What is VR Therapy?
In 1995, VR Therapy, which made its name with a joint work of a psychologist and a computer scientist, has been used in the field of mental health as a groundbreaking method since its inception. Virtual Reality Therapy (VR Therapy) is a method used for the diagnosis and treatment of psychological disorders through virtual reality technology. VR Therapy is the closest version of human life to reality. Thus, VR Therapy enables the person to face the situations that they avoid, fear and obsess about in real life as close as possible.
Which Psychological Disorders Is VR Therapy Used to Treat?
Virtual Reality Therapy Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Anxiety, Phobias, Eating Disorders, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Social Phobia, Dependency, It is used in the treatment of many psychological disorders such as Panic Disorder, Panic Disorder, Test Anxiety and neuropsychological evaluations. In the field of rehabilitation, there are studies showing that the use of virtual reality can be effective in restoring the functionality of patients.
In the field of mental health, the severity of the diagnosis affects treatment planning as much as the diagnosis of the problem. For example, a person who has a very intense fear of being in crowded environments is exposed to the experience of being in the crowd after long processes. However, with the virtual reality method, this period is shortened and the person is exposed to the crowd in a virtual environment with three-dimensional virtual reality glasses. In this way, it is much faster to overcome this problem in real life.
Virtual Reality Therapy allows users to actively interact with this environment because it is authentic to natural environments and many of its features are controllable. The fact that it is as effective as therapies in the real environment is an important factor that increases participation in therapy.
How is VR Therapy Applied?
Virtual reality goggles are designed to completely close the eye and prevent receiving external stimuli. Apart from this, movement is provided by holding the controller in the hands. Virtual reality therapy is used by installing programs prepared according to the needs of the patient on computers with high operating power.
When the client uses the virtual reality glasses and the controller, the therapist follows the client's experiences on the computer screen in two dimensions. In this way, the therapist can guide the client and identify areas where the client has difficulties.
Through virtual reality goggles and control arms, the person finds himself/herself in a virtual environment created according to his/her needs. The system allows the person to be active in the virtual environment and to control and change this environment.
Virtual reality is applied by a specialized psychologist. The mental health professional will tailor a treatment program according to the needs of the person, using virtual reality therapy alone or in addition to traditional treatment methods.
How Does VR Therapy Work?
By stimulating your visual senses, it makes your brain believe that you are really there, and many emotions that the client wants to experience come alive thanks to this stimulation. For example, a person with cat phobia is desensitized to the cat imaginatively and verbally. In cases where this is not enough, a more effective desensitization can be achieved by taking advantage of the possibilities provided by virtual reality. It is used to increase the awareness and motivation of addicted patients, as well as enabling them to discover new methods to cope with the difficulties they face. Again, in addiction treatment, the person can experience reflex problems or memory problems when using the addictive substance.
In cases where concerns about body appearance reach the level of psychological disorder, it provides a safe, flexible and controlled environment for the stimuli that trigger eating disorders by creating the closest approximation of real life situations. In trauma treatment, the person needs to remember the traumatic experience to a certain extent in order to be treated. By providing certain stimuli through virtual reality technology, it allows the person to remember the experience and achieve emotional, intellectual and physical relief through an effective trauma treatment.
The information on this page has been prepared by the Medical Team of Private Moodist Hospital.