Who ever said that virtual reality is only for fun and leisure? Latest research has revealed that virtual reality therapy can be utilized to treat depression by reducing the associated depressive symptoms.
That's right, researchers from the University College London and ICREA University of Barcelona conducted a study on 15 patients who were suffering from depression. The patients were made to wear virtual reality headsets, allowing them to project an avatar of themselves in a virtual world.
The participants were then made to console an upset child. They were trained to be compassionate to the virtual child, allowing them to express themselves as the one consoling a distressed child, rather than the one being consoled. After this, the patients become embodied in the virtual child, and they in turn see the adult avatar giving them words of consolation.
According to UCL, the whole virtual reality therapy lasts for about eight minutes. The patients underwent the therapy three times with weekly intervals.
As reported by Yahoo News, after a month following the therapy, nine of the treated patients experienced lesser depressive symptoms. They became more compassionate and less critical of themselves. Out of the nine, four experienced a substantial reduction in the severity of their depression.
The lead researcher, Professor Chris Brewin, said that, "People who struggle with anxiety and depression can be excessively self-critical when things go wrong in their lives." He further explained that, "In this study, by comforting the child and then hearing their own words back, patients are indirectly giving themselves compassion."
Professor Brewin emphasized that the aim of the study was to teach patients suffering from depression to become more compassionate towards themselves and reduce their tendency to become self-critical. According to Brewin, the study saw "promising results."
One thing though, since there was no control group and the sample group was relatively small, the researchers are still planning to conduct a study on a much larger trial group who suffer from depression symptoms. With this new development in treating depression, there might just be hope for sufferers.
