vagus nerve stimulator / ear acupuncture alternative?

July 17, 2023 4:39 PM

Are there safe, at-home devices to stimulate the vagus nerve? Cheaper at-home ways to get the relaxation effect of ear acupuncture? Googling brings up a million options that look scammy. Reviews don't seem trustworthy.

Anxious, tense, autistic person here.

I am always trying new relaxation techniques.

I usually need a version that is more intense than what most people need to help them relax. For example, it doesn't help me just to go to bed, but it helps to get under a weighted blanket in total darkness with earplugs in. Not just a bath but a really long, hot bath with epsom salt, and a familiar movie playing.

I noticed when I tried acupuncture that when it was done to my ear, in a location they said stimulated the vagus nerve, it was very helpful for relaxation.

Is there a way to do this without the ongoing expense of acupuncture appointments?

I have tried massaging my ears, and other pressure points for the vagus nerve. Massage isn't cutting it. Humming, gargling, and a bunch of other vagal stimulation ideas I've googled are also not cutting it. I have tried the exercises in Accessing the Healing Power of the Vagus Nerve by Stanley Rosenberg, and I feel like they are slightly helpful, but not intense enough? Does anyone have experience with a technique or combination of techniques that is more intense than the standard stuff, but also safe?

Acupuncture seems to work reliably for me (at least on my ears), but it's too expensive to do as regularly as I'd like.

I kind of want to try a device of some kind, and was "this close" to ordering one, but then I found a bunch of bad reviews that implied the good reviews were faked, and I'm not sure which, if any, of these devices would be worth a try. Does anyone have personal experience with a device, or know of a reliable subreddit? I guess all we have now is Reddit and metafilter for inside scoops from real people?

posted by Former Congressional Representative Lenny Lemming to Health & Fitness (17 answers total)

Best answer: Have you tried ear seeds? They're stick on things (like a tiny bandaid) with a small seed. Acupuncturists give them to patients to prolong treatments. And they're pretty cheap, like 100 for $5. You can find a diagram online - the main relaxing points are point zero and shen men. Here's a guide. https://acudetox.com/ear-acupressure-outreach-education-tool/

I usually put them on and tap/press them whenever I remember. It's not as effective as acupuncture but maybe better than massage.

Also qi gong helps me a lot as an autistic person. Here's a video from a youtube acupuncturist I like a lot. https://youtu.be/uNLReAiKJZY
posted by starlybri at 5:18 PM on July 17, 2023

Best answer: I don't think you're going to find much beyond self acupressure and massage or variations thereon (like trigger point therapy and rolfing), at least that you can do on your own. It may be a matter of trying different techniques. Some search results:

Vagus nerve stimulation points: ears and gentle acupressure

Hand reflexology

Vagus nerve self-massage

Vagus Nerve myofascial self-massage for downregulation

Lots of hype and woo with this stuff, but I'd keep looking around to see if you can find something that works better for you. Or consider talking to a practitioner of whatever seems most promising, from those efforts.
posted by snuffleupagus at 5:43 PM on July 17, 2023

Best answer: You could try to use your finger nail, that will give the pinch feeling and should stimulate appropriately.

You can roll up a little bit of tape and then put more tape flat on top of it to keep it in your ears at the appropriate points. Use a mirror to figure out if you are in the right place. Or use your own ear seeds as suggested above.

You can find a NADA group - they focus on ear acupuncture and so are less expensive then a full treatment. Sometimes they have free sessions too. If you update with your location or me-mail me then I will look for a group for you. They are often done in addiction situations but all who need support are usually welcome.

As to those devices - they are measuring electrical current on the surface of your skin and some will deliver a little shock if you press an additional button. I find the noise they make annoying as they find the place with the least resistance, but it might not bother you. This device and this device are used by professionals and they are for sale to the public. I have used them both; they will work reliably and are battery operated.
posted by mutt.cyberspace at 6:50 PM on July 17, 2023

My husband is part of a trial that is trying to find out if a vagal nerve stimulator can help with long-term, treatment-resistant depression. It’s a device that was previously tried for epilepsy. It’s implanted near his collar bone and fires off every few minutes (his voice goes weak and wavering when it happens.) So the device exists, but is likely not available to the general public.
posted by PussKillian at 8:15 PM on July 17, 2023 [5 favorites]

PussKillian, that is fascinating. Is is providing an electrical current?
posted by amaire at 8:58 PM on July 17, 2023

Best answer: A while back I made a “it’s a pandemic, f*ck it” purchase of a Sensate device (I got it used on eBay, which helped with the price shock) and it supposedly stimulates the vagus nerve through random vibrations on your chest. It’s supposed to somehow strengthen your body’s response to stress? I honestly don’t know if it’s fake or real (or somewhere in between) but it seems to help me out when I remember to use it regularly. The vibrations can be annoying but turning down the intensity helps. It also requires a phone app and pairs through Bluetooth which is also kind of annoying.

I think ear seeds sound great - I got little needles put in once by an acupuncturist and was told to keep them in for a week or two, and I could press on them when needed. I wonder if you could get the needle version and just DIY it if that works better for you.

Good luck! I am now dreaming of being in a vagus nerve study. Maybe we can hope for more options in the future :)
posted by rocketing at 10:19 PM on July 17, 2023

Best answer: I don’t know if this is related to vagus nerve stimulation, but my physician daughter recommends the 4-7-8 breathing technique to many patients. I use it almost every day with good effect. It mostly relaxes my body, and by my fourth cycle of the breathing, I’m yawning. Dr. Andrew Weill has a good video
posted by Gusaroo at 10:24 PM on July 17, 2023

Do you have access to a good school with a clinic? As an example: Pacific College Massage and Acupuncture Clinic rates, discounts in San Diego (additional campuses in New York and Chicago).
posted by Iris Gambol at 11:10 PM on July 17, 2023

Best answer: I got a Sensate under similar circumstances as rocketing and returned it because it didn’t seem to do much for me
posted by raisindebt at 11:12 PM on July 17, 2023

Best answer: Relating to the ear seeds meantioned above, I briefly worked in an holistic acupuncture / massage studio. One of the receptionists was also an acupressure practitioner, and he showed me these war accupressure patches that he made using dried mung beans and I want to say either moleskin or hydrocolloid bandages that he cut up to make individual patches with one seed pressed into the middle. You could put them wherever they corresponded on the ear using an acupressure chart. I don’t know if you want to go that DIY, but if he used them in the studio, it might be worth a try!
posted by Champagne Supernova at 3:04 AM on July 18, 2023

Best answer: I'm also anxious and tense, and possibly autistic. I have a Sensate and find it helpful.

The first few times I used it, the effect was dramatic - I could actually feel my shoulders relax, something that basically never happens. That appears to have been a short-lived thing, sadly - now that I'm more used to it, the response is much more muted. It's still useful in giving me something to focus on that isn't whatever is stressing me out, though, and I do feel calmer after a session.

I'm not good enough about using it consistently to know whether there's a long-term cumulative effect.
posted by ManyLeggedCreature at 4:18 AM on July 18, 2023 [1 favorite]

Best answer: Yet another fuck-it-it’s-a-pandemic Sensate purchaser here. It’s quite pleasant but I don’t find myself using it much, no idea if it would work miracles if I used it more regularly.

Unlike rocketing, I prefer it turned right up. There is one vibration, though, that feels like the exact frequency of a baby farting inside a nappy (/diaper), sitting on your chest, which does slightly break the magic when it occurs.
posted by penguin pie at 5:20 AM on July 18, 2023 [1 favorite]

PussKillian, that is fascinating. Is is providing an electrical current?

Yes, it has a little battery pack that lasts six years.
posted by PussKillian at 6:26 AM on July 18, 2023

Best answer: I use my Sensate every night, and I find it helps me get in a deep state of relaxation. Whether that's the device or the placebo effect, I don't know, but using it consistently helps me. Your mileage may vary.
posted by mareliz at 8:55 AM on July 18, 2023 [2 favorites]

Best answer: You can stimulate the Vagal response without a device. A very cold wet washcloth on the face works.

Use caution with Carotid Sinus Massage and the Valsalva Maneuver; you can get lightheaded and even pass out. I try to do gentle valsalva a few times a day. I also use vagal stimulation when I have episodes of tachycardia (yes, I have discussed w/ my doctor). Psychology Today has a bunch of articles, there's some evidence that vagal stimulation could also help with inflammation. I have not read anything that says it causes harm, other than potential light-headedness, so I don't operate heavy machinery like a car.

Sensate Relaxation Device uses non-invasive sound resonance on your sternum makes me wonder if a sonic sex toy would work if applied to the sternum.
posted by theora55 at 10:12 AM on July 18, 2023

Best answer: Maybe a home TENS device? Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulator (TENS) devices can also be employed to administer VNS, by situating contact electrodes in the region of the cymba conchae. (Vagus Nerve Stimulation, Current Behavioral Neuroscience Reports volume 1, pages 64–73 (2014)). See also Critical Review of Transcutaneous Vagus Nerve Stimulation: Challenges for Translation to Clinical Practice [Frontiers in Neuroscience] from 2020, and Safety of transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation (taVNS): a systematic review and meta-analysis (Scientific Reports, 2022, via Nature)

A demo on YouTube.

OMRON's TENS Units Comparison Chart. Auvon Rechargeable TENS unit ($34), Massage Therapy Concepts TENS device ($65), TENS 7000 device ($37); Spectra gel ($4), Biothm ear clips kit ($19), single ear clip ($8).
posted by Iris Gambol at 7:17 PM on July 18, 2023

Best answer: tVNS, InTENSity Twin Stim III Digital TENS & EMS Combo Unit + Free AC Adapter Included

Safety information about tVNS: https://www.manualslib.com/manual/1710627/Parasym-Parasym.html?

Suggest the fb group AVA: a Vagus Adventure
Fb group has a lot more units on the list, but that one is pretty cheap and available in the US easily.
posted by Bottlecap at 12:32 PM on July 19, 2023