Ryan Mundy spent eight years in the NFL, finishing his career with the Chicago Bears in 2015. Like many professional athletes transitioning to a life outside of sports, Mundy struggled with anxiety, depression and general issues around identity as he looked to define his life off the football field.
Looking to avoid the pitfalls of addiction, substance abuse and other mental health struggles that befall so many former athletes, Mundy went in search for professional help.
"When I went into the marketplace to find therapy, I had a really rough experience," Mundy told me. "I went through four or five different professionals. They didn’t see me as Ryan Mundy the Black man, the husband, the father. They still saw me as Ryan Mundy the athlete. They were speaking to me in that context. I didn’t need support in that; I needed support in my new journey."
To help bring better mental health resources to all Black Americans, Mundy has founded Alkeme, a platform that connects users with professionals in psychology, mindfulness and wellness. Focusing specifically on the Black community, Alkeme provides access to content around issues like intergenerational trauma, systemic racism, anxiety and microaggressions.
Operating on a subscription model for users, Mundy calls Alkeme the "Peloton for Black mental health," providing a suite of live-streamed and on-demand content for $14 a month or $70 per year. The platform features mental health courses that offer wellbeing techniques, guided meditation sessions, and live sessions where users can interact with mental health care professionals and other guest speakers.
Alkeme is set to officially launch in November. It has raised a total of $4.6 million to date over two rounds of funding. It closed its latest round two weeks ago, which was led by Forerunner Ventures, a San Francisco-based VC fund that's backed consumer upstarts like Warby Parker, Bonobos, Dollar Shave Club and Chime.
Alkeme's other investors include Chicago-based M25 and KB Partners, along with Relativity CEO Mike Gamson. The startup currently has four full-time employees, and expects to grow to eight by October, Mundy said.
Mundy entered the startup world in 2016 when he launched Techlete Ventures, a fund that provided angel investments to startups. In 2018 he moved to the other side of the table as the founder of SWZLE, a reusable straw startup that was sold nationally, including at Target. The company was acquired by a private equity firm in 2020.
Now with Alkeme, Mundy is working to bring accessible and affordable mental health care that's centered on the Black experience.
"We’re really excited about the opportunity to democratize culturally competent mental health care to our community," he said.
