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Virtual reality will help get rid of phobias
Last reviewed: 23.04.2024
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Virtual reality (VR) means not only entertainment and computer games, now VR is used in various fields of activity. Recently, such technologies are increasingly used in medicine and recently researchers have found that such applications can help in the treatment of various phobias. In computer games, VR is used to frighten players, it is this property, according to scientists, and will help a person get rid of their fears.
Thus, using virtual simulators suggests Nick Schuzman - the idea visited him thanks to his dog, who was afraid to remain without a master. To treat such psychological problems, it is recommended that you gradually open yourself to the problem, while the trick is working with people and dogs.
In other words, you need to approach your fear - a high cliff for fear of heights, spiders, rodents, etc. It's not always possible to meet your own fear, and it's not always possible to find out the cause of fear in the city - for example, snakes, big spiders, rats, etc. It was then that Shuzman thought that it was difficult to make virtual applications for dogs, but in the case of a person this could work . In addition, he himself also suffers a phobia - afraid of spiders.
Nick Shuzman has already developed several VR-applications, so immediately decided to create a program for the treatment of phobias, in addition, he decided to become a test and test the development on himself. The result was impressive - a new application helps to get rid of the fear of spiders. Shuzman called the program Fearless (Fearless), in the beginning the person gets into the virtual room where there is a merry cartoon spider, but with each new level the spider becomes more and more realistic and in the last room the big spider descends directly to you. Nick himself noted that the last level for him was very difficult, he could not overcome his fear of spiders and all the time he turned off the application.
The developer himself noted that the maximum realism at the last level and the fear of a virtual spider is a good sign, i.e. The psyche of Nika took the insect as real, and therefore this method is suitable for treating fears.
Such treatment, when a person gradually gets used to his fear, experiencing it again and again, is called exposure therapy.
Barbara Rotbaum confirmed that VR significantly help in the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorders. She has been studying for 20 years how virtual simulations affect phobias and, according to studies, such methods show themselves well for fear of flying, public speaking and, in fact, fear of spiders. Rotbaum herself is confident that there will soon be many applications like Fearless, since it's already time for virtual reality.
The very same Nick Shuzman said that the course of treatment of virtual reality, he himself was successful and overcame many years of fear of insects, in confirmation of his words he took a huge spider in his hands and arranged a photo session with him. Crowning grounds helped Shuzman to collect 600 thousand dollars, which will be used to add special training to Fearless to combat other common phobias - reptiles, rodents, fear of heights or flight, etc.
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