Challenges faced in silence can grow into solutions that help countless others. On today’s episode of Business Trends Today, Rootd Founder and CEO Ania Wysocka shares how she turned her lived experience with panic attacks into a mission-driven business and global brand.
Rootd is a mobile app that helps users manage panic attacks and anxiety. The app has been featured on the App Store more than 100 times and honored as an Editor’s Choice. Wysocka has been recognized as a Cartier Fellow for Social Impact Entrepreneurship, featured in Apple’s Developer Spotlight, and named a 30 Under 30 winner.
Her journey began during her fourth year of university when she experienced her first panic attack far from home without access to a doctor. She quickly realized how debilitating panic attacks could be. The lack of available resources and awareness motivated her to study panic attack and anxiety relief techniques largely based on cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). After testing what worked for her and verifying her approach with clinicians, she launched Rootd to make this support more accessible to others.
Designing and launching an app is both expensive and time-consuming. Wysocka bootstrapped Rootd using her personal savings. To cut costs, she taught herself wireframing and design through YouTube tutorials and partnered with student developers. While the initial version was buggy, early user feedback motivated continued refinement of the app.
In recent years, more funding opportunities have emerged in the social impact space. Although she has received offers as Rootd has grown, she has chosen to remain bootstrapped to retain control over the company’s mission and direction.
"If we want to be our best selves and do our best work, [we have] to also take care of ourselves."
She dedicated significant time to promoting the app on social media and used App Store optimization to target keywords and drive organic discovery. When launching a new business or app, niching down is critical to effective customer acquisition. Anxiety is a broad category and competing with larger, better-funded apps would have been challenging. By focusing initially on panic attacks, Rootd was able to rank No. 1 for the keyword before expanding to broader anxiety-related searches. Today, the app supports 4 million users across 150 countries, a milestone reached in about five to six years.
Entrepreneurship can be mentally demanding. Wysocka emphasizes that business owners must take care of themselves as they build their companies. She prioritizes her well-being through a consistent morning routine that includes exercise and journaling, even on the busiest days. She also stresses celebrating small wins before focusing on the next goal.
For aspiring entrepreneurs seeking to transform personal challenges into mission-driven solutions, she advises reflecting on what helped them personally, breaking it down into smaller steps and packaging it in a way that’s accessible to others.
Looking ahead, she plans to keep Rootd focused specifically on panic attacks and anxiety rather than branching into areas such as depression. She is exploring additional offerings, such as puzzles and plushies, and aims to expand access for users who cannot afford subscriptions through clinician and organizational partnerships. Her ultimate goal is for Rootd to provide immediate relief for anyone experiencing a panic attack, helping them break the cycle of prolonged suffering.
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