At-home ‘brain massages’? This is how Rituals plans to tackle the stress epidemic

The Nordics may be the happiest place on Earth (allegedly). After all, our five countries receive top billing on the World Population Review’s list of the happiest countries year after year. But we’ve not escaped what the World Health Organization calls the “health epidemic of the 21st century”: stress. Widespread and escalating levels of anxiety, burnout, and exhaustion (particularly in the workplace) have led to a rise in stress-related sick leave. In Sweden, the number of ongoing cases has nearly doubled over the past decade, according to the Swedish Social Insurance Agency. Whether due to digital overload, a precarious work-life balance, or the global churn of recession and unrest, it’s safe to say that stress has become a shared reality.

In many ways, Rituals was made for the Nordics. Ours is a culture steeped in small rituals – be it fika breaks or the lighting of a candle during long winter evenings. “For us, the region plays an important role because there's a natural… I would say not obsession, but there's a natural passion for style and fragrance,” says Raymond Cloosterman, founder and creative director of Rituals Cosmetics. Still, he admits that reshaping the perception of Rituals from a purveyor of cherry blossom shower foams and velvety hand creams to a leader in the wellness space is no easy task. “One of our big themes going forward,” he says, “is that we're on a journey from beauty to well-being. That’s something we put on the walls a couple years ago and it opened a lot of new doors.”

It began with a question: What if beauty rituals could actually help us relax? Not just physically, but mentally too. “There's a big disease going on out there,” Cloosterman says. “It's called stress. We're not able to relax anymore. So we said, if we’re into well-being, can we help people discover how to do that?”

That mission sparked the creation of the House of Rituals in Amsterdam, a flagship designed not just for shopping but for slowing down. “We wanted an immersive retail experience where products, content, and treatments come together,” Cloosterman explains. That includes the brand’s spa services – facials, massages, manicures – but also a full floor dedicated to the mind. “If we want people to enjoy life, to enjoy our products, they need to be able to relax first,” he continues. “You need to physically rest, but also mentally relax. That’s where the concept of the brain massage came in.”

Yes, brain massages. At Rituals’ Mind Oasis, you’ll find hydromassage beds equipped with collagen-boosting red light therapy, sound- and light-therapy pods, and breathwork classes – all aimed at guiding you into a state of deep mental rest. “We brought in scientists and wellness experts from The New Yoga School and beyond,” Cloosterman says. “And my dream going forward is to bring these principles into people’s homes.”

The Nordics, unsurprisingly, are first on the list for expansion. Rituals plans to roll out its well-being services and in-store “mental breaks” across key cities in the region. “You can go to our stores for a one-hour or even 30-minute mental break in the midst of this hectic city,” he says. “We’re working on how to translate this into something more accessible, something you can use at home.”

I had the chance to try one of these experiences firsthand: the 'Brain Massage', a guided meditation session that blends voice-led breathing techniques with sound therapy and binaural beats. Reclining in a softly lit pod with a weighted blanket and headphones on, I was gently coached through a series of mindful visualisations and breathwork exercises. Now, I am tight wound and find it close to impossible to relax, but this was like a reset button for my nervous system.

Afterwards, I sampled the hydromassage bed – another way Rituals is helping to facilitate rest, this time through warm, pulsing jets and collagen-stimulating red light therapy. It’s a different kind of calm, more physical than cerebral, but equally effective in making you feel like you've stepped outside the usual pace of your day.

While waiting patiently for the in-store experiences to arrive up North, the brand provides homebodies like myself with it's just-launched, easy-to-use (I would know, having tried it myself) Mind Oasis at Home. Reclining in the specially designed anti-gravity chair available for purchase, you pick your preferred sound therapy session – spanning energising binaural beats to calming sound waves – through the specifically designed app. An undeniably relaxing way to while away the time until Rituals' planned expansion finally arrives.

It’s strange to think of Rituals, a brand so long associated with body scrubs and shower foams, at the forefront of experiential mental well-being. But perhaps that’s precisely the point. As Cloosterman puts it: “Calm is the new luxury.” And if this is what luxury looks and feels like, I, for one, am fully on board.