HEALTHCARE

WELLNESS

Project

auraDent

Designing for Dental Anxiety with Personalization and Comfort

Client:

auraDent

My Role:

UX & UI Designer

Timeline:

8 Weeks 2024

Designing Calm, Control, and Comfort in the Dental Chair

auraDent is a mobile app designed to support patients who experience dental anxiety. I led the end-to-end design of a solution that empowers users to personalize their dental visits, reduce sensory stress, and feel more in control through thoughtful, immersive UX.

Dental anxiety affects over 36% of the population, leading millions to avoid care and suffer long-term health consequences. As someone with lived experience, I set out to create a product that directly supports this group—reducing fear through comfort, clarity, and empowerment.

help patients with dental anxiety feel informed and emotionally supported before their appointments?

empower patients to feel more in control during their dental visits?

reduce lingering anxiety and reinforce trust after their appointment?

Unseen but Universal: The Silent Impact of Dental Anxiety

Secondary research revealed that over 36% of people experience dental anxiety, with women disproportionately affected. Causes ranged from sensory overload and financial stress to traumatic childhood experiences. These insights underscored how widespread yet under-supported this issue is, and set the stage for a solution grounded in empathy, personalization, and trust.

Secondary Research

36% of people experience dental anxiety
Twice as common in women
9-15% suffers avoid all dental care due to anxiety
53 Million in US sufferers of moderate to severe dental anxiety

Interview Insights

Sterile environments intensify fear

Several users described the typical dental office as "cold" and "clinical", which heightened their anxiety before even sitting in the chair.

Waiting rooms trigger dread

The act of waiting—without updates or control—was a major emotional stressor.

Pricing confusion adds to stress

Many users shared frustration over unclear or unexpected costs, which compounded their anxiety.

Designing for Calm, Clarity, and Control

Create a welcoming, calming first impression that reduces anxiety from the first tap

Empower users to personalize their care by expressing comfort preferences easily

Provide clarity and transparency around appointment details, and next steps

Build emotional trust through thoughtful interactions, human-centered visuals, and brand reinforcement

UX Flow That Feels Like Care

To ensure visual consistency and long-term scalability, I developed a lightweight design system rooted in reassurance and accessibility. auraDent’s system includes a warm, friendly color palette, approachable Poppins typography, and mobile-first components with generous tap targets and soft shadows. Rounded corners, calming animations, and consistent microinteractions all contribute to a cohesive experience that feels intuitive, safe, and human—especially for anxious users.

What We Designed:

Comfort-first onboarding

Users select sensory preferences like headphones or blankets to personalize care

Pre-Check-In for Waiting Room Relief

Let users check in remotely and wait in their car, avoiding stressful waiting areas

Message-based Support

Patients can send concerns directly to providers ahead of time to feel heard

Avatar Setup = Ownership

Customizing an avatar helped users feel like this was their space

UI Design System

I led the complete visual redesign:

New color palette combining fintech trust with youth energy
Typography system for hierarchy and readability
Mobile-first responsive layout
Component library handed off to developers for build consistency

Stress-Free Check In

"What are you saving for?"

The check-in screen was designed to feel simple, informative, and reassuring. It displays key visit details at a glance—provider photo, patient name, appointment type, date, and time—along with the option to skip the waiting room. Users can confirm their arrival with one tap and review their personalized comfort preferences, making the experience feel thoughtful and in their control.

User check in screen showing information and steps to prepare for dental appointment

Personalized Comfort Options

To help reduce sensory stress and empower users with choice, I designed a dedicated comfort selection flow. The main screen invites users to select complimentary comfort items—like a heated blanket or noise-canceling headphones—via large, accessible buttons. Tapping into an item reveals a focused detail screen with calming visuals and a short explanation of how it supports the dental experience. This interaction gives users a moment of agency and reassurance before their visit, reinforcing that their needs are seen and supported.

By encouraging kids to express themselves visually, the avatar deepened emotional investment and made abstract tasks feel more huma, playful, and personal

A Dashboard That Calms, Not Overwhelms

The auraDent dashboard offers a calm, intuitive space for users to manage dental care without the stress common in healthcare apps. Key tasks like scheduling, check-in, billing, and exploring provider bios are centralized in a clear, supportive layout.

To ensure accessibility across age groups and anxiety levels, every interactive element features oversized, high-contrast buttons with generous tap areas. This mobile-first, inclusive design approach reduces friction and helps patients—whether children, adults, or caregivers—feel confident and in control of their care from start to finish.

Building a Scalable Design System

Creating visual consistency and modular UI patterns for long-term growth.

To support the platform’s future roadmap, I developed a lightweight design system that unified playful, brand forward visuals with clear UI standards.

Modular components for onboarding, dashboards, and cards
Iconography that’s fun but intuitive
Color palette balance vibrancy & accessibility
Typography for multi-age readability
Incorporated Avatar kits to support personalization and character identity

What I Learned

This project reaffirmed that design is emotional—especially in healthcare. Small changes, like clearer labels or amore visible check-in button, had outsized effects on user comfort and confidence. I learned the power of micro-iterations to drive meaningful usability gains and how early journey mapping and inclusive testing are essential to creating products that genuinely support vulnerable users. Most importantly, I was reminded that good UX is not just functional—it's deeply human.

AuraDent introduced a fresh, user-centered approach to a largely overlooked problem: dental anxiety. By designing an experience that prioritized emotional comfort and user control, the product filled a gap in the digital health space. Through iterative testing, we improved onboarding clarity, strengthened emotional connection, and reinforced trust through branding and feedback-driven microinteractions. The result was a concept that not only supported users but also offered a scalable, thoughtful model for accessible, anxiety-aware care.

I escalated the issue to stakeholders and suggested redesign to the onboarding flow to defer data collection until consent was granted—ensuring legal compliance, protecting the company, and reinforcing user trust.

This moment reinforced the importance of advocating for ethical, inclusive, and compliant design—especially when working on products for younger audiences.

auraDent introduced a fresh, user-centered approach to a largely overlooked problem: dental anxiety. By designing an experience that prioritized emotional comfort and user control, the product filled a gap in the digital health space. Through iterative testing, we improved onboarding clarity, strengthened emotional connection, and reinforced trust through branding and feedback-driven microinteractions. The result was a concept that not only supported users but also offered a scalable, thoughtful model for accessible, anxiety-aware care.

Legal Discovery

During onboarding design, I identified a company-wide COPPA compliance risk—the app was collecting identifiable data before parental consent. I escalated the issue and redesigned the flow to ensure compliance, protecting both the user and the business.

Final Screens & Prototype

Prototype link available soon!

Include images or embeds here:

View Figma Prototype

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