Overcoming Stage Fright: A New Era in Treating Performance Anxiety

Imagine Sarah, a talented violist, standing backstage, her hands trembling as the crowd’s chatter fills the concert hall. The familiar pressure mounts – her heartbeat races, her breath quickens, and her mind cycles through “What if I fail?” The fear of judgment and the weight of expectation turn what should be a moment of joy into one of intense anxiety. Sarah is no stranger to this feeling; performance anxiety has become a recurring barrier, one she’s tried to overcome through practice and perseverance, yet it persists.

In treating musicians like Sarah, a new, integrated approach is making a profound impact: combining Virtual Reality (VR), biofeedback, and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). This powerful trio allows musicians to practice managing anxiety in controlled, lifelike scenarios.

1. Virtual Reality Exposure: Using VR, musicians can rehearse their performances in a realistic concert setting, facing simulated audiences, bright lights, and even applause. This gradual exposure allows them to confront their anxiety safely and repeatedly, building resilience over time.
2. Biofeedback: Through wearable sensors, musicians receive real-time data on physiological responses like heart rate and breath patterns. Biofeedback offers them insight into how their body reacts to stress, and more importantly, it teaches them how to control it. By seeing how techniques such as slow breathing impact their heart rate, musicians develop a sense of agency over their anxiety.
3. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT): CBT adds the final layer, addressing the thoughts and beliefs fueling performance anxiety. Musicians work on identifying negative thought patterns, learning to challenge and replace them with constructive ones. Combined with VR and biofeedback, CBT becomes even more effective, allowing musicians to directly apply these cognitive tools in the VR “performance” space.

This multifaceted approach empowers musicians to face their fears, break free from the grip of performance anxiety, and ultimately, rediscover the joy of performing. By merging cutting-edge technology with proven therapeutic methods, we’re opening doors to new possibilities in anxiety treatment. Musicians can now take control over their performance and feel supported as they reach new heights in their art.

Is performance anxiety affecting your life? Discover how VR, biofeedback, and CBT could be the pathway to performing with confidence. Reach out to learn more about this innovative approach.

Fear of Public Speaking  

It is likely that the most common social phobia is fear of public speaking. Fear of public speaking is the third most common psychiatric disorder and was listed by the Book of Lists as the #1 fear among Americans and an article published in the Wall Street Journal reported that “stage fright” afflicts 20 million people at some point during their lifetimes.

Virtual reality exposure therapy places the client in a computer-generated environment where they “experience” the various aspects of public speaking. The client wears a head-mounted display with small TV monitors and stereo earphones to receive both visual and auditory cues.

In this interactive virtual environment, participants can do role-playing across various scenarios, which may be followed by feedback and discussion with the therapist. Included in the VR world is a prepared written speech presented with scrolling text within a podium frame situated facing a virtual audience. However participants also have the option of making presentations or speeches prepared on their own. Response from the virtual audience can be modified by the therapist to be amicable (e.g., clapping or showing attention to speaker) or unsympathetic (e.g., bored or distracted) to varying degrees. The many options for audience response allows for multiple combinations and changes in conditions during each VR session. The therapist can role play as an audience member and asks questions to the presenter via a microphone. Real-time Bio-feedback provides the therapist with all of the patient’s vitals, including heart rate, respiration, skin conductance, temperature, electroencephalogram (EEG), and electrocardiogram (ECG). The optional head mount display (HMD) is equipped with a head tracker that detects the patient’s head rotations and position while navigating through the virtual world.

The Public Speaking virtual environment consists of a real video footage of a large (30 person) audience and a small (8 person) office meeting audience. The auditorium is equipped with a sliding curtain. The software enables the therapist to upload any type of document into the VR computer, which allows the patient to use any speech they choose during the therapy session. During the speech presentation, the speaker stands on a custom built platform behind an actual full size lectern equipped with an attached microphone. Participants can easily scroll through speech notes using the virtual puck, a cell-phone sized clicker. A job interview mode is also available.

For more information or to schedule an appointment, email us at frontoffice@vrphobia.com or call us at (858) 642-0267.