Abstract
Evidence suggests individuals in substance-use treatment experience high relapse rates upon discharge due to repeated exposure to sensory-based reminders of their addiction. Thus, when a person in recovery is exposed to stressful triggers, changing the immediate sensory environment may help mitigate relapse risk. This proof-of-concept study deployed 27 customized virtual reality (VR) simulations that included drug triggers and “recovery cues” presented in three different VR scenarios to measure the impact of recovery cues on neurophysiological outcomes. Each participant (N = 12) experienced two 4-min. simulations (24 total simulations) featuring drug-related, non-drug related stressor cues, followed by recovery cues. Change was measured by both electroencephalography (EEG) and subjective interview prompts, with results offering preliminary support that recovery cue exposure helps regulate response to substance stimuli.
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