Munich Startup: What does Lumeus do? What problem do you solve?
Verena Herzog-Pohl, Lumeus: Lumeus is a Mental health app, a self-help tool for your own mental health, an emotion training program for the whole family. The emotion training sessions consist of spoken visualizations narrated by professional speakers such as Yvonne Greitzke (the voice of Anna from Walt Disney's "Frozen") and Tobias Krell (known as "Checker Tobi"), and impressive music composed and scored for each scene by symphony orchestras.
The powerful positive emotions evoked through words and music reach the subconsciously stored causes of numerous mental problems and can dissolve old thought and behavior patterns. Positive emotions release endorphins, which act like medicine for the body and mind, but without any side effects. Lumeus has helped numerous users with:
- Reducing anxiety, stress, depressive moods and sleep problems
- Dissolving addictive behavior (e.g. obesity or smoking)
- Strengthening self-confidence, inner peace, concentration, energy and motivation
- Strengthening the immune system
The method was developed together with numerous doctors, psychologists and scientists and evaluated by the Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry in Munich and the Psychiatric University Hospital of Giessen and confirmed in its effectiveness.
Lumeus primarily offers insurance companies and companies a service to strengthen the mental health of their policyholders, employees, and their families. One billion people worldwide suffer from mental illnesses, and during the coronavirus pandemic, conditions such as depression and anxiety disorders have increased by 25 percent. Mental illnesses cost insurance companies around €44 billion annually in Germany. Companies are experiencing rising costs due to absenteeism and declining performance due to mental illnesses. Therefore, we primarily offer Lumeus as part of corporate health management measures or for health insurance companies. We have also recently been certified as a preventative measure and are reimbursed by all statutory health insurance companies in Germany.
Lumeus provides the soundtrack to its own film
Munich Startup: But that's been around for a long time!
Verena Herzog-Pohl, Lumeus: No, we're the first! Current emotional research confirms that certain illnesses can be prevented and even cured through positive emotions. We've developed a tool that allows our users to evoke strong emotions themselves. To make these scenes as realistic as possible, we work as a team with psychologists, screenwriters, and film composers. The music for each piece was individually composed and recorded with the Berlin and Budapest Symphony Orchestras. This sets us apart from traditional meditation apps, because with Lumeus, people experience the soundtrack to their own film, their wishes and desires. This is what makes the emotional training so active and effective.
Munich Startup: What is your founding story?
Verena Herzog-Pohl, Lumeus: My mother, Dagmar Herzog, developed the so-called "Herzog Method" for herself over 25 years ago, as neither therapies nor medications worked for her in the long term. Together with scientists, psychologists, therapists, and doctors, she developed the emotion training based on brain and emotion research. As a screenwriter, she immediately had the appropriate emotional scenes in mind. A film composer developed the music, and the Berlin and Budapest Symphony Orchestras provided the music. She gave numerous seminars, including for health insurance companies, companies, and private users, and wrote bestsellers.
Relief in family stress situations
Together with my brother, I founded an IT security company. At the time, I had twins; my husband was working in another city and was only home on weekends. This pushed me to my limits health-wise. The result was sleep disturbances and persistent tinnitus. My doctor's advice was to reduce stress. But how? That was the moment I started my mother's emotion training program. The result: After three weeks, the tinnitus was completely gone, and I could sleep again. This personal experience was the reason why I founded a second company with my mother to bring emotion training into the digital world. Together, we redeveloped a special children's training program with prominent speakers. This makes Lumeus an app for young and old – because when one family member suffers, the whole family suffers too.
Munich Startup: What have been your biggest challenges so far?
Verena Herzog-Pohl, Lumeus: Developing our app, finding the right team, and obtaining certification from statutory health insurance companies so that our users' costs would be reimbursed—we've accomplished both.
Munich Startup: Where would you like to be in one year, where in five years?
Verena Herzog-Pohl, Lumeus: Next year, we want to have gained additional well-known customers, health insurance companies, and partners in German-speaking countries; in five years, we want to be internationally known as an effective and sustainable mental health app.
More support with childcare
Munich Startup: How have you experienced Munich as a startup location so far?
Verena Herzog-Pohl, Lumeus: As a diverse business location, Munich is predestined for B2B solutions, and networking with other startups is also very good here. However, I would like to see more support in the area of childcare for working mothers. This presented me with several challenges during my founding of the IT security company, as well as now.
Munich Startup: Risk or security?
Verena Herzog-Pohl, Lumeus: When you build a startup, in my opinion, you always have to take some risks. True to the motto: Nothing ventured, nothing gained.
