It was a deceptively simple question, the kind that lands on the right person at the right time, inspiring them to create a product that can improve the lives of those who need it most.
During the last year of Najma Omar’s doctoral program in occupational therapy at the University of Minnesota, a professor asked students to think about tools that hadn’t yet been invented to help people — but should exist.
It prompted Najma, a 28-year-old Minneapolis woman, to start thinking about her own family. Among the 10 children, three are autistic, each with somewhat different communications styles and support needs.
In particular, she thought about her younger sister Nasteho, 17, the only girl among the three.
She knew that Nasteho struggled with finding a hijab that could assist with her noise sensitivity without adding a lot of weight or increasing pressure around her ears, which headphones or earmuffs did.