‘Hey, I like your idea. Is there any possibility I could join your team?’
My journey with this startup began when I was part of organizing the Forward Summer Accelerator (a story for another time). Mentha, as a team, was participating in this program. After one week, I asked if I could join, and I’m glad to say they said yes. At the time, there were already two amazing individuals developing this idea, and even though it took a bit of time for me to get on board while balancing with Forward and a new startup, it has been amazing since day one.
We are a team, with diverse skills, where every single member has personal life-experience with the problem that we are now united in solving.
After a while, we welcomed a fourth team member to our team. This was a blessing because it meant that our team could concretely develop the app and execute it. Nowadays, we are a team of four, united in solving a problem we all have personal experience with.
It is more normal to have problems than to not have them at all, and it is the best feeling when you can have that meaningful conversation about your current problems with someone who truly understands you.
Everyone should have easy access to talk about their problems anytime, anywhere. We are making this possible with Mentha by providing a one-to-one anonymous peer support chat where you can find that peer who understands, for example, your everyday stress or current struggles. More about Mentha can be read on our website.
Being part of this journey and seeing daily development is a reason why one can really live for.
Currently, we are developing the app and making sure that its launch will happen in the fall of 2024. We are pushing those 10-hour days and enjoying every moment of it. (Of course, remembering at the same time that it is important to keep your own mental health in a good place.) This is my first time being an entrepreneur and it has been so much better than I ever imagined. Seeing weekly development, taking concrete steps forward, and shaping the future of Mentha with our amazing team is a reason why one can really live for.
I am Emmi — a former student active and current entrepreneur — and we are making early-stage mental health issues easily accessible with the power of Mentha. Come and join our journey, together we heal.
Written by Emmi Smolander