Claustrophobia
and virtual reality
According to the American Psychiatric Association, claustrophobia is the fear of being enclosed in small spaces or the feeling of enclosure and/or the fear of not being able to flee. Symptoms are similar to those experienced in a panic Virtual Claustrophobia and virtual reality attack or similar manifestations (dizziness, falls, vomiting, cardiac discomfort, etc). As a consequence, the person tries to avoid these situations limiting their daily lives. With reference to the differential diagnosis, it is important to evaluate (Rachman, S., & Taylor, S.,1993), the fear of immobility and/or running out of breath, or in other words, the oxygen in the space where the person is located runs out (e.g an elevator).
Furthermore, cognitive behavioral therapy relies upon vast observational evidence in terms of evaluating and intervening in this type of psychopathology (Öst, L.-G., et al., 1982; McIsaac, H.K. et al., 1998; Öst, L.-G., et al., 2001 y Thorpe, S. et al. 2008). Nonetheless, ongoing fundamental research continues (Stella F.et al., 2011) seeking explanations as to what the causes of claustrophobia may be.
Virtual reality is an effective alternative tool to the traditional techniques used in the treatment of emotional disorders, including claustrophobia (Botella, C. et al. 1998; Botella, C. et al., 2000; M Krijn et al., 2004; Botella et al., 2012). Virtual reality allows standardization and control over the parameters in exposure sessions. Moreover, it is particularly useful for repeating the exposure to feared situations as many times as needed, providing flexibility and customized therapeutic procedures.
Psious’ environments facilitate the use of multiple psychological intervention techniques: exposure, cognitive reconstruction, systematic desensitization, social skills training… in order to achieve better results, use the most suitable technique that best suits the patient’s characteristics and base your intervention on those techniques with more empirical support.