ifeel is the official Mental Health service provider for IE Master students

Everyone has a bad day from time to time, everyone feels anxious or out of their place, not knowing if the step they've taken is the correct one, looking for some support or the right words that give them the tools to continue following the path they’ve chosen and to not give up.

But, how do we get this support? Sometimes even those closest to us can only show us empathy. How do we get to a place where our emotional well-being finds equilibrium and a balanced state?

These were some of the questions that IMBA alumni Martin Villanueva, Amir Kaplan, and Gabriele Murrone, were asking themselves in 2017. They were looking for a psychologist to help alleviate the stress that came with having high expectations, living abroad, and striving to create the next best version of themselves at IE.

Their problem at that time birthed the solution that they are currently working on.

They created ifeel, an emotional well-being platform, with a special focus on prevention, and that allows everyone to have access to this form of emotional support from wherever they want.

What started as a master's project (IE Venture Day finalist) and with a B2C model, now is a hybrid (B2C & B2B) series B start–up with partners around the world (like Glovo, Gympass, AXA, or Travelperk). They faced different challenges along the way, such as the launches of the platform to Android in 2017 and IOS in 2018. Like many other companies, they changed into a hybrid model after the pandemic when they experienced a 1,000% boost in business as there was a global shift in awareness to safeguarding one's mental health care. After two financing rounds in 2021 and 2022, their upward trajectory paved the way for the arrival of Andrés Iniesta in 2022 as Global Ambassador of the brand. He is a perfect example and represents the values and relevance of good mental health care, since after suffering from depression in 2009, he was able to lead Spain to win their first World Cup in 2010 after seeking therapeutic help.

ifeel is now accessible in over 130 countries in more than 21 languages including English, Spanish, French, Portuguese and Hebrew, and is currently operating in more than 30 countries with over 500 psychologists at the ready. The company has grown its workforce to 70 full-time employees and as a result been able to help more than 20,000 patients worldwide. Their service model now provides custom emotional support via chat or 1-to-1 video sessions with a psychologist. Their goal is to help you learn about yourself and provide you with the tools to succeed in your current and future objectives and help prevent future problems.

This year will be their third year of collaboration with IE, establishing itself as the official mental health provider for all IE Master students.

In its first two years, the results could not have been better - Out of the 1,650 students that were given access, 601 made use of the platform, carrying out 3,690 self-help sessions (exercises, meditations, and readings), 7,374 consultations via chat and a total of 598 1-to-1 sessions of video therapy in which grief, depression and personal development were the most recurrent topics of consultation among the students.

If you are a current Masters student looking to register, go to the “My Well-Being Portal” on IE Connects and use your @student.ie.edu address to register and start taking care of your emotional well-being!