The science

Every reset is built on published research. We show you how strong it is.

Wellness apps love the word "proven". We'd rather show our working. Below is each part of Reset Buddy, what the studies actually found, how strong that evidence is, and where it runs out.

How we grade the evidence

Strong evidence
Strong. Meta-analyses or several randomised trials.
Good evidence
Good. At least one good randomised trial, or several agreeing controlled experiments.
Some evidence
Some. Small, pilot, lab-only or correlational studies.
Early evidence
Early. Theory or plausibility, or extrapolated from related research.

Step 1 · The feeling wheel

Naming a feeling takes some of the edge off

Putting a feeling into words is itself a small act of calming. In lab studies, simply naming what you feel lowered the brain's alarm response. Picking a more specific word, like "let down" instead of just "bad", may help a little more.

Good evidenceIn the app: the feeling wheel and Name it finer

One word

Choosing a word for a feeling reduced amygdala activity and increased activity in a regulating region of the prefrontal cortex (Lieberman et al., 2007).

What the research found

Labelling the emotion in a picture calmed the brain's threat response more than labelling something neutral about it (Lieberman 2007), and the effect of emotion words on the body was still there a week later (Tabibnia 2008).
People afraid of spiders who described their feelings during exposure had less physical fear a week later (Kircanski 2012).
In two 2026 experiments (79 and 106 people), picking out specific emotion words reduced negative feelings more than just watching. A shorter version of the task did not replicate (Carolus & Starr 2026).
People who tell their feelings apart more precisely tend to use fewer unhelpful ways of coping. The link is small and correlational (Seah & Coifman 2022, 17 studies).
Naming a feeling right before trying to rethink it made rethinking work less well (Nook 2021). That's why the app goes from naming to breathing and doing, not to "reframe your thoughts".

The honest limits

The effects are modest, short-term and mostly measured in labs, often using pictures rather than real-life feelings. People tend to underestimate labelling, so it may not feel like it's working. The wheel is inspired by emotion-vocabulary tools like the Feeling Wheel; the wheel format itself hasn't been tested in trials, the act of naming has.

Studies

Step 2 · Breathe

A long, slow out-breath is one of the best-studied ways to calm down

Slow breathing with a longer out-breath has strong research behind it. In trials, a few minutes a day of this kind of breathing lowered stress and lifted mood.

Strong evidenceIn the app: the breathing figure (cyclic sigh or easy breaths) and Long exhale

5 min a day

In a Stanford study of 108 people over a month, the cyclic sigh (two breaths in, one long breath out) lifted positive mood more than mindfulness meditation. Anxiety fell similarly in all groups (Balban et al., 2023).

What the research found

A meta-analysis of randomised trials found breathwork lowered self-reported stress, a small-to-medium effect (Fincham 2023).
Slow breathing raises heart-rate variability, a marker of the body's rest-and-recover system (Laborde 2022).
Sessions shorter than 5 minutes were linked with less effective practice (Bentley 2023), which is why five minutes is the default and two minutes is the lighter option.
Long exhale (in 4, hold 2, out 8, pause 2) follows the same principle: the out-breath is twice as long as the in-breath. That exact count hasn't been tested on its own. It's a slow pattern, so a lighter 3-1-6-1 is offered too.

The honest limits

Most trials were multi-session and many carry a moderate risk of bias. Breathe gently, not deeply, and stop if you feel dizzy. For anxious moments the app never asks you to hold your breath.

Studies

Step 3 · Shift

Absorbing your hands and eyes gives a busy mind somewhere better to go

Low-stakes, absorbing activities like colouring, drawing or a calm puzzle give your attention somewhere else to go. Drawing something unrelated to your mood lifted sadness more than drawing the feeling itself.

Good evidenceIn the app: Colour flow, Draw it away, Quiet puzzle and the 8 Creative reset activities

Distract, don't vent

In two lab experiments (80 and 90 people), 10 minutes of drawing something unrelated lifted a sad mood more than drawing about the sadness (Drake & Winner, 2012).

What the research found

Colouring, free drawing and expressive drawing all reduced anxiety and heart rate about equally (Turturro & Drake 2020). Mandalas aren't special (Jakobsson Støre 2022), so the app lets you colour freely.
More demanding mental tasks cleared negative mood more than easy ones after upsetting pictures (Van Dillen & Koole 2007). That's the idea behind the Absorbing level of Creative reset.
Across 306 experiments, turning attention elsewhere helped (d = 0.27) while dwelling on the feeling made things worse (d = -0.26) (Webb 2012).

The honest limits

The positive studies used 10 to 20 minutes, so 3 to 5 minutes is an extrapolation. These are self-directed activities, not art therapy, which is delivered by a trained therapist.

Studies

Step 3 · Shift

A little gentle movement gives a small lift

A short bout of gentle movement, like a stretch or a walk, can give a small lift in mood and energy and ease tension.

Strong evidenceIn the app: Move a little

36 trials

A meta-analysis of 36 randomised trials found a single bout of exercise gives a small drop in anxiety in the moment (Ensari et al., 2015).

What the research found

A 10-minute walk improved mood compared with sitting (Edwards & Loprinzi 2018).
For anger, calming activities reduced it and arousal-raising ones like venting did not (Kjærvik & Bushman 2024). That's why movement in the app is gentle, not "burn it off".

The honest limits

The effect is small, and studies used about 10 minutes or more. Pleasure drops at hard intensities, so keep it gentle and self-paced.

Studies

Step 3 · Shift

Meeting a hard moment with warmth, not criticism

A few seconds of soothing touch, like a hand on your heart, with a kind phrase to yourself, is a way to meet a hard moment with warmth. Research suggests it can soften the body's stress response.

Good evidenceIn the app: Hand on heart

20 seconds

In a trial of 159 people, 20 seconds of hand-on-heart touch before a stress test lowered the body's cortisol response, even though people didn't report feeling less stressed (Dreisoerner et al., 2021).

What the research found

Across 27 randomised trials, self-compassion programmes had moderate benefits for self-criticism, stress, depression and anxiety (Ferrari 2019). These were multi-week programmes.
A short self-compassion exercise shifted the body toward a calmer, more connected state in a lab study (Kirschner 2019).

The honest limits

The brief-touch benefit showed up in cortisol, not in how people said they felt. Touch is always optional in the app.

Studies

Step 3 · Shift

Slow, gentle touch paired with a long out-breath

Brow sweep pairs a slow fingertip stroke up the forehead with a long out-breath. Slow, gentle self-touch and a longer out-breath can help the body settle.

Some evidenceIn the app: Brow sweep

Slow is pleasant

Gentle stroking at a slow, caress-like speed felt most pleasant and most strongly activated a type of touch nerve linked to comfort (Löken et al., 2009).

What the research found

Soothing touch, like a hand on the heart, lowered the body's stress response in a trial (Dreisoerner 2021). Brow sweep uses the same kind of gentle, self-directed touch.
The breathing part follows the long out-breath that has the strongest evidence of all the techniques in the app (see Settle).

The honest limits

The touch studies used another person's stroke or a soft brush on the arm, not your own fingertip on your forehead, so Brow sweep itself is an extrapolation. It's a comfort technique, not a treatment for headaches or anything else.

Studies

Step 3 · Shift

Tapping while you name what you feel

Tap and name it brings together two things: putting a feeling into words, and a simple, steady rhythm for your hands. Tapping while naming what you feel eased anxiety in several small studies.

Some evidenceIn the app: Tap and name it

What the research found

A systematic review of randomised trials found that tapping-based techniques reduced anxiety compared with control groups (Clond 2016). Most of the studies were small.
Naming the feeling is the part with the strongest support on its own (see Name it).

The honest limits

Many tapping studies are small, and the comparison groups vary a lot, so the size of any effect is uncertain. The studies tested a longer, structured tapping method. Our version keeps the tapping and the naming and leaves out its theory. We make no claims about energy, meridians or stress hormones.

Studies

Clond M. (2016). Emotional Freedom Techniques for anxiety: a systematic review with meta-analysis. Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease 204(5).

Step 3 · Shift

One calm thing for your eyes to rest on

Following one slow, steady movement, or resting your eyes on one point, is a simple focused-attention exercise. It gives a busy mind somewhere calm to rest, and when it wanders, you just come back.

Some evidenceIn the app: Follow the swing and Soft focus

What the research found

A brief focused-breathing exercise reduced mind-wandering on a task that followed it (Mrazek, Smallwood & Schooler 2012).
Across 306 experiments, turning attention to something else helped people manage emotions, while dwelling made it worse (Webb 2012).

The honest limits

The pendulum and kaleidoscope visuals haven't been tested themselves, and the studies are short and lab-based. We don't claim any link to eye-movement therapies. Both visuals move slowly with no flashing, and there's a still version if you turn on Reduce motion.

Studies

Step 3 · Shift

Letting a good moment land

Pausing to really notice something good, and letting it land, is called savouring. Research suggests making a habit of it can build positive feelings over time.

Strong evidenceIn the app: Catch the good

20 trials

A 2026 meta-analysis of 20 randomised trials (4,805 people) found savouring practices had a moderate benefit for emotional wellbeing. Most were multi-session programmes (Chen et al., 2026).

What the research found

Positive psychology exercises show small benefits on average, with possible publication bias (Bolier 2013).
A well-known replication found "three good things" worked about as well as a placebo exercise (Mongrain 2012), so we keep claims small.

The honest limits

The benefits come from repeated practice, not one moment; a single one-minute "catch the good" is an extrapolation. Over-analysing a good mood can dampen it, so the app invites you to linger, not dissect.

Studies

Step 4 · One small thing

One specific next step makes follow-through more likely

Ending with one small, specific next step makes it more likely you'll actually do it, and helps your mind let go of the loose end.

Strong evidenceIn the app: the Step at the end of every reset, and Start my day

94 studies

Across 94 studies with more than 8,000 people, making a specific if-then plan had a medium-to-large effect on following through (Gollwitzer & Sheeran, 2006).

What the research found

Making a specific plan for an unfinished task stopped it intruding on people's thoughts (Masicampo & Baumeister 2011).

The honest limits

If-then plans help people act on goals they already hold; they don't create motivation. The effect is a pooled estimate across very different goals, not a guarantee. That a small step lifts mood in the moment is an extrapolation.

Studies

Settle, then Shift, then Step

Calm the body first, then give the mind something to do

Each reset follows the same order: settle your body, shift your attention somewhere kinder, then take one small step. Each part is based on well-studied techniques. The three-part sequence is our design and hasn't itself been tested in a trial.

Some evidenceIn the app: every reset

What the research found

Acute stress quickly impairs the prefrontal cortex that "thinking" strategies rely on (Arnsten 2009). In one experiment, a thinking skill that worked in calm people failed after stress (Raio 2013). So the body comes first.
When feelings are intense, people tend to choose distraction over rethinking (Sheppes 2011), which is why the Shift is something to do, not something to think.
Distraction is a short-term tool, so the reset ends with a step rather than an escape.

The honest limits

No trial has compared "breathe first" with "think first". This is a rationale built from converging evidence.

Studies

Morning rhythm

Declarations grounded in your values, and one clear intention

Start my day draws on two well-studied ideas: recalling what matters to you (values affirmation) and setting one if-then intention. Declarations are about your values and choices, not "I am perfect", because forced positivity can backfire.

Good evidenceIn the app: Start my day

Values, not slogans

Writing about a personally important value before a stress test was linked to a lower cortisol response (Creswell et al., 2005, 85 people).

What the research found

Across 144 experimental tests, self-affirmation had small but reliable benefits for acting on health advice (Epton 2015).
The caution we design around: people with low self-esteem who repeated "I'm a lovable person" felt worse, not better (Wood, Perunovic & Lee 2009).
If-then intentions have a medium-to-large effect on following through (Gollwitzer & Sheeran 2006).

The honest limits

Affirmation effects are small and depend on the person. The studies used written values essays, not repeated slogans. We found no trials of morning routines as such, so "morning" is a product choice, not an evidence claim. Faith declarations are offered as spiritual practice, with no scientific claim attached.

Studies

Evening rhythm

Get it out of your head before bed

Getting tomorrow's to-dos and worries out of your head, with a next step for each, may make it easier to switch off.

Some evidenceIn the app: End my day: mind dump, let it drift, breathe

About 9 minutes

In a sleep-lab study of 57 young adults, writing a specific to-do list for 5 minutes before bed led to falling asleep about 9 minutes faster than writing about tasks already done (15.8 vs 25.1 minutes) (Scullin et al., 2018).

What the research found

Students with insomnia who wrote down possible solutions to their worries had less racing-mind arousal before sleep (Carney & Waters 2006, a small study).
Setting worries aside for a set "worry time" reduced worry and sleep problems in high worriers (McGowan & Behar 2013).
Racing thoughts at bedtime are a core part of how sleep problems keep going (Harvey 2002).

The honest limits

Mostly single small studies in students, in labs. The comparison group in the sleep-lab study wrote about completed tasks; there was no no-writing group. One app-based worry training showed no benefit (Versluis 2018). None of this treats insomnia; persistent sleep problems need a clinician.

Studies

Optional comfort

What sound really does, and what it doesn't

Sound is an optional layer, not the main ingredient. Slow, calm music and natural sounds are, on average, linked with lower stress, and music you enjoy genuinely feels rewarding. But no track resets your nervous system, and silence is a perfectly good choice.

Strong evidenceIn the app: sound scenes, volume kept gentle, with an auto-off timer

104 trials

Across 104 randomised trials, music interventions lowered stress on average, with moderate effects on how stressed people felt (de Witte et al., 2020). Music isn't a proven quick reset on its own.

What the research found

Tempo matters: slower sound is calmer, and faster music tends to raise breathing and heart rate.
Natural sounds were linked with lower stress than urban noise, and shifted the brain toward a more outward-focused, restful pattern compared with artificial sounds (Buxton 2021; Gould van Praag 2017).
Music you love triggers the brain's dopamine reward system (Salimpoor 2011). That explains why it feels good; it doesn't prove it calms.
In healthy people, music after a stressor didn't reliably speed recovery (Adiasto 2022). So sound supports a reset rather than being one.

The honest limits

Evidence that noise improves sleep is very low quality (Riedy 2021), and all-night pink noise reduced dream (REM) sleep in one study. So sounds switch off on their own and we make no sleep claims. Binaural-beat and "brainwave" claims are inconsistent, so we don't use them.

Studies

Design principle

Built for the moment you actually need it

Most wellbeing apps get opened a few times and forgotten. Reset Buddy is built for the moment the feeling hits: a few minutes, as often as you like. Research on short exercises done in daily life suggests small, repeated practice can add up.

Some evidenceIn the app: 5-minute resets with a 2-minute option

3.3%

In an analysis of 93 popular mental-health apps, the typical app kept just 3.3% of its users after 30 days (Baumel et al., 2019). That's the problem we're designing against, not a Reset Buddy result.

What the research found

A meta-analysis of short exercises delivered by phone in daily life found small-to-medium improvements in anxiety, depression and stress (Versluis 2016). Study quality was relatively low.
Across 176 randomised trials, mental-health apps had small but real effects on depression and anxiety (Linardon 2024). Those were mostly structured multi-week programmes.

The honest limits

Short isn't proven faster: breathing sessions under 5 minutes were linked with less effective practice. So five minutes is the default, and shorter options are described honestly.

Studies

What we leave out

Why there are no streaks, points or badges

Research hasn't shown that game elements make wellbeing apps work better. A broken streak can make people less likely to come back, and missing a day doesn't undo a habit. Coming back is what counts.

Good evidenceIn the app: nowhere, on purpose

38 studies

A meta-analysis of 38 studies (8,110 people) found mental-health apps with game elements were no more effective, and no better at keeping people engaged, than apps without them (Six et al., 2021).

What the research found

In one small study, a colouring app with points and a progress bar eased anxiety less than plain free-hand colouring (Li 2026).
Seeing a broken streak made people less likely to keep going than seeing an intact one (Silverman & Barasch 2023). To be fair, intact streaks did raise engagement.
Missing a single day didn't materially affect how a habit formed (Lally 2010).

The honest limits

We can't say streaks harm mental health. Our choice is values-based: nobody should feel they've failed at looking after themselves.

Studies

From research to one tap

See the techniques in the app.

The research above is the recipe. Here's what it looks like in your hand: calm breathing you can follow, resets matched to how you feel, and gentle help for nights you can't sleep.

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What we won't claim

If the evidence doesn't say it, neither do we.

That Reset Buddy is "clinically proven". The app hasn't been tested in its own trial; the techniques it uses have.
That it treats or cures anxiety, depression, insomnia or trauma, or replaces a therapist, doctor or medication.
Instant calm or "relief in 60 seconds". The best-supported doses are about five minutes and up.
That anything "rewires your brain", "shuts off your amygdala" or "hacks your dopamine".
That repeating positive affirmations works for everyone. For some people it backfires.
That any sound improves or deepens sleep, or that binaural beats change your brainwaves.
That we're better than meditation, therapy or any other app.
That venting or "letting it out" helps anger. The research says calming down does.
That faith content is a scientific intervention. It's offered as spiritual practice, if you want it.

How we choose techniques

Our method

Every reset in the app is built from techniques that independent researchers have studied: slow breathing, naming emotions, absorbing creative tasks, gentle movement, soothing touch, focused attention, self-compassion, savouring and simple if-then planning. We start with systematic reviews and meta-analyses, which pool many studies, then look at individual randomised trials, and we check every reference against its original record on PubMed or the publisher's site.

We grade each technique by the strength of its evidence and tell you where it runs out. Many studies used sessions of 5 to 20 minutes, ran in labs or involved students, and some measured the body rather than how people felt. When a finding didn't replicate, or an idea sounds good but hasn't been tested, like brainwave audio or points and streaks, we leave it out or say so plainly.

Reset Buddy is a self-care tool, not a treatment, and it doesn't replace professional help. If you're struggling or in crisis, please reach out to a qualified professional or your local emergency number.

The research is the recipe. The app makes it five minutes and one tap.

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