Suicide is a pressing concern worldwide that calls for ground-breaking solutions. A joint team from the Black Dog Institute and UNSW is addressing this by using virtual reality training to enhance positive future thinking and uplift mood, providing a new approach to suicide prevention.
The ‘Edge of the Present’ is based on the idea that depression and suicidal ideation are often associated with negative imagery. This immersive virtual reality experience promotes positive imagery, stimulating an engaging environment that improves future thinking skills and helps to create a positive mood.
Participants start in a stark, white room and interact with physical objects within the virtual reality setting. As they make choices and engage with the environment, they receive rewarding, uplifting sensory experiences. This could range from feeling the simulated breeze on their face to being instantaneously transported to a serene, natural landscape.
Initial trials of this VR experience have shown encouraging effects. Participants reported notable increases in positive mood and significant decreases in feelings of hopelessness. Testimonies from people who engaged with the virtual reality training experience have spoken volumes about its potential benefits. One participant with generalised anxiety disorder shared, “Ten minutes in that peaceful landscape, and you feel like it will be OK.”
The data from the pilot study of this virtual reality experience echoed these responses. The results showed a significant increase in positive mood and wellbeing after using it, and a decrease in feelings of hopelessness and negative mood.
Thanks to an innovation grant from Suicide Prevention Australia, the ‘Edge of the Present’ installation project was exhibited in Brisbane, in partnership with Metro South Health, and will further test its potential as a suicide prevention tool using virtual reality.
The project’s scope isn’t confined to individuals with suicidal thoughts. It also aims to serve as a respite for patients in acute care settings, like psychiatric emergency departments, where the environments are often bare and unengaging. By transforming these spaces with an immersive, mood-lifting experience, virtual reality training through ‘Edge of the Present’ could dramatically alter the care environment.
‘Edge of the Present’ represents a significant step forward in using technology like virtual reality training for mental health care. It extends beyond traditional interventions by offering users an engaging and enjoyable experience, more akin to a game or an artwork than a typical medical intervention.
The use of virtual reality in suicide prevention can pave the way for empathetic, innovative, and patient-centred care. The researchers hope that it could serve as a crucial tool to destigmatise mental health concerns and make treatment more accessible and appealing to those in need.
Stay tuned for more developments as this exciting virtual reality continues to evolve and make strides in suicide prevention.
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Explore the innovative use of virtual reality training in suicide prevention. This immersive experience fosters positive imagery and future thinking, offering a ground-breaking approach to mental health care.
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