"One day on a cruise ship we were having fun with our kids in the VR lounge. After all the fun (meaning "safe" for me)) environments were explored, my family bet me to try an environment where I had to walk on a metal rod attached to the rooftop of a New York skyscraper to save a kitty. I have a severe fear of bridges, but I decided to challenge myself anyways. 

With every step I made on that rod, I was more and more terrified. But at the same time, I was fascinated by how my brain and my body reacted – I felt the same terror and physical sensations as I had on every big bridge I ever tried to conquer to fight my phobia. Not only I couldn’t complete even half of the task, I had to be literally caried out of the room because my legs felt paralyzed and I could not walk. Although my body cancelled on me, that little hungry nerd in me was thinking: "Wow, what an amazing exposure that was! I can use it in therapy for treatment of phobias where in-vivo exposure is not possible or not safe!" This idea hadn’t left my mind until the end of our trip.

When we came back to Canada, I started my research thinking there is no way nobody came up with the idea of using VR in mental health before. Sure enough, I found  an evidence-based platform for mental health professionals that was developed in a health hub in Barcelona, Spain. I am a licenced therapist and “Do no harm” is my main priority. No matter how exited I was, I knew I must make sure I study all the research and know all the pro`s and con`s of using VR in psychotherapy. When I was satisfied with the evidence, I got in touch with the creators of Amelia and brought it to Canada. I received certified training in Virtual Reality Exposure Therapy (VRET) and continuing improving my competency through the peer discussions, clinical support, and supervision."

- Yuliya Levina, Founder of the Barrie Anxiety Clinic

Psychotherapist with OCSWSSW, VRET Therapist