When I set out to build Ourself, I knew it had to be a safe space above all else. This is personal for me—I know what it’s like to be denied health insurance because someone accessed or misinterpreted my health information without my knowledge. I also understand the challenges of managing a condition that affects how others perceive you, including professionally. Your health data should never put your livelihood at risk and no one should have to choose between managing their health and protecting their personal information.
As I built this app, people asked why I’d launch something like this now—at a time when women’s health resources, access, and legal protections are shrinking. My response? That’s exactly why we need more solutions, not fewer. If we can't always control policies, we can demand better security and privacy for the resources we do have.
Privacy by Design
The reality is, there aren’t many truly safe places for health data. But changing that isn’t as complicated as it seems—it just requires commitment. The first step is actually quite easy - you simply have to decide to do it differently. The harder part is building it right.
Our solution? Your data, your control. We created the AVID (Access Verification ID), an encrypted ID stored only on your phone. This is the key that links your personal information to your health data—and you alone control it.
What This Means for You
If law enforcement, a corporation, or any third party asked us to identify women in a specific location who have been recently diagnosed with depression, take specific medications, manage a chronic condition, or have experienced a loss, we couldn’t provide it— you alone control access to that information. Your AVID is stored on your device, and only you can unlock it.
You have full control over your AVID settings—you can customize it, change how often you re-enter it, and reset it anytime. The tradeoff? If you forget it, we can’t recover it —because only you ever had access to it. That’s true privacy. It’s important that you also take precautions to protect your phone.
No Tracking, No Selling, No Targeted Ads
Since we don’t collect your data, we can’t sell it. We also don’t target you with ads or ask you to log in through third-party platforms that could track you. Many companies promise privacy but then immediately ask to track you across your other apps and devices—to put it mildly that’s a red flag. Some have even been fined by the FTC for violating user privacy. Always pay attention to what a company does, not just what they say.
Asking for More, Not Less
When people say women’s health and security are doomed, my response is simple: Bring it on. This is a conversation we need to have more often.
The answer to losing healthcare resources isn’t giving up our own choices—it’s demanding better ones. We built Ourself to be that better option and we believe our actions will speak louder than words.
