Tired of consumer devices, I decided to tackle a field that is different and impactful. Healthcare, obviously. After all, the wish that anyone should make when given by a genie is for good health.

Isn’t there anything more simple and succinct?

But as I embarked on the journey, like anyone in the health industry, I believe that I have every condition that exists. Am I pregnant? Are my achey knees suggesting early arthritis? Should I really eat that last glazed donut? Is this a heart attack? Or is it because I am allergic to something I ate 10 hours ago?

In my projects, I talk to patients. Or really people with [insert condition], because as the health community wants to emphasize: they are not defined by the condition; they are people. So I see their homes, their family, the choices they make, the everyday lives, their dialog, their devices. I aim to understand them. I think deeply about their emotions, fears, and motivations. I think about what keeps them up at night and what brings them joy.

It’s empathy. And in doing so, I find myself evaluating my fingers for tingles and my everyday headaches for symptoms. I feel the people that I speak with…so deep in my bones and in my blood. Are they now part of me too?