A randomized controlled trial of 120 healthy adults, published in Psychological Medicine, found that stimulation at the tragus of the ear combined with a guided self-compassion exercise produced a larger early rise in self-compassion than the exercise or stimulation alone.
-- Parasym, the London-based research company behind the Nuropod wearable, is highlighting findings from a peer-reviewed randomized controlled trial. In the trial, researchers at University College London used Parasym transcutaneous vagus nerve stimulation (tVNS) devices to test whether stimulation could strengthen the effects of a self-compassion training exercise. The study was published in the journal Psychological Medicine in August 2025.
The vagus nerve is a long nerve that carries signals between the brain and organs such as the heart, lungs and gut, and one of its branches reaches the skin of the outer ear. The trial randomly assigned 120 healthy adults aged 18 to 35 to one of four groups. Each participant received either active stimulation at the tragus, the small flap at the front of the ear, or placebo (sham) stimulation at the earlobe. Each also completed either a guided self-compassion imagery exercise or a matched control exercise. Participants took part in eight daily sessions, two in the lab and six at home, with around 30 minutes of stimulation in each home session.
The recent research comes at a time when many U.S. adults report high stress and unmet emotional needs. The American Psychological Association's 2025 Stress in America survey of 3,199 adults found that more than six in 10 named societal division as a significant source of stress. It also found that 69% said they needed more emotional support in the past year than they received, up from 65% the year before.
In the first session, participants who received active stimulation together with the self-compassion exercise reported a larger rise in self-compassion than participants in the other three groups. They also showed a similar early rise in mindfulness. Across the eight sessions, mindfulness continued to increase in that group. A questionnaire measure of everyday, or trait, self-compassion rose after eight sessions of active stimulation but not after sham stimulation, regardless of which exercise participants completed.
The researchers also reported limits to their findings. Heart rate variability, a measure of the natural variation in time between heartbeats, did not change with stimulation. Reductions in self-criticism were linked to the training exercise rather than to the stimulation. The authors described the work as an early-phase exploratory trial and called for further confirmatory research. The study was funded by the Bial Foundation, Parasym provided the devices, and the authors declared no competing interests.
Speaking more broadly about stress and recovery, Dr. Elisabetta Burchi, Translational Research Lead at Parasym, said, "When people struggle to relax, rest adequately and recover from stressful events, it might be a sign the body has become less resilient. That could be underpinned by disruption in the stress regulation mechanisms."
Nuropod is Parasym's consumer wellness device for the United States, where it has been available since September 2025. Nuropod's earpiece clips onto the tragus, where the vagus nerve reaches the skin of the ear, and delivers mild electrical pulses through Parasym's proprietary AVNT™ waveform. Most people use it for around 30 minutes, once or twice a day. According to the company, Parasym's technology has been evaluated in more than 60 completed studies with more than 150 research partners.
About Parasym
Founded in 2015 and based in London, Parasym develops noninvasive neuromodulation technology and holds the patent for its AVNT waveform. Nuropod is its wellness device for the U.S. market. A summary of Parasym's published research is available at https://nuropod.com/pages/scientific-evidence
Disclaimer: Research referenced in this article was conducted using Parasym's neuromodulation technology under research conditions. Findings relate to specific study populations and should not be interpreted as guaranteed individual outcomes. Nuropod is classified by the FDA as a non-significant risk device and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
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