VR health appointments can help patients address eating disorders | Hacker News Reader

VR health appointments can help patients address eating disorders

kent.ac.uk

14 pointsfinphil3 comments

This is about the psychological benefit of exposure therapy "in the treatment of anxiety, social and general phobias, low self-esteem, and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder", which happens to be applied via VR in this case. And with success.

I've repeatedly heard exposure therapy described as the single most effective treatment in psychology. If true, our approach to microaggressions may be backwards. Protecting people from them may be exactly the wrong treatment for people that are stressed by such behavior. Exposure therapy may be the best.

Imagine a therapeutic VR exposure therapy session that mostly consisted of subtle and unsubtle insults to the patient's various identities. It might be both politically incorrect and the most effective treatment available.

In the same way an unmoderated internet forum may be healthier than a moderated one.

CBT (Cognitive behavioral therapy) is a flavor of what you're describing.

It's very effective if administered properly, and regularly, just like "working out your brain".

I did read the article, in the hopes that VR might actually bring something to the table.

I did find the "collaborative playful activity to improve patient-therapist relationship" part quite condescending (to both patient and doctor). Are none of them capable of having a conversation and reach a middle ground from where they can communicate effectively?

Is this VR solution for cases that severe?

I didn't find answers to the questions above.

But CBT works, to an extent. This (Virtual Reality Exposure Therapy (VRET)) might work too, but the article needs to tone down the condescension.

>I've repeatedly heard exposure therapy described as the single most effective treatment in psychology. If true, our approach to microaggressions may be backwards. Protecting people from them may be exactly the wrong treatment for people that are stressed by such behavior. Exposure therapy may be the best.

Exposure therapy may be highly effective, but I still don't think this follows in the general, public case (e.g. on internet forums). This SSC post puts it quite well, I think:

>They say that “Confronting triggers, not avoiding them, is the best way to overcome PTSD”. They point out that “exposure therapy” is the best treatment for trauma survivors, including rape victims. And that this involves reliving the trauma and exposing yourself to traumatic stimuli, exactly what trigger warnings are intended to prevent. All this is true. But I feel like they are missing a very important point.

>YOU DO NOT GIVE PSYCHOTHERAPY TO PEOPLE WITHOUT THEIR CONSENT.

>Psychotherapists treat arachnophobia with exposure therapy, too. They expose people first to cute, little spiders behind a glass cage. Then bigger spiders. Then they take them out of the cage. Finally, in a carefully controlled environment with their very supportive therapist standing by, they make people experience their worst fear, like having a big tarantula crawl all over them. It usually works pretty well.

>Finding an arachnophobic person, and throwing a bucket full of tarantulas at them while shouting “I’M HELPING! I’M HELPING!” works less well.

https://slatestarcodex.com/2014/05/30/the-wonderful-thing-ab...

Now, in a private session with a therapist, with the patient's consent? Sure.

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