Imprint Helping Create New Treatement for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

Treating Battlefield PTSD
VR is expanding the capabilities of traditional Imaginal Exposure Therapy for PTSD. In conventional Imaginal Therapy the therapist guides the patient to recall, confront and then cope with memories of traumatic events and associated emotions. This approach faces challenges because it requires emotionally scarred individuals to immerse themselves in their most painful memories. Virtual worlds tailored to the themes and experiences of battlefield vets can compliment therapy by engaging the patient in a dynamic simulation of a traumatic event, helping them gain access to their memories of their own traumatic combat-related experience.

Imprint is teaming with leading psychologists in VR and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy including Dr. Hunter Hoffman, Dr. Sarah Miyahira and Dr. Ray Folen building custom simulations for the US Office of Navel Research, and the US Army. One example is Middle East World, which simulates an attack on a humvee patrol on the streets of Baghdad.

Virtual Reality Delivers High Levels of Engagement for Therapy
Imprint virtual worlds immerse the patient in a compelling, dynamic environment. Our unique experience developing PTSD applications enables Imprint to create the highly engaging environments required for therapeutic applications. Imprint is also collaborating with therapists to develop methods and tools which empower clinicians to customize the experience for individual patients.

Imprint created a realistic bus bombing simulation for In collaboration for Dr. Tamar Weiss (Haifa, Israel) for use with traumatized victems of actual terrorist attacks. This virtual world allows the therapist to control the intensity of the simulation as appropriate to the patient's level of stress. For example, the therapist can adjust the intensity of the explosion and associated sound effects to regulate emotional impact. Click here for more information and images of Imprint's Bus Bombing simulation.