When the tornado first appeared on the horizon, residents of Joplin, Missouri, gathered at the front door and peered out the windows, hoping to catch a glimpse of the storm. “Growing up in this area gives you a sense that if a tornado hits, it’s your duty to go out and check it out,” said chief clinical officer of the Ozark Center, a hands-on behavioral health provider. said Dell Camp. across southeastern Missouri. “It’s not about treating tornadoes with respect, it’s about recognizing tornadoes for granted.”
Tornado torn with maximum EF-5 strength A possible Fujita-sized tornado, the most violent ever seen in the Joplin area. It crushed concrete walls and twisted cars and semi-trucks around tree trunks. The basement where people took refuge was laid bare when the house was torn from its foundation. “You’ve been stripped of what you thought we could control,” Camp said.
In total, the now infamous Joplin tornado killed 158 people. That was him in 2011. Nearly 12 years later, survivors are still suffering from the emotional anguish of the natural disaster. In the aftermath of the tornado, the camp has seen people suffer from anxiety, PTSD, substance abuse and depression. . Because they think the weather will be bad. Some are struggling to keep jobs,” Camp said.
It’s a familiar story.From Paradise Fire winter storm elliott, natural disasters caused by climate change are becoming more severe, more volatile and more frequent.More and more tornadoes like the one that hit Joplin lethal cluster, at a time when people least expect it. 2021, EF-4 Tornado It left a trail of destruction across Kentucky just a few weeks before Christmas—Out of tornado seasonPeople are struggling with the mental health effects of these events years after the news cycle has progressed.
The Ozark Center in southeastern Missouri has taken an innovative approach to helping survivors heal. It’s Virtual Reality Exposure Therapy (VRE). Use virtual reality to step back in time to a stormy night. Experts in fields ranging from psychology to climate change science say similar technologies are essential for adapting to a warmer, harsher planet. turn around things around.
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For the approximately 100 clients at the Ozark Center who have undergone VR exposure therapy, therapy begins in a suburban home with granite countertops and pine floors. The window overlooks a dark sky and heavy rain. Inside the virtual world, the graphics are clunky like something out of The Sims 2. But for tornado survivors, Camp said, it doesn’t matter. Mind takes over at some point. “
Psychologists first began using fear as a treatment in the 1950s, writes psychologist Jonathan Abramowitz in a book. Exposure therapy for anxietyFirst exposure therapy done IRL: If you have a fear of flying, a psychotherapist may be able to help you book flights. Fear of dogs?They may introduce you to a room full of prancing retrievers. Today the most common form of exposure therapy is imaginary— Psychologist Jeremy Bairenson writes in his book, Therapists tell us about traumatic events and fearful situations through storytelling. Experiences on Demand: What is Virtual Reality, How It Works, and What It Can Do.
But bringing fear to life isn’t always realistic. After all, a therapist cannot summon a storm. Narrative exposure therapy also has its drawbacks. between 30% and 40% Perhaps it’s because the imagination doesn’t compare to reality. Or maybe it’s because it’s hard for you to remember something that resists you actively thinking about it, so he said in the 1990s that psychologists were working on VR simulations to make these experiences feel real. has started development.You don’t have to have a therapy session on an airplane, in a room full of dogs, or in the middle of a tornado.
And survivors of natural disasters don’t have to re-experience that exact event to recreate it. It is often enough to activate that response and send them back to the scene of their trauma.A threatening event stimulates the amygdala, the region of the brain that identifies and processes threats, recognizes cues associated with the event, and responds as an imminent threat, even if harmless.
Samantha Gilgen, an Arkansas-based clinical psychologist who previously worked at the Ozark Center, said: I remember one client who asserted he saw a tornado when he peeked out the window of the Storm House, even though the VR simulation only involved rain and wind. “This shows how effective VR is in transporting people into their memories,” Gilgen said.
Scientists don’t fully understand how exposure therapy works. The answer may have to do with the brain’s ability to override the amygdala’s automatic responses to “dangerous” stimuli. Normally, the brain’s decision-making center, the prefrontal cortex, tells the amygdala when it’s interpreting danger when it’s not. Like when the storm it’s reacting to is virtual not real. But after a life-threatening event, the amygdala and prefrontal cortex can stop talking to each other, says a clinical psychologist at the University of Vermont researching techniques to help victims of traumatic events such as VR. says Matthew Price. “Mental breaks are a form of exhaustion,” Price said.
The theory behind exposure therapy is that experiencing the fearful stimulus enough times causes the prefrontal cortex to start associating the stimulus (clattering windows, heavy rain) with something safe. Not dangerous, Price said. Then you can start letting your amygdala know that it’s okay to stay calm.
The therapy seems to work just as well when it comes to helping people recover from trauma. 2018udy was published in the journal behavioral and cognitive psychotherapy, sScientists randomly divided 36 adults who fear storms into two groups. Had a session of Progressive Muscle Relaxation. Average fear among treated adults decreased from 52 to 14 on a scale of 1 to 100. Mean fear decreased to only 42 in the progressive muscle relaxation group. Fear score of 100 just sitting in the living room of the VR simulation – “Biggest fear imaginable” –After several months of treatment, up to 20 out of 100, It’s comparable to the jitters before the big date.
Virtual reality can not only help us recover from the effects of climate change. Experts say it could act as a kind of preventative measure, helping us to expose and adapt to the effects of climate change before they occur.
Chris Field, a climate scientist at Stanford University, recently started thinking about developing VR simulations to help people deal with and adapt to the constant stress of California wildfires. Field envisions a kind of game where people can learn about wildfires and make the necessary decisions to adapt to escalating wildfires. He sees his VR as more than just a tool to ease people’s anxiety. in response to past experiences But to help people adapt and build resilience uncertain future.
Stephen Shepherd, professor of landscape planning at the University of British Columbia, said: We developed a similar tool and debuted it at a school in Vancouver.His game, Delta II, simulated sea level rise Located in the Delta suburb of Vancouver.Players could wander familiar streets flooded with oceanParticipate in community decision-making, such as whether to withdraw from a particular area or raise an offshore embankment. The kids who played the game never quit in disappointment. In contrast, they reported increased ownership to do something about climate change. One classroom was prompted to give a presentation at city council, calling on local leaders to address the climate emergency.
“I think virtual reality will be a cathartic release,” he said. “The power of visuals is to take people into their own future. They feel they have agency.”
What makes VR exposure therapy so effective for Joplin t survivors is its agency.Ornado. in a changing world, VR has the potential to bring about change, as individuals have little control how we are related to both past experience and something that hasn’t happened yet.
Isobel Whitcomb is a science and environmental journalist based in Portland, Oregon. Their work covering drought, conservation, social justice and more can be found on Sierra, ATMOS Magazine, Slate and at: IsobelWhitcomb.com on Twitter @Isobel Whitcomb.
