Pitching in ice cold water and childbirth are both leaps into the unknown

Aura Pyykönen, how did it feel to pitch in an ice hole?

My background in ice hole swimming was a significant advantage. But I couldn’t really feel the cold properly – it was such an exciting experience. All my concentration went into the performance, and the cold only hit afterwards.

The experience was absurd and fun, it had its own comicality.

What is the Natal Mind innovation?

The idea came from a Biodesign programme by Annika Järvelin, who observed everyday work at maternity and child health clinics for three weeks. Mothers are left alone, with unmet needs. Mental health support is totally lacking. Even screening of mental health has been reduced because there are no places to send the mothers for treatment anywhere.

In Finland, we started with fear of childbirth, but more broadly we are talking about perinatal mental health. We want to provide a solution to support mothers and families.

There is also a need internationally: the same phenomenon can be seen in other systems.

The solution we are developing is based on emotion tracking and psychotherapy exercises. The mobile application provides psychotherapeutic exercises based on emotional factors. We are developing it further into a more comprehensive solution with more functionalities. For this, we will use artificial intelligence based on a language model.

We are currently starting a clinical trial, and are now recruiting 200 women from all over Finland.

What do pitching in ice cold water, the profession of obstetrics and the fear of childbirth have in common?

The profession of obstetrician is useful when pitching in an ice hole. It is about getting the job done quickly and efficiently, i.e., giving birth. Decisions must be consistent, and at the same time you have to be convincing.

A leap into the unknown also links pitching in avanto and parenthood. Childbirth is the first step to parenthood. And it's really hard to control. You just have to go through it and believe and trust that it will fine. It's also a leap into the unknown.