Virtual Reality Exposure for Treating PTSD Due to Military Sexual Trauma

Abstract

Virtual reality exposure therapy (VRE) has been used in the treatment of combat-related PTSD since the late 1990s and was recently adapted to treat PTSD due to military sexual trauma (MST). With content specifically tailored to MST-related contexts, we present the case study of a military veteran who participated in the open clinical trial examining the feasibility of VRE in the treatment of MST-related PTSD (Loucks et al. 2019). We illustrate VRE's use in activating the trauma memory to facilitate therapeutic emotional processing across sessions and overall symptom reduction. The case study includes common challenges that may occur during VRE and relevant recommendations. The discussion will include lessons learned from the case study and the open clinical trial, recommendations for the flexible application of VRE, and the ongoing developments in the latest version of the VRE system, informed by feedback acquired from the clinicians and patients who experienced it in the initial clinical trial.