Educational project
Shamatha
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Shamatha is a service for users suffering from anxiety or obsessive-compulsive disorder who are undergoing a therapeutic journey through the mindful breathing. A practice which consists at focusing attention on the breath by letting any thought flow from the mind instead of trapping it inside. Since for this type of target user could be complicated to carry out the exercise, Shamatha aims to provide an interactive solution that focuses the users on the here and now, encourages them in achieving results and increases their self-control, using a visual output that represents their breathing rhythm in real time.
Moreover, the users can monitor their progress in terms of practice and mood, receiving constant feedback from the therapist.
Moreover, the users can monitor their progress in terms of practice and mood, receiving constant feedback from the therapist.
Shamatha consists of three main touchpoints: an app for the patient, a breath sensor that allows the patient to perform the proposed exercises interactively and a platform for the therapist useful for monitoring patients. Shamatha can recognize specific patients' patterns and gain important insights for both patient and therapist, enabling them to optimize the work and achieve the pre-established therapeutic goal in the shortest time possible.
The interfaces are created and prototyped using Figma. The physical product, on the other hand, is prototyped using a pressure sensor, which can recognize the breathing rhythm based on the pressure exerted on it by the user's chest. The visual output associated with the breath is obtained through a serial communication between Arduino, connected to the sensor, and Processing.
The app's interfaces and visual output representing the user's breath are designed with a clear and simple style: there are few visual elements in the several app pages that aim to promote a feeling of relaxation. The platform design for the therapist emphasizes data on the patient's progress, providing useful information for a better understanding of the patient's health status. The physical sensor used to monitor the patient's breathing is designed to be comfortable to wear, lightweight, and not too bulky or tight.