle within the confines of her vanity gives her the ritualistic space to check in on her periods regularly. By embedding the period-tracking process in her routine in a new way crimson wave has helped Catherine find the time to take care of herself.

Nat – As a 26-year-old software engineer at Google, Nat is happily settling into his new life in San Francisco. He is especially excited to be living in a new place because it gives him a chance to introduce himself to new people with the pronouns he prefers. He does have to keep track of his period. As a digital native and a software engineer, Nat is very comfortable with technology, and he enjoys learning about new user interfaces.

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• What – Nat is frustrated that most (if not all) period tracker apps on the market are pink and coded with “feminine” characteristics. While he could conceivably engineer his own period tracker app, he also wishes that period tracker apps would offer more privacy. For example, Nat’s friend from back home was trying to find Snapchat on his phone when that friend saw his period tracker app, which made Nat uncomfortable.

• How – With Crimson Wave, Nat does not need to worry about people discovering any sort of period tracker app on his phone. Instead, Nat wears a discreet yet fashionable ring that senses his basal body temperature, which is information that is relayed to the crimson wave mirror. Because mirrors are commonplace objects, his mirror sits on the bathroom counter and informs him what his body is doing.

• Where – Nat is able to use Crimson Wave in the comfort and privacy of his own apartment.

• Why – Most people who are able to afford one will own a mirror, and most people can wear whatever jewelry they want without people noticing. Because Crimson Wave is also designed without noticeably gendered characteristics, nobody has any reason to assume that the ring and the mirror belongs to a specific gender.

 

Irene – As a 38-year-old single mother, Irene works as a nurse, and though she is often occupied, Irene has started dating someone. Irene lives a balanced life; however, her periods throw everything out of whack. Due to reasons unknown to her, Irene’s menstrual cycles are very inconsistent, and she can even skip her period three months at a time. Whenever she does have a period, however, Irene gets painful cramps that sometimes cause her to have to call in sick to work. She wishes that she could see these things coming. Irene is comfortable using a computer, a tablet, and a laptop; however, learning new user interfaces is not the easiest thing for her.

 

• What – Because all of the period tracker apps she has tried assumes a normal, 28-day cycle, Irene finds that they are relatively useless in helping her stay on top of her. She hears about this crimson wave, which measures a person’s basal body temperature and other vital signs in order to measure on a day-to-day basis what is going on in someone’s menstrual health.

• How - As an early riser, Irene puts on the crimson wave ring, holds her hand to her chest for a moment or two, and places the ring on the specially-designed ring holder at the base of the crimson wave ring. As she gets ready to head out for work, she glances at the mirror display for all of the information she needs to know about her period.

• Where – Irene is able to use the crimson wave TUI in the comfort and privacy of her own home.

• Why – Irene knows that period tracker apps are not flexible enough to keep up with her life, and she believes that crimson wave’s algorithms offer a new way of thinking about and tracking menstrual health.

 

Mary – As a 51-year-old curator of a successful gallery in New York City, Mary is going through menopause. While she is able to handle the hot flashes and other physical discomforts, she is having a hard time dealing with her mood swings. She often finds herself calling the doctor’s office in order to ask what she can do to combat her depressive symptoms to no avail, and her older friends do not like to talk about their experience with menopause. Mary is comfortable using a computer, a tablet, and a laptop; however, learning other user interfaces is nearly impossible for her.

 

• What – Mary hears about crimson wave, a smart mirror that is easy to use that informs people about their menstrual health.

• How – While Mary does not feel compelled to use the crimson wave wearable, she does use the crimson wave’s mirror to keep track of her menopause and learn methods of coping with her depressive symptoms.

• Where – Mary is able to use the crimson wave TUI in the comfort and privacy of her own home.

• Why – While this may not necessarily be a replacement for a doctor or a therapist, Mary enjoys having this convenient mirror on her vanity advising her to go for a walk or try out yoga or take a nap in order to moderate her mood.