Biofeedback & VR Therapy Combined – New Opportunities in Exposure Therapy
Innovative Combination: Biofeedback Meets VR Therapy
The central goal of biofeedback is to make physical changes visible. When combined with modern VR therapy – particularly in VR exposures – entirely new possibilities arise in the psychotherapeutic context. This is because physical changes occur especially quickly during the intense emotional activation of the VR experience. It creates measurable comparison and target values – an exciting process for both therapists and patients.
Subjective Perception Objectively Enhanced
The self-assessment of patients – for example, on scales from zero to ten – remains an important tool in psychotherapy. The goal is not to replace this with biofeedback, but to complement it meaningfully. The objective measurement data provides an additional layer that remains independent of the patient’s thoughts, uncertainties, or social influences.
Especially in patients with addiction, a limited awareness of their body can make self-assessment more difficult. Anxiety patients, on the other hand, may try to meet the expectations of the therapy team. The objective biofeedback measurement largely eliminates such distortions.
Biofeedback data directly integrated into the VR Coach smart system.
While biofeedback systems can generally be used separately from VR therapy, in the VR Coach smart system, the integration is seamless: A compact sensor transmits the data live into the therapist software, directly next to the VR headset’s live view. This makes it immediately visible what the patient is experiencing and how the body is responding to specific VR stimuli.
Within the software, notes can also be directly added for specific reactions. These are included in the later data export and help to precisely categorize individual reactions during the course of therapy.
Real-time biofeedback in the VR headset
The measured values – such as skin conductance, fingertip temperature, or heart rate – can optionally be displayed directly in the VR headset as a bar graph. Patients can see in real-time how their body responds to specific situations. It also becomes clear whether and how quickly relaxation exercises take effect during stressful moments.
This real-time visualization is particularly helpful for therapeutic process support. It allows for immediate responses to changes and enables personalized adjustments to the exposure.
Seamless documentation and easy evaluation
All measurement data can be exported and are automatically saved in an Excel file. The information can then be further processed, charts can be created, and notes can be reviewed. This allows clear development trends to be identified after several sessions, for example:
- Is there a measurable reduction in skin conductance in response to certain stimuli?
- Is the patient able to achieve comparable values to neutral stimuli through learned coping strategies in response to challenging stimuli?
This structured documentation supports evidence-based psychotherapeutic work.
Use biofeedback on the go – with the mobile app.
With the mobile biofeedback app, the sensor can also be used on the go – ideal for flexible therapy support.
The biofeedback data from the sensor is not only available in the practice. Optionally, it can also be recorded via a free smartphone app. This allows for use during in vivo exposure in everyday life, for example, or the sensor can be given to patients to accompany relaxation exercises at home.
Unique in the German-speaking region
The VR Coach smart system is currently the only VR therapy system in the German-speaking region that directly integrates a biofeedback sensor, making it versatile in its use – in the practice, during exposure, and on the go.
We are happy if you are interested in learning more about our system – we would be glad to send you additional information.
If you are interested in this VR system, please send us an inquiry here
