XR Mental Health Exposure Therapy for the Global Impact

1 billion people, according to the WHO, are living with a mental health disorder. 1 in 10 adults suffer from phobias and anxiety.

A gold standard treatment for these illnesses is exposure therapy, which gradually increases a person's exposure to their fears in a safe environment and under a careful therapist's supervision to reduce fear and avoidance (American Psychological Association).

Doxy.me Inc., a global leader in telemedicine solutions since 2014, and Lucid Reality Labs developed innovative solutions to make healing easy and inclusive to help as many people as possible. Operating on the platform for telemedicine that gathers 1 million healthcare providers, the solution offers numerous benefits of VR technology to ensure the best therapy outcome possible.

When working with phobias, the first and most critical step is for the therapist to immerse the patient in a comfortable environment to establish trust and safety. The Doxy.me team and its research-driven discoveries advised Lucid Reality Labs at every design and development stage to ensure the most realistic and comprehensive solution for clinicians that meet with patients in this VR environment across days, weeks, or longer for this intensive therapy.

The exposure therapy session begins in a tranquil clinic room, being an engaging alternative to traditional videoconferencing. The sessions leverage evidence-based practices within the immersive environment to enhance outcomes. Doxy.me VR presently provides VR exposure therapy solutions for specific phobias related to small animals–dogs, snakes, and spiders. Behind the scenes, this design decision also makes the VR experience fully customizable and can be modified to the needs of any therapist or patient when required.

Therapists can easily control the stimuli to meet the needs and progress of their patients. The VR content is expanding to offer evidence-based modules for other phobias and anxieties related to driving, social anxiety, and trauma.

Researchers are conducting a feasibility trial with Doxy.me VR to evaluate how it works for real-world phobia patients. Doxy.me VR pioneers a new form of immersive mental health exposure therapy for global impact, ready for further research and development of innovative care and evidence-based therapies.