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‘This too shall pass’: persevering through infertility and childbirth

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‘This too shall pass’: persevering through infertility and childbirth

It seemed surreal that I was finally pregnant. Elated, I kept the news to ourselves for three months. Just in case. Miscarriage was not new to my circle of friends.

The first trimester passed and I finally told our family and friends. Then I started to feel an achy swelling in my breast.

After I told my delivery doctor about it, she recommended I get an ultrasound just in case. It was probably nothing. Swollen milk ducts perhaps. At the lab, the technician seemed uneasy. I told myself it was probably because they aren’t allowed to say anything until a radiologist verifies things. The radiologist came in and told me to stay behind for a mammogram. “I’m only 34 years old,” I told myself. Too young. 

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Applying Service Design Principles During a Pandemic

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Applying Service Design Principles During a Pandemic

We’re big supporters of staying home, which is quite literally saving lives during this time of the COVID-19 pandemic. Working from home has always been second nature to our product studio, and with more organizations following suit, it seems the only time we go out of the house now is to buy groceries or take a socially-distanced walk. During our trips to the grocery store, we’ve noticed that some shops have adapted more quickly than others to the ever-changing health recommendations. Some are even adopting service design principles (knowingly or not) to enforce these measures. One place, in particular, caught our attention.

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Iterating on Good Design

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Iterating on Good Design

I recently spoke at a Sketch Vancouver Meetup about what makes good design. The Spark co-founder (Cody Curley) who spoke before me quoted Dieter Rams’ 10 Principles (Hackernoon), which made it easy for me to follow by posing the question of whether or not people* (*designers) pondered consequences. How might we design for ‘good’? Asking the right questions before starting your next sprint is just as important as designing the right thing.