Lou Willis-Keeler
Souuthe is a patent-pending device that calms the body’s stress response, like a real hug, for people in palliative, dementia and child care.
Project
Souuthe
URL
Year founded
2025
Business stage
Pre-Seed
High-growth sectors
Life Sciences
Sector
Health
Location
North East
Funding
Funded Award Winner
The problem and opportunity
Each year, 436,000 people in England receive palliative care, while many more live with dementia or emotional dysregulation. Anxiety, agitation and distress are common, particularly when carers cannot provide continuous reassurance. Souuthe addresses this unmet need by combining emotional comfort, tactile reassurance and physiological calming in one device. Its patent-pending technology helps regulate breathing and heart rate, offering a dignified alternative that could improve quality of life while reducing pressure on care services.
The solution and innovation
Souuthe was created for moments when reassurance is needed but a carer cannot be present. Housed in a soft, familiar form, like a teddy bear or pillow, its patent-pending technology gently stimulates the vagus nerve to help regulate breathing and heart rate, delivering comfort and calm. Tested with palliative care professionals, dementia carers and specialist education settings, it has shown positive results in reducing anxiety and distress while offering a safe, non-pharmaceutical source of support.
Market and ambition
Demand for palliative and comfort-focused care is growing rapidly, driven by ageing populations and rising rates of dementia and chronic illness. Souuthe offers a non-pharmaceutical way to reduce distress and anxiety, addressing a significant unmet need. Following successful user testing, the ambition is to scale across UK care settings before expanding across Australia and Europe.
Founder perspective
Lou Willis-Keeler founded Souuthe after more than 25 years in safeguarding, where she saw a lack of tools to help people self-soothe and regulate emotions. Shaped by both professional and personal experience in dementia and end-of-life care, she is driven to make comforting, non-pharmaceutical support more accessible.
Women in Innovation Award
Recipient of an Innovate UK Women in Innovation Award 2025/26, receiving funding, tailored business support, and access to specialist training and networks. View all winners and highly commended applicants from the Women in Innovation cohort 2025/2026.