Overview
WhyFailedRelationship is a relationship intelligence and emotional-healing platform designed to help people understand why their past relationships failed, recognize recurring emotional patterns, and avoid repeating the same cycles in future relationships.
Rather than offering generic advice, the product focuses on self-awareness, reflection, and pattern recognition - helping users move from confusion to clarity.
Deep long-form articles
Playbooks & guides
Community forums
Podcast episodes
Premium content
Store for merch
Problem
People leave failed relationships with unanswered questions
-What went wrong?
-Why does this keep happening to me?
-Was it them, me, or the dynamic?
Existing Solutions Fall Short
Offer surface-level advice
Shame users or oversimplify emotional pain
Overwhelm users with content without guidance
Lack structure for meaningful self-reflection
As a result, users struggle to turn emotional experiences into understanding and growth.
Goal
Design a product that:
Helps users reflect without feeling judged
Turns emotional experiences into clear insights
Encourages awareness of recurring patterns
Feels safe, private, and emotionally respectful
Can scale beyond a single session or insight
My Role & Scope
I was the sole product designer, responsible for:
Problem framing and UX strategy
Information architecture and interaction design
Emotional tone, content flow, and user guidance
Research through competitive and behavioral analysis
Translating UX decisions directly into a shipped product using AI-assisted workflows
I treated this as a real, production consumer product - not a concept or experiment.
Key Constraints & Considerations
Emotional Vulnerability
Required careful tone and pacing throughout the experience
Clarity Without Overwhelm
Users needed structure without feeling drowned in information
Trust & Privacy
Essential to engagement - users won't share without feeling safe
Supportive, Not Clinical
The experience had to feel empathetic, not transactional
Structure Without Rigidity
Product needed guidance while allowing personal exploration
These constraints shaped every design decision throughout the product development.
Market Research & Competitor Analysis
Target Market
- Men & women aged 18-45
- Recently out of a relationship
- Self-improvement seekers
- People dealing with attachment trauma
- Social media audience interested in healing, psychology, and personal growth
Key Market Insights
- Relationship content is exploding on TikTok & Instagram (300% YoY growth)
- Users want practical healing steps, not vague motivational quotes
- 80% of people experience at least one painful breakup that affects future relationships
- Rising demand for anonymous questions, playbooks, and digital courses
Opportunity Gap
No platform currently combines:
WhyFailedRelationship fills this gap.
User Personas
Persona 1
"The Recovering Heart"
Sarah, 27
Recently ended a toxic relationship. Feels lost, confused, emotionally drained. Googles "Why did my relationship fail?" Wants practical tools to heal. Prefers reading + journaling.
Goals
Understand what happened, heal emotionally, avoid repeating mistakes
Pain Points
Overwhelming noise online, no structure
Persona 2
"The Self-Awareness Seeker"
Marcus, 34
Wants to understand his patterns. Has repeated the same breakup cycle. Follows psychology pages online. Wants a roadmap.
Goals
Identify blindspots, break patterns, grow emotionally
Pain Points
Content is scattered, no personalized guidance
Persona 3
"The Anonymous Sharer"
Timi, 21
Has questions but doesn't want friends/family to know. Needs a safe space. Wants step-by-step answers.
Goals
Confident, confidential guidance
Pain Points
Fear of judgment
4-Quadrant Empathy Map
User Journey Map
This journey map visualizes how users move from awareness to long-term engagement, identifying key touchpoints, emotional states, and opportunities for product intervention at each stage.
Process
Understanding Emotional User Behavior
Rather than starting with features, I focused on how people emotionally process failed relationships.
Users want understanding, not blame
Reflection works best when guided gently
Long content without structure increases disengagement
Emotional safety is a prerequisite for honesty
Designing Guided Reflection, Not Advice
I intentionally avoided "tips" and "solutions." Instead, the experience was designed as:
A sequence of guided prompts
Clear emotional checkpoints
Simple language that encourages honesty
Progression from experience -> insight
This helped users feel accompanied, not instructed.
Structuring Insight Without Overwhelm
To prevent emotional fatigue:
Content was broken into short, focused sections
Reflections built on each other progressively
Users could pause without losing context
Insights were summarized clearly at the end
This transformed emotional complexity into something digestible.
Key UX Decisions
Empathetic Tone
Language chosen to feel neutral, supportive, and non-judgmental
Progressive Disclosure
Emotional depth introduced gradually
Guided Flow
Users never face a blank screen or open-ended task
Privacy-First Design
No unnecessary exposure or social pressure
Clarity Over Cleverness
Simple UI to keep focus on reflection
I intentionally avoided features that would distract from emotional presence.
Wireframes & Prototyping
Low-fidelity sketches were created for Homepage, Article layout, Playbook pages, Store, and forum.
Low-Fidelity Wireframes
Homepage
Article Layout
Playbook Pages
Store
Forum
High-Fidelity Prototypes
Final Homepage Design
High-fidelity prototype
Article Reading Experience
High-fidelity prototype
Premium Videos
High-fidelity prototype
Tested with sample users representing personas to validate the design approach and gather feedback before development.
High-Fidelity Prototypes
These high-fidelity prototypes showcase the final look and feel, demonstrating a clear, empathetic, and well-structured user experience.
Final Homepage Design
High-fidelity prototype
Article Reading Experience
High-fidelity prototype
Premium Videos
High-fidelity prototype
Execution & Shipping
I translated UX decisions directly into the live product using AI-assisted workflows in VS Code, ensuring:
Design intent matched real interaction behavior
Emotional pacing felt right in practice, not just in design
Edge cases (drop-offs, pauses, restarts) were handled thoughtfully
This allowed fast iteration while maintaining emotional integrity.
Outcome
Shipped Product
A shipped, usable product focused on emotional clarity
Guided Experience
Helps users articulate patterns they couldn't previously name
Scalable Foundation
Foundation for deeper insight, personalization, and future content
While qualitative by nature, early feedback validated the need for structured, judgment-free reflection.
Reflection
If continuing this product within a team environment, I would:
Validate flows with a wider range of relationship experiences
Collaborate with mental health professionals for deeper content alignment
Explore adaptive paths based on user responses
This project reinforced that good UX is not about visuals - it's about emotional responsibility.