Virtual reality exposure treatment As treatment for her spider phobia, this woman wears a headset that allows her to walk through a virtual environment in which she confronts spiders, some of which are monstrously large. The screen in the background depicts the scene that she is currently seeing, but her view is three-dimensional. The fuzzy object held in front of her will add a tactile component to her spider experience; she will be asked to touch it with her real hand as she touches the virtual spider with her virtual hand.

Photo Stephen Dagadakis, copyright Hunter Hoffman, UW, www.vrpain.com