Abstract
Escalating stress prevalence, particularly among essential service personnel whose cognitive compromise threatens public welfare, necessitates rapid, accessible non-pharmacological interventions. Individuals who struggle with endogenous cultivation of beneficial neuropsychological states may benefit from passive exogenous stimulation. This uncontrolled exploratory investigation (n = 74) evaluated single-session rhythmic audiovisual stimulation protocols delivered within an immersive reflective chamber (MindGym), wherein employed individuals with self-reported high-stress received randomized assignment to alpha (9–11 Hz) or theta (4–7 Hz) conditions, the sole intervention difference being stimulation frequency of synchronized stroboscopic light and binaural beats during an 11.5-min exposure. Both protocols were well-tolerated and associated with substantial acute improvements in anxiety, mood disturbance, flow states, and vitality, alongside moderate enhancements in perceived stress and purpose in life. No between-protocol differences emerged, though baseline mood disturbance predicted preferential theta-enhancement of existential purpose. Neurophysiological entrainment evidence was inconclusive given consumer-grade instrumentation. These findings establish feasibility warranting controlled trials with active comparisons and follow-up.
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Data availability
The psychological questionnaire data, EEG data, and physiological data (heart rate and heart rate variability) that support the findings of this study are openly available on the Open Science Framework (OSF) at https://osf.io/3sjeu. The audiovisual stimulation protocols (alpha and theta conditions) utilized proprietary MindGym hardware and software systems developed by Lumena, Inc. While the general parameters of these protocols are described in detail in the Methods section, the specific control programs and LED sequences are proprietary to Lumena, Inc. and are not publicly available. Researchers interested in replicating these protocols using the MindGym platform should contact Lumena, Inc. directly. Raw consent forms and participant identification information are not publicly available to protect participant privacy and confidentiality in accordance with IRB approval (Advarra IRB Pro00079710) and HIPAA regulations. De-identified data are available as described above. Requests for additional information or materials should be directed to the corresponding author.
Code availability
Code used to generate supplementary figures and perform secondary analyses is available at the repository https://github.com/Institute-for-Advanced-Consciousness/P006. All first pass analyses were conducted in JASP 0.19.370. FDR corrections for moderation analyses were conducted in Python 3.12.2 using the statsmodel module version 0.14.0 leveraging the Benjamini–Hochberg method71. Post-hoc EEG moderation of psychological measures were conducted in Python 3.12.2 using the statsmodel module version 0.14.071 and supplementary figures were made using matplotlib version 3.10.072 and seaborn version 0.13.273.
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Acknowledgements
We extend gratitude to all research participants who enabled this investigation, and acknowledge the invaluable contributions of the Lumena, Inc. team, including Scott McCormick for developing the audiovisual programming architecture, Pamela Glick for managerial coordination, and Brandon Murphy and Stetson Jenkins for their collaborative support. This investigation received financial support through a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) award from the Department of Defense: Air Force, granted to Lumena, Inc. (Denver, CO) in collaboration with the Institute for Advanced Consciousness Studies (IACS; 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization) serving as the associated research institution, with N.R. designated as principal investigator.
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Study conceptualization and design: N.R. Study implementation and logistics: N.R., N.S., E.Y. Data collection: A.C., S.Z., T.D., N.S. Data analysis: A.C., S.Z., N.R. All authors contributed to manuscript writing and approved the final version for submission.
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Financial support was provided via Research Services Agreement between IACS and Lumena, Inc., structured without outcome-dependent provisions or performance-based compensation mechanisms. Lumena, Inc. exercised no influence over experimental design or data analysis protocols, with their contribution limited to providing MindGym content libraries, technological infrastructure (hardware and software systems), and reflective chamber control programs developed according to experiential sequence specifications provided by N.R. to Lumena’s engineering team. Additionally, Lumena recorded audio instructions and experiential content as directed by the research team. The funding arrangement exclusively supported research operational expenses while maintaining complete investigative independence, with Lumena’s role confined to providing requisite technological tools and implementation resources without compromising scientific integrity or methodological autonomy. E.Y. was employed by Lumena, Inc. during data collection and processing but left prior to manuscript preparation, subsequently contributing to manuscript writing through an independent affiliation with IACS. E.Y. owns shares in Lumena, Inc. but had no role in study design or statistical analysis, providing only processed data through Lumena’s established pipeline. There are no competing interests in regards to A.C., S.Z., T.D., or N.S.
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Cone, A., Zuzick, S., Durinski, T. et al. Alpha and theta audiovisual interventions in a reflective chamber demonstrate acute effects on stress and burnout. npj Digit. Med. (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41746-026-02555-z
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41746-026-02555-z
