Aug 5 2019
This Anxiety Disorder Makes People Afraid of Vomit

http://www.health.com/anxiety/emetophobia

Emetophobia is very real—and can make life extremely challenging.

SARAH KLEIN

June 21, 2018

For as long as she can remember, Rachel has been afraid of vomit. And not just afraid in the way that everyone finds vomit unpleasant. She has a diagnosable fear of vomiting known as emetophobia.

“The first moment my parents and I really realized I had a more significant reaction than most people to vomit was when I was very young,” she says. “We were driving through a Christmas light show. The finale was a tunnel of flashing lights, and my little cousin was sick next to me in the car. I started panicking, and I even opened the car door while we were still driving in an attempt to get away from the situation as quickly as possible.”

Years of vomit anxiety followed, whether she was sick herself, saw someone else who was ill, or even saw vomit on the ground or on TV. “While some people might say, ‘ew, gross,’ but then move on with their lives, the scene replays in my head for a long time after,” she says.

Fear is totally normal, but a phobia—of vomit, flying, heights, snakes, and more—is problematic. “A phobia is a diagnosable disorder that impacts people’s lives negatively,” says clinical psychologist Brenda K. Wiederhold, PhD, MBA, president of the Virtual Reality Medical Center in California, where she treats people with anxiety disorders using VR.

To read the full article, please visit:  http://www.health.com/anxiety/emetophobia

Contact Virtual Reality Medical Center at frontoffice@vrphobia.com to schedule an appointment.

 

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Aug 4 2019
Virtual Reality Expands to Phobia and PTSD Therapy

http://www.abc10.com/news/local/virtual-reality-expanding-in-phobia-and-ptsd-therapy-education-gaming/394991048

Wiederhold’s clinic already uses the technology for medical therapy to help patients deal with PTSD, anxiety, phobias (like fear of flying), pain during medical procedures and chronic pain. She predicts more clinics using VR will pop-up in California and across the country within the near future.

 

 

 

 

Contact Information:

Virtual Reality Medical Center

9834 Genesee Avenue, Suite 427

La Jolla, California USA

frontoffice @ vrphobia.com

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May 20 2019
Virtual Reality Therapy for Fear of Spiders

If you are afraid of spiders, then you are not alone. In fact, approximately 55% of women and 18% of men in the United States suffer from arachnophobia, which is the fear of spiders. Virtual Reality Therapy may be able to help you overcome that fear!

Although not everyone who dislikes spiders has the actual phobia, there are some symptoms to watch out for. If you freeze or run away if you see a spider, refuse to go into a room that may have a spider, and if you will not go camping, hiking, or do any other outdoor activities you used to enjoy for fear of seeing a spider, you may have arachnophobia.

According to licensed clinical psychologist Dr. Brenda K. Wiederhold, PhD, MBA, President of the Virtual Reality Medical Center (VRMC) in La Jolla, California, “A phobia is a diagnosable disorder that impacts your life negatively.” But don’t worry, there are treatments that can help. Virtual Reality (VR) exposure therapy helps the sufferer desensitize to the stimuli that causes their phobia. For example, those who have arachnophobia may be exposed to VR scenarios of spiders in a non-threatening way to gradually decrease the fear at the patient’s own individual pace.

Virtual Reality therapy exposes you to the scenarios in the safety and comfort of the therapist’s office. Licensed clinical psychologist Dr. Brenda K. Wiederhold, PhD, MBA, has been practicing Virtual Reality (VR) therapy for over 2 decades. She completed the first randomized controlled clinical trial in 1996 using Virtual Reality and biofeedback to treat patients with phobias.  And the VRMC has been successfully performing VR therapy now for 23 years!   With a new set of skills on how to react differently and think differently about spiders, followed by gradual exposure through VR, you can be enjoying that camping trip in no time!

Most individuals with a specific phobia require on average one clinical intake session and 10 treatment sessions.  If you live in the San Diego area, you can choose to come once a week or twice a week.  If you are coming from out of the area, we can accommodate “condensed treatment” where you will experience one VR session per day, each day, Monday-Friday.

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May 13 2019
Virtual Reality Therapy for Claustrophobia

Approximately 5% of Americans have the fear of small spaces, or claustrophobia. This fear is actually a specific phobia according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual 5 (DSM-5).

Those who suffer from this disorder are afraid of being closed in or have a fear of not being able to get away that can cause a panic attack when getting on an elevator or an airplane. When you feel like you cannot get away if needed, have an excessive fear of being locked in, or go out of your way to avoid being in a small room or any confined space, these are some of the signs of claustrophobia.

However, this specific phobia is treatable and within a few short weeks, you can be free of the fear of small enclosed spaces. With Virtual Reality therapy, you will be gradually exposed to small spaces such as rooms without windows, hallways, tunnels, elevators, and even closets in small increments, at your own individualized pace. So the next time you’re set to visit your friend who lives on the 27th floor, maybe you will be able to take that elevator!

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May 6 2019
Virtual Reality Therapy for Fear of Public Speaking

Let Virtual Reality help you overcome your Fear of Public Speaking!

Although it seems like all of our present day business interactions can be done online, sometimes we may still find we need to give a presentation. The fear of public speaking, speech anxiety, or glossophobia, is the third most common anxiety disorder in the United States and affects more than 20 million Americans at some point. That is about 25% of the population. Whether you are a businessperson or student, homemaker or doctor, a warehouse worker or an attorney, one day you will likely need to speak in front of a large group of people.

Being a confident public speaker can help you advance your career, enhance your relationships with others, or help you to achieve a better grade in school. However, if you feel extreme fear at the thought of talking to a group or get dizzy and nauseous when you have to go on stage, you may have glossophobia and need treatment.

Dr. Brenda K. Wiederhold, PhD, MBA, a licensed clinical psychologist and President of the Virtual Reality Medical Center in La Jolla, California, has been treating fear of public speaking and other specific phobias and anxiety disorders successfully with Virtual Reality therapy for over 2 decades. By exposing you to various public speaking scenarios in the virtual world, at your own individual pace, you can become less fearful and more self-confident in previously anxiety-provoking situations.

With a new set of skills on how to react differently and think differently about public speaking, followed by gradual exposure through VR, you can be enjoying those presentations in no time!  Most individuals with a specific phobia require on average one clinical intake session and 10 treatment sessions.  If you live in the San Diego area, you can choose to come once a week or twice a week.  If you are coming from out of the area, we can accommodate “condensed treatment” where you will experience one VR session per day, each day, Monday-Friday.

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Apr 29 2019
Virtual Reality Therapy for Fear of Heights

If you are afraid of heights, you are certainly not alone. In fact, acrophobia, or the fear of heights, is one of the most common phobias, with one-third of the population suffering from this anxiety disorder. Virtual Reality treatment may be the answer you’ve been looking for to get you over your fear!

And while some experts claim that it is a learned response while others believe it is hereditary, none of that matters if you are the one suffering from this debilitating phobia. Those who have a fear of heights may experience nausea, dizziness, vertigo (a spinning or moving sensation), rapid heartbeat, sweating, shortness of breath, and extreme fear when faced with situations involving heights.

You may go to extreme lengths to avoid heights and this is sometimes not feasible. For example, what if your work is on the 25th floor and has huge floor-length windows? Does that mean you cannot work there?

Not according to Dr. Brenda K. Wiederhold, PhD, MBA, President of the Virtual Reality Medical Center (VRMC) in La Jolla, California. VRMC has been providing Virtual Reality therapy for over 2 decades and has had great success in treating many types of phobias and fears. By gradually introducing you to situations such as a glass elevator, bridges, and high buildings through virtual reality, you can be desensitized on your own terms and in your own time.  Learning how to think differently and behave differently, you’re able to practice those new skills in VR.

Most individuals with a specific phobia require on average one clinical intake session and 10 treatment sessions.  If you live in the San Diego area, you can choose to come once a week or twice a week.  If you are coming from out of the area, we can accommodate “condensed treatment” where you will experience one VR session per day, each day, Monday-Friday.

 

 

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