It hits in the middle of a meeting, a date, a flight, a phone call — and almost no one has built anything to support people in that exact moment. This is the gap FLASHYAF™ exists to close.
Hot flashes occur in about 80% of menopausal women (Mayo Clinic). This includes everyone experiencing menopause-related symptoms, whether through natural aging or hormone-related transitions, regardless of gender identity. These aren't minor inconveniences: a 2023 Mayo Clinic study estimated that menopause symptoms cost the U.S. about $1.8 billion a year in lost work time, rising to an estimated $26.6 billion a year when medical expenses are included. In the same study of 4,440 employed women ages 45–60, 10.8% reported missing work in the previous 12 months because of menopause symptoms (Faubion et al., Mayo Clinic Proceedings, 2023).
Sources: Faubion SS, et al., "Impact of Menopause Symptoms on Women in the Workplace," Mayo Clinic Proceedings (2023); Mayo Clinic News Network, hot flash prevalence. Figures reflect the most recent third-party data available at time of writing and may be updated as new research is published.
Despite that scale, we're unaware of major platforms built to support someone in the moment a hot flash actually happens. Most existing resources are educational — articles, forums, general wellness content — meant to be read before or after a symptom, not during one. People are left to manage the actual experience alone, in real time, with no tool built for that specific window.
A hot flash is a live event — it has a start, a peak, and a cooldown. Support that only shows up after the fact (a journal entry, a doctor's note, a forum post) misses the part where a person actually needs something: in the middle of it. That's the moment FLASHYAF™ is built around.
FLASHYAF™ is a General Wellness product designed to help you track, understand, and respond to your own experience in real time. It is not a medical device, and it is not intended to diagnose, treat, or replace guidance from a healthcare provider. If you have concerns about your symptoms, please talk to a doctor — FLASHYAF™ is here to support you alongside that care, not instead of it.