When I spoke with Jessica Bakker, one thing stood out instantly: her clarity of purpose. After years working in health tech across the US, she’s now channelling that experience into something deeply personal
*cough* like a platform for women’s health built around genuine community 😍
Jess recently made the leap from full-time work into freelance consulting and startup building. The move felt both deliberate and timely. “I reached a point where I asked myself, do I look for another full-time role, or do I build something?” she told me. With so much momentum in AI and health, she realised there might never be a better moment to start.
What makes her story compelling is how considered the decision has been. Jess didn’t jump into a new idea on impulse. She spent weeks listening, interviewing around fifty women through her Instagram and TikTok series, and asking thoughtful questions: What’s happened to you? What do you wish you had? How did you find community? What’s missing?
The patterns that emerged were unmistakable. For many women facing medical gaslighting, chronic conditions or long-term health challenges, the hardest part isn’t always the condition itself. It’s the isolation that comes with it. Community mattered, but the existing spaces often fell short. Facebook groups felt too big or uncurated. TikTok offered comfort but not connection.
That insight sparked an idea: what if there were a social app that connects women peer to peer, not for medical advice but for human support?
Jess’s vision is a one-to-one matching experience, something like Tinder for health support, where someone newly diagnosed with endometriosis could connect with another person who has walked a similar path.
Over time, she imagines expanding into small, curated groups. But the focus will always stay on close, meaningful connection. When it comes to health, intimacy and trust matter more than scale.
Since stepping into this new chapter, Jess has noticed a big shift in how she experiences stress. The same long workdays that once felt draining now feel purposeful. “If it’s all things that contribute to what I want to build, I don’t feel burnt out,” she said. “That’s a sign you’re heading in the right direction.”
The validation is already there in her inbox in the form of messages from women thanking her for sharing their stories, or saying they feel less alone after reading them. That kind of feedback confirms she’s solving a real problem.
Right now, Jess is in full validation mode, building a waitlist, testing growth channels and re-energising her social presence. “If you don’t reach enough people, you can’t match enough people,” she explained. Social media, storytelling and community building are her current focus.
In the coming weeks, she plans to share more about the app, grow her audience on Instagram and open the highly anticipated waitlist.
Because sometimes meaningful innovation begins not with technology, but with the simple act of saying, you’re not alone.
Follow along on Instagram: @tellingherstory_
