Grounded in neuroscience. Proven through quantitative brain data.

When your nervous system feels overloaded, the brain’s “threat network” tends to get louder. That can make it harder to think clearly, switch tasks, or fall asleep. Haptix Flow uses bilateral, alternating tactile stimulation (gentle left then right pulses) that helps the brain turn that volume down. In a quantitative electroencephalogram (qEEG) case study by neuropsychologist Dr. Amy Serin (2016), a stimulation pattern similar to Haptix Flow produced measurable brain changes within seconds. qEEG does not ask how someone feels. It records the brain’s electrical activity directly. The take-home is simple: gentle, alternating touch can nudge the brain toward a calmer and more focused state in real time.

New to this topic? Start with our primers: Science of Bilateral Stimulation and Science of Haptix Flow. You can also browse the full Resources hub or take the 60-second Calm Finder Quiz to get free guides that match your goal (stress relief, focus, sleep, or recovery).

How the Study Worked

Researchers wanted to see what bilateral tactile stimulation does inside the brain, not just how it feels. They used the Cognionics Quick-20 Dry headset to capture brain activity and analyzed the data in NeuroGuide using z-score LORETA, a 3D method that estimates where in the brain activity changes (see Thatcher, 2012).

• Setup: Record a baseline, apply about 30 seconds of alternating tactile pulses, then record again.
• Why this helps: It is objective (electrical patterns, not self-report), fast (changes can appear in about 30 seconds), and specific (LORETA localizes changes in functional hubs tied to stress, body awareness, and sensory processing).

If you like details, LORETA provides a voxel-by-voxel picture of where activation rises or falls. That makes it easier to see whether calming input is actually turning down the stress response. For a plain-English walkthrough of bilateral rhythms and why very slow rhythms feel “lulling,” read Science of Bilateral Stimulation.

What They Found

Within seconds of alternating tactile input, qEEG imaging showed meaningful reductions in activation across regions that often light up under stress:

• Amygdala, the brain’s alarm bell. Lower hyperactivation, which aligns with reduced threat reactivity and easier emotional down-regulation.
• Insula, the hub for internal body signals like heartbeat and breath. Calmer interoceptive processing, which often maps to feeling less keyed up and more grounded.
• Somatosensory cortex, the area that processes touch and tension. Reduced activity linked to less bodily tension and discomfort, which often pairs with emotional strain.

What this means in everyday life: your system can shift from high alert to centered in under a minute. With the “alarm” quieter, focus becomes more available, since there is less scanning and fewer intrusive signals. Wind-down and sleep can also get easier because the body is not sending “danger” signals as strongly. For more background, see Science of Haptix Flow.

Measured Reductions in Brainwave Activity

The qEEG maps showed clear decreases in three key frequency ranges after a short dose of alternating tactile input. Each range is linked to different states, so changes here help explain why people feel calmer and clearer so quickly:

• Delta (1 to 4 Hz): Often tied to deep, body-centered processing. A reduction in excess delta while awake can reflect less heavy, weighed-down tension and a smoother body calm.
• Theta (4 to 8 Hz): Often tied to drifting attention and emotional reactivity. Lower theta can mean less mind wandering and fewer intrusive emotional signals, which makes it easier to stay present.
• Beta (13 to 30 Hz): Often tied to high arousal and mental overdrive. A drop in fast beta is a classic sign of lower hyperarousal and a quieter threat response.

Want a practical way to use this? Start with slow alternating pulses in the 0.25 to 1 Hz range for 2 to 3 minutes, breathe slowly, and keep your eyes soft or closed if that feels comfortable. If you still feel keyed up, run a second 60 to 90 second round. You can find step-by-step options in the free guides from the Calm Finder.

What This Means for You

These brain changes are not just lab observations. They translate into simple, repeatable moments of relief.

• Quick reset for stress: Use Haptix Flow for 2 minutes when you feel stuck in high alert. Many people notice a shift toward calm in under a minute. Pair with a simple box breath: 4 in, 4 hold, 4 out, 4 hold.
• Focus when it counts: Run a short session before deep work, studying, or a meeting. With the “alarm” turned down, it is easier to lock in and ignore small distractions.
• Wind-down for sleep: Use slower pulses during your evening routine. The aim is to reduce hyperarousal so your body can ease into sleep more naturally.

Try this sequence:

1. Run Haptix Flow for 60 to 90 seconds.
2. Take ten slow breaths.
3. Notice what changed in your body.
4. If needed, repeat once more.

New to Haptix Flow? Take the 60-second Calm Finder to get a starter routine for stress relief, focus, or sleep. Prefer reading first? Browse the Resources hub or dive into Science of Haptix Flow. Ready to try the device? Visit the Haptix Flow product page.

Sleep Improvement: Clinical and Mechanistic Evidence

A growing body of research shows that gentle, rhythmic sensory input can help people fall asleep faster and stabilize non-REM sleep. The common thread is simple. Slow, steady stimulation helps quiet racing networks and encourages the brain to settle into slower rhythms.

• A randomized study using very slow electrical stimulation around 0.75 Hz helped people with sleep-onset insomnia fall asleep faster ^{[Simons 2024]}.
• In a clinical trial with insomnia patients, a vibroacoustic protocol improved total sleep time and reduced insomnia severity. Brain scans also showed changes in how key regions connect during rest ^{[Zabrecky 2020]}.
• A meta-analysis of acoustic approaches found improvements on common sleep questionnaires, which supports non-drug ways to calm the system at night ^{[Wang 2025]}.
• Work on sleep onset shows that slowing cortical oscillations, especially in delta and theta, helps the brain cross the bridge from wake to sleep ^{[Biabani 2023]}.
• Low-frequency transcranial alternating current stimulation accelerated sleep onset in healthy adults during naps, which points to the role of slow oscillation entrainment ^{[Xie 2021]}.
• Rocking bed studies also suggest that gentle low-frequency motion can entrain slow waves and make sleep deeper and more stable ^{[Omlin 2018]}, ^{[Perrault 2019]}.

Why this matters for Haptix Flow

• Slow, alternating tactile rhythms in the 0.25 to 1 Hz window match what many people describe as “lulling.”
• The mechanism lines up with what qEEG shows. When fast, stress-related activity eases and slow rhythms grow more prominent, it becomes easier to drift off.
• Even when studies use different senses, the takeaway is consistent. Gentle, rhythmic input can help quiet the system and support natural sleep.

Starter bedtime routine

• Run a slow, alternating pattern for 2 to 5 minutes while lights are low.
• Keep screens out of reach and dim the room.
• Breathe naturally. If thoughts spike, label them as “planning” or “worry,” then return attention to the steady left then right pulses.
• If you wake in the night, repeat a 60 to 90 second round.

If sleep is your main goal, start here for free. Then open the Sleep guide you receive by email. For deeper reading, visit the Resources hub.

Frequently Asked Questions

What’s Next?

1. Take the 60-second Calm Finder to pick a starter routine for stress, focus, or sleep.
2. Follow the matching plan in your free guides for one week.
3. Browse the Resources hub, including Science of Bilateral Stimulation and Science of Haptix Flow, so you know what to expect and how to adjust.
4. Ready to use Haptix Flow daily? Visit the product page.

References

1. Biabani, N. A., Miller, S. M., and Rajan, R. (2023). The neurophysiologic landscape of the sleep onset: A systematic review. Frontiers in Neuroscience, 17, 1192777. DOI • PubMed
2. Omlin, X., Perrault, A. A., Schwartz, S., and Bayer, L. (2018). The effect of a slowly rocking bed on sleep. Scientific Reports, 8(1), 2156. DOI • PubMed
3. Perrault, A. A., Khani, A., Quairiaux, C., Kompotis, K., Franken, P., Muhlethaler, M., and Schwartz, S. (2019). Whole-night continuous rocking entrains spontaneous neural oscillations and improves sleep. Current Biology, 29(3), 402–411.e3. DOI • PubMed
4. Simons, S. B., Provo, M., Yanoschak, A., Schmidt, C., Gerrard, I., Weisend, M., Anderson, C., Shimizu, R., and Connolly, P. M. (2024). A randomized study on the effect of a wearable device using 0.75 Hz transcranial electrical stimulation on sleep-onset insomnia. Frontiers in Neuroscience, 18, 1427462. DOI • PubMed
5. Wang, M., Fan, S., Wang, Z., and Ren, J. (2025). A systematic review and meta-analysis of acoustic stimulation in the treatment of insomnia. Frontiers in Neuroscience, 19, 1572086. DOI • PubMed
6. Xie, J., Wang, L., Xiao, C., Yang, Q., Tang, Y., Li, L., and Li, Y. (2021). Low-frequency transcranial alternating current stimulation accelerates sleep onset process. IEEE Transactions on Neural Systems and Rehabilitation Engineering, 29, 2540–2549. DOI • PubMed
7. Zabrecky, G., Shahrampour, S., Whitely, C., Alizadeh, M., Conklin, C., Wintering, N., Doghramji, K., Newberg, A., and Monti, D. A. (2020). An fMRI study of the effects of vibroacoustic stimulation on functional connectivity in patients with insomnia. Sleep Disorders, 2020, 7846914. DOI • PubMed
8. Serin, A. (2016). Quantitative electroencephalography (qEEG) case report of bilateral alternating tactile stimulation. Unpublished clinical report, Serin Center for Neuroscience.
9. Thatcher, R. W. (2012). Handbook of quantitative electroencephalography and EEG biofeedback: Windows of the mind. Applied Neuroscience, Inc.