VA video<\/a>, a Veteran meets with his primary care provider to talk about how anxiety may be affecting his blood pressure. Instead of only adjusting medications, the provider suggests trying something new: a guided VR session designed to promote calm breathing and relaxation.<\/p>\nWearing a VR headset, the Veteran is transported to a peaceful, virtual setting where guided prompts help slow his breathing and focus his thoughts.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt actually helps calm my nervous system,\u201d the Veteran says in the video. \u201cWhen I put the headset on, it\u2019s like I\u2019m in another world and that gives me a chance to reset.\u201d<\/p>\n
A new tool in the exam room<\/p>\n
Primary care providers say VR offers another way to support Veterans during routine visits. The immersive experience can help Veterans practice relaxation techniques in real time, right in the clinic.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have more tools now to help our Veterans feel grounded and supported,\u201d a VA primary care provider shares in the video. \u201cWhen we combine VR with traditional care, we see stronger engagement from patients.\u201d<\/p>\n
VR does not replace medication or therapy. Instead, it adds another layer of support. For some Veterans, learning stress-management skills in a virtual environment makes it easier to use those skills at home.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt doesn\u2019t take away everything,\u201d the Veteran reflects, \u201cbut it gives me space to breathe.\u201d<\/p>\n
Supporting Whole Health<\/p>\n
VA\u2019s Whole Health approach focuses on both physical and mental well-being. Stress and anxiety can affect many areas of health, including sleep, blood pressure, and chronic pain. By offering VR as part of a care plan, providers help Veterans build skills to better manage those challenges.<\/p>\n
The goal is simple: give Veterans practical tools that support healing, inside and outside the clinic.<\/p>\n
As technology continues to evolve, providers across VA are exploring new ways to combine innovation with compassionate care, helping Veterans feel supported every step of the way. VR may soon become a routine part of Veteran healthcare, offering immersive support where traditional methods sometimes fall short.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Artificial intelligence (AI) supports Veterans\u2019 whole health \u00a0\u00a0 Primary care providers across the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":770500,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[64,63,137,514,515,238,240],"class_list":["post-770499","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-mental-health","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-health","tag-mental-health","tag-mentalhealth","tag-virtual-reality","tag-vr"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/770499","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=770499"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/770499\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/770500"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=770499"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=770499"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=770499"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}