A study published in the British Journal Psychiatry Open suggests that virtual reality therapy (VRT) can help alleviate symptoms of depression. With the help of computer generated images of themselves, patients, who participated in the research, experienced a boost in self-compassion and criticized themselves less. They also exhibited feelings of general contentment.

The study was conducted by a team of computer scientists and psychologists from the University College London and University of Barcelona. They looked into 15 patients from ages 23 to 61, who were clinically diagnosed with depression. These patients were given virtual reality headsets that showed a life-size version of themselves known as avatars that moved the same way as they did, Yahoo! reported.

The avatars were immersed in a particular virtual scenario involving a distressed child. After showing compassion and comfort, the patients then had a role reversal as they embodied the virtual child and experienced compassion and comfort themselves. The situation lasted ten minutes and the sessions were repeated three times a week over the course of the experiment.

An evaluation was conducted after a month and nine of the participants reported that they had less symptoms of depression. "Several patients described how their experience had changed their response to real-life situations in which they would previously have been self-critical," said study lead Professor Chris Brewin via UCL News.

"In this study, by comforting the child and then hearing their own words back, patients are indirectly giving themselves compassion," Brewin further said. "The aim was to teach patients to be more compassionate towards themselves and less self-critical, and we saw promising results."

While the scope of the study is small and limited, researchers are hoping to further develop virtual reality therapy as a coping mechanism technique for depressed people. A larger clinical trial will be conducted to confirm its effectiveness but, so far, the results of the latest study shows promise.

The concept behind virtual reality therapy has been around since the early 90s. Psychologists have been using this to treat patients with phobias, severe behavioral disorders or those suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, cited the American Psychological Association. Sessions usually don't come cheap and, apart from the cost, this also requires time commitment since the sessions don't happen just once.

However, there has been a breakthrough for the researchers. "The recent marketing of low-cost home virtual reality systems means that methods such as this could potentially be part of every home and be used on a widespread basis," said study co-author. Professor Mel Slater.