Virtual Reality Used as Therapy

[Charolotte Caxton]

I came across this article just now and thought it was very interesting and relevant to those of us who live in here.

"In 2011, the military conducted a small study using SnowWorld and got stunning results. For soldiers in the worst pain, SnowWorld worked better than morphine."

"The virtual reality of SnowWorld was dreamed up at the University of Washington by two psychologists, Dr. David Patterson and Dr. Hunter Hoffman."

Groundbreaking experiment in virtual reality uses video game to treat pain

From what I understand, Morphine is a powerful drug. That virtual reality can have positive real medical effects I think to me is promising.

Is this old news? It is the first I have heard about it. I wonder if it is at all based on Snow Crash, a novel I often hear brought up when discussing Second Life.

[Echo Hermit]

I'm sure that Virtual Reality can be good therapy for many people, but I am also equally as sure that it can cause people to spiral downwards if they have certain mental health problems already (has anyone done a study on this I wonder?).

It's all very interesting, because living in a virtual world is relatively new, and no one can know yet what the long-term effects to a human brain is going to be.

All I know for sure is that Second Life can be very therapeutic, relaxing, if I'm exploring pretty places, and it can be extremely disturbing if I happen to run into something that I personally find disturbing. 

[Storm Clarence]

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Echo Hermit wrote:

... I am also equally as sure that it can cause people to spiral downwards if they have certain mental health problems already (has anyone done a study on this I wonder?).

 

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The entire Internet is a study on this^^.   The OP is in a much better position than I to cite 'case' results. 

 

[Amethyst Jetaime]

You may find these interesting:

[Madelaine McMasters]

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Echo Hermit wrote:

I'm sure that Virtual Reality can be good therapy for many people, but I am also equally as sure that it can cause people to spiral downwards if they have certain mental health problems already (has anyone done a study on this I wonder?).

It's all very interesting, because living in a virtual world is relatively new, and no one can know yet what the long-term effects to a human brain is going to be.

All I know for sure is that Second Life can be very therapeutic, relaxing, if I'm exploring pretty places, and it can be extremely disturbing if I happen to run into something that I personally find disturbing. 

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SL is certainly a double edged sword, but I think that it can be managed properly for theraputic purposes. Just as with pharmaceuticals, professional supervision and assessment could ameloriate the risks.

Naturally produced endorphins (a contraction of "endogenous morphine") like opiates, reduce pain and produce a feeling of well-being. Endorphins are actually more powerful than morphine. Other naturally produced hormones, like serotonin and oxytocin (the cuddle or love hormone) also create feelings of well-being. Because we are social creatures, it's not suprising that interactions with others, particularly intimate interactions can cause production of these hormones.

The shift away from voice communications to texting (cell phones stopped being used predominantly for voice in mid 2010), is thought to be due to people wishing to regain control of their interactions with others. Virtual worlds allow us to carry that control into a fuller realization of ourselves than texting allows. You can't be backed into a corner by a beligerent person in SL. You just TP away. Feeling in control gives us a sense of well-being, with those same hormones at work. I think that at least partially explains the theraputic benefit, for all of us, of being afforded ways of exercising control over our interactions with the world around us.

Virtual worlds like SL can do precisely that.

 

[Parhelion Palou]

Virtual worlds have also been used to treat post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and to help people with autism learn skills to deal with people in real life.

I know an organization that uses a private OpenSim setup for drug counseling. They've had better results than they get with RL counseling, partly because participants in group discussions feel freer to talk and because they can easily meet with a counselor whenever they need to.

I agree with Echo that SL can be very relaxing. If you're in a stressful environment in RL, being able to get away to a beautiful and peaceful place is very calming, even when that place is virtual.

[Echo Hermit]

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Amethyst Jetaime wrote:

You may find these interesting:

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Very interesting. I hadn't really given it all much thought until Charolotte started this thread. All I knew was I could lose myself for hours just wandering around a virtual park taking photos with virtual flowers. Much more fun in a virtual world where there is no dog pooh to encounter :matte-motes-big-grin-wink:

I shall undoubtedly rewatch the above youtube videos and the others that come up to the right of the screen as suggestions for further viewing.

[Echo Hermit]

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Madelaine McMasters wrote:

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Echo Hermit wrote:

I'm sure that Virtual Reality can be good therapy for many people, but I am also equally as sure that it can cause people to spiral downwards if they have certain mental health problems already (has anyone done a study on this I wonder?).

It's all very interesting, because living in a virtual world is relatively new, and no one can know yet what the long-term effects to a human brain is going to be.

All I know for sure is that Second Life can be very therapeutic, relaxing, if I'm exploring pretty places, and it can be extremely disturbing if I happen to run into something that I personally find disturbing. 

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SL is certainly a double edged sword, but I think that it can be managed properly for theraputic purposes. Just as with pharmaceuticals, professional supervision and assessment could ameloriate the risks.

Naturally produced endorphins (a contraction of "endogenous morphine") like opiates, reduce pain and produce a feeling of well-being. Endorphins are actually more powerful than morphine. Other naturally produced hormones, like serotonin and oxytocin (the cuddle or love hormone) also create feelings of well-being. Because we are social creatures, it's not suprising that interactions with others, particularly intimate interactions can cause production of these hormones.

The shift away from voice communications to texting (cell phones stopped being used predominantly for voice in mid 2010), is thought to be due to people wishing to regain control of their interactions with others. Virtual worlds allow us to carry that control into a fuller realization of ourselves than texting allows. You can't be backed into a corner by a beligerent person in SL. You just TP away. Feeling in control gives us a sense of well-being, with those same hormones at work. I think that at least partially explains the theraputic benefit, for all of us, of being afforded ways of exercising control over our interactions with the world around us.

Virtual worlds like SL can do precisely that.

 

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Most definitely.

[Melita Magic]

Have not heard about that particular example, but I believe very, very strongly in the potential healing power of immersion into a virtual environment.

I have had testimonials from visitors to my own land, unsolicited ones by the way. They would tell me that on a very hot day in real life, with no air conditioning in their home, looking out over the ocean made them feel cool.

Some people relaxed by just sitting under water. They liked the solitude and comparative silence I am guessing. I never asked, but was told or saw it.

Other people found the gardens or foliage or landscape relaxing or soothing.

Senses interpret what is around them. Virtual is not virtual.

Virtual worlds should be used for healing any time they can be. For one thing it is a cheap form of treatment and one that most patients could access from home. Also, some people with PTSD are homebound.

[Dillon Levenque]

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Storm Clarence wrote:

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Echo Hermit wrote:

... I am also equally as sure that it can cause people to spiral downwards if they have certain mental health problems already (has anyone done a study on this I wonder?).

 

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The entire Internet is a study on this^^.  

The OP is in a much better position than I to cite 'case' results. 

 

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Please clarify. What exactly are you saying with that second comment?

[Tex Monday]

I can imagine SL as mental therapy, but wouldn't necessarilly think of it as pain therapy. I can understand that doing something fun like this takes your mind off of other things...in fact, if I'm playing on SL all day, I'll forget to eat...

I agree about the double edged sword. As we've seen many times in these posts, SL can take cause mental anguish and feelings of depression or pain. Think that if you use SL for any kind of therapy, it should probably be done in a controlled enviornment to avoid things like that. Imagine a guy who just lost a loved one going to SL, starting a relationship and having it break off (for example)

It is an interesting experiment and will have to check out those videos soon.

[Perrie Juran]

I can readily see how in a controlled Virtual Environment how VR could be used for therapy.  I think most of us who post here regularly know of those who 'self report' how activities in SL have helped them overcome problems in RL.  There still exists the problem of the downward spiral, but that exists also in RL therapy.  For instance in aversion therapy, the psychotic person may continue to revel in what is presented to them.

Several years ago I read a book, "Four Arguments For The Elimination Of Television."  Now while I know some might find the idea of getting rid of televisions laughable, the author offers some great insight into how we process mental imagery and the affects it has on us.  If your interested in the topic I do recommend it.

Talking very loosely here, especially because depending on different peoples points of views they may disagree with my choice of terms, the Brain is just the physical vehicle that houses the mind  ( or Conscious:  that which makes you You) and is incapable of distinguishing where an image originated.  That is an act of the Mind.  So any mental image that is stored in the Brain can be acted upon by the Mind, whether it was real or imagined.

Hence why athletes for instance mentally practice their sport.  When a boxer approaches a punching bag, he does not see a punching bag.  He sees his opponent being pummeled.  It is the whole idea of mental practice http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mental_practice_of_action or motor imagery http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motor_imagery .

I didn't watch the whole video so I don't know if it gets brought up, but VR has really been getting used for a long time for training purposes.  A flight simulator is actually a VR environment.

How much potential there is to use VR for therapy is up for grabs.  That it can be used for this I have no doubt.

[Melita Magic]

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Tex Monday wrote:

 As we've seen many times in these posts, SL can take cause mental anguish and feelings of depression or pain. Think that if you use SL for any kind of therapy, it should probably be done in a controlled enviornment to avoid things like that. Imagine a guy who just lost a loved one going to SL, starting a relationship and having it break off (for example)

 

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As you mentioned, the pain seems to be connnected to 'relationships' in SL going sour. It seems to me or from my best memory, that the topics people begin in the forums, which talk about how horrible tehy feel are about someone screwing them over or dumping them, or pretending to die and making an alt, or whatever. Relationships. Lurve. That's a different thing to me, than an environment in which someone can explore and participate on their own terms.

It's interesting to consider that aspect of it, though, because it goes back to the question of 'what is virtual.' Perhaps it underlines the fact that our bodies and minds and emotions feel what happens to or through or avatars. 

But in terms of pain management, healing of any type, or being soothed, I would not recommend the minefield of human emotional relationships, in any context. I think a responsible therapist would not even recommend someone suffering from PTSD begin a relationship in real life, either, until they are more on an even keel. 

I do still feel very much that SL as an immersive environment or controlled environment can be healing.

JMO