emWave Personal Stress Reliever (Metallic Blue)

I bought a stress eraser last year and liked it a lot, so I gave it to my son who was stressed out in law school. Instead of replacing it I decided to give EM Wave a try. I think many people have trouble choosing between these two similar items. Maybe I can help. First, I can tell you that both are useful. You probably won't go wrong with either. However, they are quite different and you may prefer one. Stress Eraser- strengths Stress Eraser provides true biofeedback in the form of a continuous graph that you can influence by changing your breathing or even thinking. If you follow their instructions you can learn to control the graph and doing so you learn to relax. The unit is solid. It is scientifically valid and it seems like it due to the accurate feedback. Stress Eraser- weaknesses To use the stress eraser you must look at the graph that forms on the unit. I can't see it without my glasses. You must also have your finger in the correct position on the unit. That makes it hard to position the unit so that you can see the graph while lying down. Thus, if you want to use it to help go to sleep it is difficult. Another thing which may be a weakness or a strenght is that it is more or less a one trick pony. No bells and whistles. But it does what it does very well. EM Wave- strengths EM wave is more complicated, but not hard to use once you read the instructions. The unit is light weight and has colored lights, which you may like or feel is too much like a toy. I prefer the graph of Stress Eraser if I am using the unit during the day (it is more rapidly responsive and just seems more scientific), but at night trying to go to sleep the EM Wave is better because you don't need to see it very accurately...just follow the blinking lights. Another advantage of EM Wave is that you either put your finger on the unit (like Stress Eraser) or you can attach an ear monitor. The ear unit is great because you don't need to keep your hand on the unit. To use EM Wave thre are three different modes. In the basic mode the unit has a panel of lights that indicates a breathing pattern for you to follow. This pattern is not actual feedback, just a suggested breathing rate (you don't need to spend this much money for that). In the Heart Rate mode (HR)it follows your heart activity similarly to Stress Eraser- so this is actual feedback. In either mode there is another light that changes color depending on whether or not you are in "coherence". Essentially I take it to mean that you are relaxed, though they talk about it in New Age speak, so it is unclear to me what exactly it signifies. In the third mode you only see the "coherence" light, which saves batteries and removes all of the distractions. Actually the unit is even more complicated than this, but those are the essentials. EM Wave Weaknesses The unit seems flimsy compared to the Stress Eraser. It is unclear exactly what the "coherence" indictor actually indicates. The coherence coach CD is hardly worth watching. The website and other information is a bit non-scientific with all the talk about "heart breathing". All of that new age stuff will work, but depending on your personality you might find it a bit much. Final comments OK so it sounds like I like the Stress Eraser more...but actually I find the EM Wave more useful due to my intended use of falling asleep with it. If you use the HR mode on the EM Wave it is more similar to Stress Eraser..real feedback. If you don't wear glasses or don't expect to use the unit while lying down, Stress Eraser is probably better. EM Wave is more interesting, with colored and blinking lights and multiple modes, but it doesn't have the same degree of biofeedback. Nevertheless, EM Wave does give enough biofeedback and if you use it you will learn to relax. Again, both are good...just different.

As other reviewers have mentioned, Heart Math's emWave comes with lots of new-agey jargon and inducements to use computer programs along with buying some of the books produced by Heart Math (it's practically a little industry if not a way of life). Nevertheless, if you're trying to decide between Stress Eraser and emWave, the latter is the better-built, better-finished, more reliable product. The Stress Eraser looks almost "plain" by comparison, but can be equally effective. The basic tenet of all Eastern, or Eastern-influenced, approaches to better health is to tap into a cosmic energy source the manifestation of which is the human breath stream. In layman's terms, you gotta breathe to live; moreover, breathing must be regular, coordinated with the cardio-vascular and neurological operations of the macrocosm (the individual who's breathing), and it must be deep (shallow breathing isn't breathing: it's gasping, or drowning). Before proceeding to a consideration of either pricey gadget, it would be best to acknowledge what they can and can't do: 1. If you're unable to "locate" your consciousness in a secure and positive place (i.e. think relaxing thoughts, reflect upon your good fortunes and the things you have to be grateful for), you'll do well with either of these little machines. They'll register a pulse that's harmoniously synchronized with your breath in a regular, unstressed pattern, and you'll be doubly gratified to have visibly, quantitatively confirmed what it is you already know and feel. 2. If, on the other hand, you're under unusual or exceptional physical and/or emotional-mental stress, you're not going to be able to "force" your pulse and breath stream into a regular pattern that will register reassuringly on either of the devices' read-outs. In other words, these are potentially useful devices for ordinary people experiencing ordinary stress and likely to be helped to relax with a little bit of extra external motivation and encouragement. But they don't tell me what I don't know, and they don't serve as cause-effect stress reducers. All stress--let me repeat, all stress--is in the last analysis a construction, or creation, of the individual. An external device can't "cure" stress any more than it can "cause" it. Now for a few pros and cons of each: The Stress Eraser, though larger, is less conspicuous to use in a public place (especially a dimly lit place). However, the batteries are consumed at a rapid, voracious rate (unless you choose not to use the light), the device can be extremely slow to find a pulse (especially if your hands tend to run cold), and the long-term settings usually wind up being short term. The emWave resembles a mini-slot machine with its bright psychedelic lights. But's it's more compact, more stable, and it's a bit more "fun" to use (but no faster or more effective in producing a desired effect). In fact, the Stress Eraser put me to sleep faster than its rival (by contrast, my wife kept complaining about the lights of the emWave as keeping her awake!). When I'm feeling exceptional stress, I have better success "forcing" a positive reading with Stress Eraser than with emWave. That's because Stress Eraser produces wave patterns that I can control, to a certain extent, by the manner in which I breathe (or hold my breath). As a result, I'm able to achieve the recommended 30 points and take at least some small measure of satisfaction in my accomplishment. With emWave, on the other hand, if stress is in "high mode," or close to "panic," all bets are off. You can huff and puff, hold your breath, think about cuddly warm puppies for dear life, but the gadget continually goes back to a red color, undoing any small accomplishment you might have claimed by raising the row of lights while in a blue or (most desirable) green color. Both of these gadgets will work, and do so more efficiently and effectively than Herbert Benson's by-now-famous "relaxation response." For the reasons stated above, I would be wary of the emWave's hyperbolic claims (eliminates depression, improves health, provides energy, etc.). Also, neither device will enable the user to avert an all-out panic attack because both require a conscious effort of will, or control, before their benefits can be realized. The emWave comes with a CD which, after a few initially promising moments, proves to be mostly a pitch for Heart Math's books and associated products. The program is basically: 1. breathe, following the movement of the ball; 2. concentrate on that organ in the center of your chest, the heart; 3. think of a positive feeling (no more specific than that, and consequently a bit reminiscent of "Don't worry. Be happy"). The Stress Eraser, though eschewing the term "math" anywhere in its literature, is actually the more analytic of the two, providing numerical targets for individual sessions and for the entire day. mWave is colorful, and includes innocuous (but non-objectionable) ambience music to accompany its felicitously focused aerobics; Stress Eraser is black and white, with numbers and no music. In sum, I'd recommend the emWave over the Stress Eraser for most individuals because of the superior build quality, the production values, and higher motivational component for most users. But the Stress Eraser is also worth a look (it's going for half the price of a year ago). There's no color, no flashing and streaming neon-like lights, no support groups and computer soft-ware, but sometimes less is more, especially when it comes to gadgets--themselves the source of more stress than we sometimes care to admit. The Stress Eraser makes it possible, even under adverse conditions, to accumulate 30 points and achieve some small degree of satisfaction; the emWave practically ensures a strike-out during those tense moments--say, after news of a death or bad health prognosis--when you walk up to the plate so frazzled you'd rather not look the pitcher in the eye let alone swing at fast balls. [Contrary to the emWave's recommendation, the ear lobe clip was not easier to use--in fact, it failed to pick up any pulse whatsoever (but then I rarely wear a cap during Wisconsin's wintry weather, which may be the explanation for bloodless ear lobes). The Stress Eraser, as indicated, can also be non-responsive, especially if your fingers are cold. (Put your hand under hot water in these instances.]