(NewsNation) — Virtual reality, or VR, is transforming how people view the world. For veterans, it has become a crucial tool for coping with post-traumatic stress disorder.
With prolonged exposure, veterans can learn skills to calm physical PTSD symptoms and help them find peace.
If you or someone you know needs help, resources or someone to talk to, you can find it at the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline website or by calling 1-800-273-8255. People are available to talk to 24×7.
Veteran Affairs says 7% — equivalent to more than one million veterans — experience PTSD. Some studies say that number could be as high as 30% of veterans.
The Wounded Warrior Project says as many as three in four warriors it has surveyed say they experience symptoms of PTSD.
Many of these veterans struggle with PTSD for years and some struggle quietly alone. This can lead veterans to even darker places, potentially leading to addiction, panic attacks and depression.
Retired U.S. Army Command Sgt. Maj. Tonya Oxendine found herself in this position, struggling with PTSD symptoms that almost influenced her to drive off a bridge. Oxendine sought help, and with the help of VR, she learned the skills she needed to cope with her symptoms.
“I was on the brink of committing suicide,” Oxendine said.
Now, Oxendine said she is “winning at life.”
Oxendine said virtual reality helped her reframe her way of thinking about her past trauma. She explained that it helped her address and expose her trauma, giving her a chance to confront it in a safe environment.
“It helped me learn how to cope with the anxiety and reframe my mind, my way of thinking, about the traumatic events,” Oxendine said. “Overall, the process with virtual reality helped quiet my nervous system, it helped quiet my mind.”
She continued, “I live a wonderful life and it’s because of that, it’s because of the Wounded Warrior Project, that I get to live a wonderful life now.”
Oxendine said she was intimidated to begin the treatment, but she was able to get through it with the support and encouragement from the organization.
Dr. Erin Fletcher, the warrior care network director at Wounded Warrior Project, said hundreds of veterans now have access to this type of effective treatment.
“We know that virtual reality, coupled with prolonged exposure, can provide almost immediate improvements in your symptoms, which is incredibly hopeful,” Fletcher said.
The Wounded Warrior Project has a resource center full of trained teammates ready to help guide veterans through the healing process. The veteran seeking help doesn’t need to know what to do or what the next step is, they just have to ask for help and someone will be there to guide them down the right path, Fletcher explained.
“They come into our program, and they go through an assessment. Then they’re potentially matched with virtual reality and prolonged exposure to really begin to take the power back from those incredibly painful memories that they have from their traumatic experience,” Fletcher said.
She explained that prolonged exposure to virtual reality provides a safe, caring and open environment for veterans to address their PTSD.
Fletcher said Oxendine experienced a lot of avoidance before she sought help with her symptoms. Oxendine didn’t want to think or talk about what had happened to her. So, she had to learn how to quit habits of avoiding her trauma and replace them with helpful tools on how to address those memories.
“You can’t fail when you have people — after you have fallen down and been knocked out — you can’t fail when they are right there in your corner, standing right there with you, picking you up,” Oxendine said. “I just had to continue to push and deal with it and to come out on the other side.”