Our sources
The science behind Rillbreak
What Rillbreak is — and isn't.
Rillbreak is a relaxation product: short soundscapes and an optional breathing guide you can use to unwind. It isn't a treatment, and none of the studies below tested Rillbreak itself. We share them because they shaped how we built it — and we tell you where the evidence is thin.
1. Why a breathing guide
Slow, gentle breathing is one of the best-studied ways to relax on purpose. A 2023 review that pooled randomized trials found breathwork was linked to modest reductions in self-reported stress, and the benefit showed up for slow-paced breathing specifically (Fincham et al., 2023). A large 2022 review found slow breathing is reliably linked to changes in heart rhythm associated with rest, during and right after a session (Laborde et al., 2022). Rillbreak's guide paces you at about six breaths a minute. Keep it gentle. You can turn it off anytime.
2. Why water and birdsong
A review in PNAS pooled studies on natural sounds and found they were linked to better well-being and lower stress and annoyance; water sounds showed the largest benefits for well-being, and birdsong for stress and annoyance (Buxton et al., 2021). Other studies found that mixing in human voices or traffic reduces these benefits. So our scenes are built mostly from water and birds, with no voices or traffic. Results vary from person to person, and studies comparing nature sounds with plain silence are more mixed.
3. Why short sessions
In studies of nature sounds, people often reported feeling calmer after just a few minutes of listening. We made Rillbreak for short, deliberate breaks — 3, 5, or 10 minutes — rather than hours of background audio.
4. Why it sounds different
Most nature tracks are recorded once and played back flat. Rillbreak scenes are rendered with Sound-Tracing®, a patented technology that simulates how sound travels through a space, so the scene sounds like a place around you. Research on garden soundscapes suggests that playing sound back more faithfully helps preserve how restorative a place feels (Shi et al., 2024). We haven't studied whether 3D audio relaxes people more than regular stereo, and we don't claim it does. Listen to both and decide for yourself.
Hear the difference (30 sec) →5. Your check-ins
The before-and-after slider is based on a simple, well-studied way of rating stress on a line (Lesage et al., 2012). It's a personal log, not a test. Your answers are stored only on your device. We never see them.
References
- Buxton, R. T., Pearson, A. L., Allou, C., Fristrup, K., & Wittemyer, G. (2021). A synthesis of health benefits of natural sounds and their distribution in national parks. PNAS, 118(14), e2013097118. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2013097118
- Fincham, G. W., Strauss, C., Montero-Marin, J., & Cavanagh, K. (2023). Effect of breathwork on stress and mental health: A meta-analysis of randomised-controlled trials. Scientific Reports, 13, 432. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-27247-y
- Laborde, S., et al. (2022). Effects of voluntary slow breathing on heart rate and heart rate variability: A systematic review and a meta-analysis. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews, 138, 104711. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neubiorev.2022.104711
- Shi, X., Guo, Z., & Zhao, Y. (2024). Influence of virtual audio system on psychological restoration effects of soundscapes: Investigating water sounds of a Chinese classical garden. Applied Acoustics, 221, 109991. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apacoust.2024.109991
- Lesage, F.-X., Berjot, S., & Deschamps, F. (2012). Clinical stress assessment using a visual analogue scale. Occupational Medicine, 62(8), 600–605. https://doi.org/10.1093/occmed/kqs140
Rillbreak is designed for general relaxation and well-being. It is not a medical device and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.