Study finds virtual reality can help treat severe paranoia

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The past few years has seen a big increase both in the quality and availability of virtual reality computer systems and also the research using these systems to help people who have schizophrenia. Here is news about new research on one such effort:

Virtual reality can help treat severe paranoia by allowing people to face situations that they fear, an MRC-funded study has found. The virtual reality simulations allowed the patients to learn that the situations they feared were actually safe.

The study, carried out by researchers at Oxford University, is published today in the British Journal of Psychiatryopens in new window. It combines evidence-based psychological treatment techniques with state-of-the-art virtual reality social situations to reduce paranoid fear.

Coping mechanisms such as avoiding social situations, reducing eye contact or making any social interaction as short as possible worsen the situation, since they reinforce paranoid fears: patients come to believe that they avoided harm because they used these ‘defence behaviours’.

Read the full story here and watch the video below:

Full research paper is available here:

Virtual reality in the treatment of persecutory delusions: randomised controlled experimental study testing how to reduce delusional conviction

A Video on the research below:

You can learn more about virtual reality here:

Here’s everything you need to know about what VR is and how it will affect your life in the near future.

Virtual Reality 101 - Here’s everything you need to know about what VR is and how it will affect your life in the near future.

Related Reading on Virtual Reality for treating schizophrenia:

VIRTUAL REALITY USED TO TREAT SCHIZOPHRENIA, PSYCHOSIS AND BIPOLAR
By placing patients in environments that may act as trigger, psychiatrists can better help patients deal with these situations

Studying and treating schizophrenia using virtual reality: a new paradigm.
https://www.psych.ox.ac.uk/publications/180510

Virtual Reality Gets Real: The promises—and pitfalls—of the emerging technology

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Cool. I hope they give that as an option for us.

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I think this type of therapy may have good outcomes for those suffering from minor paranoia or social anxiety. However, the sz mind involves to many variables and many suffer from rage like delusions. As with my paranoia, yes I have a fear of people and what they would do such as verbal attacks, but my delusions and hallucinations lead to the fear of what I would be capable of doing to them when my paranoid fear is invoked. Sz doesn’t just invoke fear of harm to yourself, but there are those who have delusional rage that could cause harm to others.

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Since seeing the VR paranoia research results I’ve been going nose-to-nose with life sized images of faces on my computer screen for 20 minutes in the mornings. Sometimes I use images of angry faces and sometimes I use smiling faces. It’s actually smiling faces that I find more difficult, as I get ‘disconfirming feedback’ when using them.

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I’m going to do that now!!!

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I believe in the pharmaceutical approach everything else is a waste of time. If they can create decent drugs we won’t have to mess around with all these ineffective alternative therapies. At the end of the day things like this waste a lot of time and energy. I know my paranoia won’t be cured by playing silly video games so I have a hard time even considering this seriously.

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@Apathy, did you persist with looking at the images?

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I would love it if this was available in Canada.

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At least their embracing the vr concept that’s about to be huge…

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This really scares me to watch. I probably wouldn’t try it.
Also, wat does oculus mean? It’s written on the side of the band on he head, and for some reason the word seems sinister.

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Oculous is the brand name…Samsung has one a few others…m

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There was a horror movie called oculus.

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Yes - as was mentioned, There are a few different Virtual Reality systems and companies out there. Oculus Rift is one, more info here (see links below). They are really cool to try out - go to Best Buy and check them out before you say they are scary. They can be very fun - depending on the game or video you use with the system.

The product is here (I think they are about $500 in BestBuy)
https://www3.oculus.com/en-us/rift/

More details on product here:

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That’s why. I saw that one (wasn’t scary at all. I also predicted the whole movie… Ha ha).

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I think it is available in Canada - all these Virtual Reality systems are available in Canada. Though the paranoia software that was used in the research is probably only available in that university research lab for now. But some of the games might be helpful to people - perhaps someone with some time on their hands can research any VR games or software that might be helpful for people who have schizophrenia or social anxiety, etc.

Ah - just checked online. Oculus Rift will be available in Canada this fall - so perhaps Sept. or October. See this news release from the company:

https://www3.oculus.com/en-us/blog/oculus-rift-retail-experience-kicks-off-at-best-buy-locations-may-7/

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The samesung is 100$ but the phones that go with them are expensive…

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And some info on the pricing of the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive in Canada:

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For really cheap VR (and perhaps not that great an experience - but a good start) is Google Cardboard. You basically put a good smartphone (android based I guess) into this Cardboard holder for your face.

Here are details:

https://vr.google.com/cardboard/

oh - and look they have the Google VR App for both Android and for iphones:

and