Audio and visual desensitisation in VR

The question

Big question today. Can we gently retrain sensitivity to busy places? You're with Virtual Reality Rehabilitation Videos, on virtualrealityrehabilitation.com.

Meet the audio and visual desensitisation in VR

After brain injury or with some conditions, busy visual scenes and noise can be exhausting. VR lets the therapist set the scene from clear to cluttered, and sound from silence to several sources in different rooms, and then step up gradually.

How it runs

Here's the plan. First, start with a clear, quiet environment. Next, add one visual or audio element at a time. Then, increase clutter or sound sources as tolerance grows. Finally, combine with simple tasks to keep it functional.

Strengths and limits

Why do it in VR at all? Fine-grained, repeatable control of stimulation. Realistic sound from different directions. Now, the limits. Must be paced carefully to avoid symptom flare-ups.

What to measure

What does the data tell us? Tolerance level reached: the main progress marker. Task performance at each level: function under load. Physiological signals: stress responses. Week one, a single radio in the next room is too much. Week six, the patient tidies a virtual kitchen with music playing in two rooms.

The takeaway

Your takeaway: task performance at each level and its neighbours tell you how the task was done, not just how fast. Script, chapters and sources are all on this page.