A vibrating smartwatch set to go off every 15 minutes. The Activation: The moment the wrist vibrates, the patient must clench both fists for 3 seconds. Result: Within two weeks, the vibration itself became the cue. Patients reported that the urge to pull hair vanished the moment the Trikker activated because the new motor routine (clenching) overrode the old motor routine (pulling). The activation was faster than the urge.
It felt like a lightning bolt conducted through a needle, piercing the base of the skull. For a microsecond, the pain was absolute—a white-hot flare that obliterated the sight of the room, the smell of stale ozone, the feeling of the chair beneath him. Trikker Activation