Promising Study Links Brain-Stimulation Wearable to Reduced Depression
NHS Trust is scaling its use of Flow Neuroscience’s brain-stimulation headset after early results showed sharp reductions in depression symptoms and suicidal thoughts
Can wearables do for mental health what they’ve done for fitness, and maybe even save lives? We may be about to find out, as Flow Neuroscience, one of the most closely watched players in mental health tech, crosses a key threshold.
Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust (LPT) is expanding its pilot of Flow’s brain-stimulation headset after raising £40,000 ($54,200) through its charity Raising Health. The funds will cover nearly 150 additional devices, extending access to the adult eating disorders inpatient service and community mental health teams.
The move builds on earlier encouraging results. Last year, LPT reported that around 80% of patients in its six-week program using Flow headsets saw improvements, with some experiencing up to a 75% drop in suicidal ideation and one in three entering remission.
The latest update adds further promising findings: among more than 160 patients treated so far, 71% reported a reliable reduction in depressive symptoms within six weeks, while suicidal thoughts fell by a third within three weeks and by two-thirds after 10 weeks.
“There is real potential to support these patients in treating their depression and getting their lives back,” LPT consultant psychiatrist Dr. Mark McConnochie said. “Longer term, the Flow headsets could help us to provide an additional, effective treatment option, particularly if medication isn’t suitable.”
While the NHS pilot is limited to certain crisis and inpatient services, Flow’s headset isn’t confined to the clinic. Consumers in the U.K. and Europe can also order one directly and have it delivered within three days. The device retails for €459 or can be rented for €89 a month.
How the Headset Works
Flow’s headset delivers transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), a gentle current applied through the forehead, to stimulate the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, the part of the brain that regulates mood, sleep and motivation. Treatment begins with 20–30 minute sessions, five days a week, before tapering into maintenance use. For patients, the draw is the simplicity: the device syncs with a smartphone app, tracks mood and sleep and can be used entirely at home as users go about their daily lives.
Flow can also be used alongside antidepressants, and data suggests it may even enhance outcomes. In clinical trials, 69% of people who combined Flow with medication were no longer clinically depressed after 10 weeks, compared with 51% who used the headset alone.
While Flow is designed as an over-the-counter treatment, the company partners with psychiatrists and psychologists trained in tDCS who can monitor progress, adjust stimulation schedules and integrate the headset into broader therapy plans as an optional service.
The headset can also be shared with up to nine additional users at no extra cost, though each person is encouraged to set up their own account to track progress separately.
Founded in Sweden in 2016 by psychologist Daniel Mansson and engineer Erik Rehn, who met at the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, the company sold its first headset in 2019 and has since expanded across Europe, Switzerland, Norway and Hong Kong. Erin Lee, a former Google and Uber executive, became CEO in 2022.