My Oura Ring Helps Me Reduce My Stress Levels

I first heard about the Oura Ring over dinner with my girlfriends. We were talking about the link between our high stress levels, sleepless nights—waking up at 2 a.m. randomly, then struggling to fall back asleep—and, of course, our social media algorithms, bombarding us hourly with self-care content about nervous system regulation, high cortisol, and stress management.

One friend, a physician’s associate specializing in psychiatry with an integrative approach, mentioned that she had started sleeping better and meditating more after she began wearing an Oura Ring. I looked down at the sleek gold ring on her middle finger, seamlessly stacked with her other gold rings. As we all leaned in, intrigued by this little device, a soft green glow radiated against her tan skin. No more 2 a.m. wake-ups or end-of-day fatigue? Say less, goddess.

That night, lying in bed, I ordered mine.

How Does the Oura Ring Work?

The Oura Ring uses infrared and LED light to track biometrics, including heart rate, and provides daily scores for sleep, activity, and readiness. Its stress-tracking feature relies on several of these data points to measure four key states—which it refers to as Restored, Relaxed, Engaged, and Stressed—to show how your body responds to life.

Within a few weeks, the ring builds a baseline to reveal long-term stress patterns. It includes data from sleep, exercise, and stress responses, giving you scores (on a 0-100 scale) in three key categories: Readiness, Sleep, and Activity. These scores help you see how well your body is coping and recovering. On average, for example, Oura users experience about 90 minutes in a “Stressed” state each day. Not all stress is bad—hormetic stress, or good stress, like cold plunging or exercise, counts toward this number as well. The algorithm then combines all your scores to rate your body’s resilience to stress. Resilience is measured as: Exceptional, Strong, Solid, Adequate, or Limited.

Like other smart devices, the Oura Ring tracks my steps, heart rate, and exertion. It also measures heart rate variability (HRV), which directly reflects how well my nervous system is functioning. Essentially, a higher HRV often indicates that your body is in a more relaxed and balanced state, while a lower HRV could suggest stress or a need for recovery.

The ring is linked to an app, allowing you to view all associated metrics at a glance on your phone. Remembering to charge another device can be a burden, but I appreciate that the battery replenishes quickly (20-80 minutes on a little ring holder), and it lasts me anywhere from 3 to 5 days before I need to recharge.

Though the price point—$349, plus a year-long subscription of $70—is admittedly steep, the information and the options for leveraging it have proved priceless for me.

The Good and Bad of Tracking My Stress

Wellness became something of a game for me. How could I use this data to carve out more time for rest, even when my schedule was packed and stress levels were high? I worried the Oura Ring might disconnect me from listening to my body’s natural cues, but instead, it helped me tune in more deeply.

At first, I did feel a bit neurotic. I was constantly checking the app, as if someone had revealed an analysis that wasn’t meant for my eyes, like when you see the doctor taking notes during your appointment and wonder what she might be typing. Was this too much information? Constantly having access to a portrait of my health is something I still struggle with.

Another first response: seeing that I was physiologically stressed—when I already felt stressed—only stressed me out more.

Within a month, my ring collected enough data to accurately depict my stress—and, wildly, I was spending three to four hours a day in a Stressed state. I was shocked. But when I started to dig a little deeper, it was validating—and liberating. If you’re like me and my girlfriends, we always try to do it all. And I think I’m finding that while it’s possible to do everything I want to do, sometimes I need to slow down before pushing forward. This timeless pursuit is made infinitely easier with the help of my shiny new accessory.

As I began to integrate the tool into my life, I began to check the app less frequently, and began to view the ring as an ally in understanding my wellbeing. The data empowered me to better understand how I handle stress and guided me to incorporate more mindfulness into my life.

5 Ways the Oura Ring Helps Me Live More Mindfully

Here are some ways the Oura Ring has helped me slow down, increase my Restorative time, and improve my meditation, all while managing a full, vibrant, and creative life.

1. I Spend More Time Outside

I’ve always known how much being out in nature, and especially sitting quietly near the sea, calms my nerves. This goes double for outdoor movement—it’s no wonder surfers get their fix or runners chase that high.

I began to notice that even small breaks throughout the day to breathe or move in nature caused my HRV levels to rise over time. Instead of rushing off to Pilates first thing on Monday morning, I started taking walks by the sea or through a park on my lunch break, leaving my phone behind to avoid distractions. The peaceful surroundings became my moving meditation.

I’m starting to understand my stress more intimately and have more compassion for what I do to my body to accomplish what I want in life.

Having hard data from the Oura Ring to confirm how beneficial this sacred time was validated my decision; being in a Relaxed or Restored state at the end of a walk helped my brain see the clear connection between my well-being and time spent in nature.

2. I Furthered My Unguided Meditation Practice

Finding stillness in solitude without a guide or a group can be difficult. The Oura Ring helped me stay accountable as I started to meditate daily with its “Unguided Session” feature.

I began with just a few minutes of sitting quietly, finding a peaceful corner wherever I was, sometimes in the front seat of my car with the windows down, or even on the rooftop at work. The more I practiced, the easier it became to meditate for longer periods at a time.

Oura tracks your heart rate, HRV, and skin temperature during meditation, letting you see how your body has responded once the session is over. I love the little details it gives you: as you enter a more relaxed state, your skin temperature begins to increase. Tuning into the body’s signals during meditation helps prove its benefits in real time, which is highly motivating. It also helps boost my Resilience, as spending more time in a Restored state strengthens my body’s ability to handle stressors.

3. Data Helps Me Reflect and Tune In

My biggest fear about wearing a device all day was that I would begin to disconnect from my body’s natural cues. Initially, it was a very cerebral experience. But over time, I started to adjust to knowing so much about my physiological state. After the initial process of integration, real-time data actually enhanced both my intuitive and physical cues. After all, knowledge is power.

I’m finding that while it’s possible to do everything I want to do, sometimes I need to slow down before pushing forward.

For example, I noticed that late-night meals and any caffeine after noon were consistently spiking my stress. Armed with this info, I made small changes, such as switching to green tea or avoiding big meals before bed, and saw an immediate difference in how I felt.

4. I Prioritize Rest

I used to feel guilty about taking time to do nothing. My friends and I always talk about how there’s a fine line between truly restorative rest days, where you engage in healthy yet relaxing activities, and the alternative: bed-rotting, where you just scroll through social media and snack all day. I’m a firm believer that each has its time and place, but the Oura Ring’s focus on restorative sleep and relaxation helped me rethink how I define my downtime.

I started creating small rituals to ensure I carved out time for rest, whether that meant taking a nap, journaling, or simply enjoying a quiet cup of tea. The ring tracked my recovery time, showing me that rest was just as valuable as work in maintaining a healthy balance. These “nothing” days became essential for recharging, and I stopped seeing rest as a luxury and started treating it as a necessity.

5. I’m Getting Better Sleep

The most significant change I noticed was in my sleep. The Oura Ring helped me understand how important it is to shift from a Stressed or Engaged state to a Relaxed one before bedtime. Each morning, you can check the app on your phone and see a score out of 100 that rates your sleep quality based on multiple biometrics tracked during the night.

I love a late night and definitely still stay out late when it feels right, but I started getting home earlier to wind my sweet body down. The ring’s sleep-tracking feature revealed that the more I allowed my body to enter a Relaxed or Restored state before bed, the deeper my sleep became and the higher my Resilience was to whatever stress came my way.

Simple changes such as eating smaller meals (with little to no meat) earlier in the evening, cutting back on alcohol and caffeine, and lying in bed reading made the biggest difference for my body when trying to enter a Restorative state and raise my Resilience.

Now, when my friends and I get together, we nerd out on our Sleep Scores.

The Oura Ring has shown me how to better balance my life. I still experience stress and set a high bar for my productivity, but I’m starting to understand my stress more intimately and have more compassion for what I do to my body to accomplish what I want in life.

I still don’t feel great when I see that I have a low Resilience score, but I’m getting better at meditating regularly and resting efficiently, which are two ways I can have my own back. Collecting both the data and the tools to be more intentional around this feels pretty revolutionary.