#121 Can virtual reality help to treat hoarding disorder? With Dr Hannah Raila

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In today's episode, I look at the intriguing use of virtual reality in treating hoarding disorder with our guest, Dr. Hannah Raila. Dr. Raila, a psychology researcher at UC Santa Cruz, shares her insights on how virtual reality can help individuals desensitise to distress and practice discarding virtual possessions. She discusses the immersive nature of the VR experience, the potential for the technology to attract more male research participants, and so much more. Join us as we explore the innovative possibilities of virtual reality in the treatment of hoarding disorder.

• Novel treatment for hoarding using virtual reality
• VR sessions focus on virtual discarding practice
• Virtual reality to create distress for phobia treatment
• Practice desensitization to discard and declutter effectively
• Novel approach due to existing treatments not working for everyone
• Study methodology including recruiting participants with hoarding disorder for buried in treasures group and virtual reality sessions
• Creating a virtual world of participants' rooms and practicing discarding items in a psychologically immersive environment
• New treatments for hoarding needed, virtual reality tested for hoarding, based on successful use in anxiety and PTSD
• In-home visits helpful for reducing clutter but often not feasible
• In VR therapy, practice discarding virtual objects to desensitise to distress
• Virtual exposure therapy principle: Desensitise to distress by simulating real experiences
• There is a debate about hoarding disorder prevalence and gender participation in research and treatment. More women seek treatment, but the disorder may be even across genders
• The Stanford lab's community presence may influence gender participation
• Testing novel intervention with existing treatments, attracting more patients, need for RCT before nationwide administration
• Practice desensitisation by rating distress, discarding and tracking feelings to tolerate and declutter home
• Preparing new study on contamination fears for OCD at UC Santa Cruz lab
• Description of the virtual donation box, recycling, and trash bin in VR sessions
• Facilitating repeated rehearsal of discarding virtual possessions for real-life application
• Reported improvement in hoarding symptoms due to VR treatment
• Time and technology challenges in programming and designing virtual worlds for the intervention
• Practical Applications and Takeaways
• Monitoring and tracking distress levels when discarding items
• Applying desensitisation without a virtual space
• Starting with easy-to-discard items and gradually progressing to more difficult ones
• Potential of virtual reality to help people move up the ladder of difficulty in discarding
• Dr. Raila's plans to continue virtual reality work
• Conducting a study on difficulty discarding in the normative range

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