Ovaya

• 

  Logo

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Inspiration: Empowering Women Through Technology

As a developer passionate about creating meaningful impact, I was inspired to build Ovaya after realizing the lack of comprehensive, user-friendly period tracking apps that also focus on overall well-being and productivity. The idea struck me during a conversation with a friend who struggled to balance her work life with her menstrual cycle, often feeling less productive during certain phases without understanding why.

This sparked a journey to create an app that not only tracks periods but also empowers women to understand their bodies better and optimize their lives around their natural cycles.

What I Learned: A Deep Dive into Women's Health and SwiftUI

Building Ovaya was an incredible learning experience. I delved deep into research about menstrual cycles, hormonal changes, and their effects on energy levels and mood. This project also pushed my SwiftUI skills to new heights. I learned to create more complex, interactive UI components and how to effectively manage state across a larger application.

Key learnings include:

• Implementing custom chart views for visualizing cycle data
• Creating an intuitive, aesthetically pleasing UI that adapts to different phases
• Integrating local notifications for reminders
• Implementing MVVM architecture for better code organization and testability

The Build: From Concept to App Store

The development process was intense but rewarding. I started with wireframes and user flow diagrams, ensuring a smooth user experience from onboarding to daily use. The core features were built incrementally:

1. Period tracking and prediction algorithm
2. Customizable dashboard with insights
3. Productivity tracker aligned with cycle phases
4. Reminder system for period start dates and self-care activities

One of the most challenging and fun parts was creating the animated "blob" view that changes shape and color based on the current cycle phase. This required diving into SwiftUI's animation capabilities and custom shape drawing.

Challenges: Overcoming Technical and Time Constraints

The biggest challenge was balancing feature development with the hackathon's time constraints. I had to make tough decisions about which features to prioritize. For instance, I initially planned to include a social component but decided to focus on core functionality for the MVP.

Another significant challenge was ensuring accurate period predictions, especially for users with irregular cycles. This required implementing a more sophisticated algorithm that adapts to user data over time.

Lastly, optimizing performance while handling complex UI animations and data processing was tricky. I had to refactor parts of the app to ensure smooth performance across different devices.

The Impact: Building in Public and Community Feedback

Building Ovaya in public was an exhilarating experience. I shared progress updates, sought feedback, and even conducted impromptu polls on Twitter to guide feature prioritization. This approach not only helped in building a better product but also in creating a community around Ovaya even before its launch.

The positive responses and constructive feedback I received were invaluable. It helped shape Ovaya into an app that truly resonates with its target users. More importantly, it reinforced the importance of the problem we're solving and the potential impact Ovaya can have on women's lives.

As we approach the launch, I'm excited to see how Ovaya will evolve based on real-world usage and continued community input. This hackathon was just the beginning of what I hope will be a transformative tool for women's health and productivity.

Built With

• revenuecat
• swiftui