I work intensively with Virtual Reality, especially in the field of exposure therapy for various phobias. Here, VR is an unbeatable tool. The results speak for themselves. Learning and habituation also take place in VR.
With VR, I can effectively capture and fine-tune the anxiety levels of my patients. On a scale from 0 to 10, I can closely observe how the anxiety develops and adjust the requirements individually. This precise control is often hardly possible in traditional therapy forms. As a result, patients are even more motivated to confront their fears.
A special example was a patient with severe emetophobia. For her, the anxiety in everyday life was very burdensome. We started with neutral VR scenes outdoors and gradually progressed to a scene where a man sits down in the park and vomits. The scenes were watched repeatedly until the anxiety significantly decreased. To make the exposure more realistic, a therapy spray was even used at the end to engage the sense of smell. The effect was impressive: the patient was able to cope with the situation, and the anxiety was significantly reduced.
Another example comes from a patient with severe fear of flying, which significantly limited him professionally. The origin of his fear was not clear, but with the help of VR, I was able to gently guide him into the situation. From watching an airplane to staying at the gate and finally boarding. The scenarios were carefully constructed. After a quarter of a year, he was actually able to take his first flight. This was a great success and a personal breakthrough for the patient.
I have also successfully used VR for acrophobia, with a similar structure and also sustainable results.
My conclusion:
- In cases like fear of flying, emetophobia, or acrophobia, realistic exposure without VR is hardly possible
- VR enables individualized, controllable, and effective exposures – with proven success.
