Virtual Reality With Real Health Outcomes

TEDMED – Firsthand has helped pioneer VR as a digital therapeutic for pain and rehab, mental health, and promoting healthy lifestyles. Howard Rose, co-founder of Firsthand Technology, gives an enlightening overview of virtual reality’s history and enormous potential to improve health and wellness.

More on research and clinical evidence on our Research Page.

Video time: 5:00 minutes   Watch on TEDMED

How VR Hacks the Brain to Make You Better

Functional MRI scans show what happens in the brain when we use VR to control pain. These fMRI images reveal significant reduction in pain related brain activity while using VR. Participants using VR also reported feeling less pain during the study, which corroborates the fMRI results.

Virtual Reality is a full-body, sensory experience that taps into our ability to perform at our hightest level.  The Power of VR derives from it’s unique aspects of Immersion, Interaction, Multisensory Experience, and Mental Focus. 

White Hat Hacking Our Brains

The brain scans above illustrate how virtual experiences can have profound affects on the brain. Firsthand co-founder, Ari Hollander, explores the implications for VR as an emerging tool to “White Hat” hack our cortex and senses – to help us overcome injury and illness in ways never before possible.

The Future of Fun: MIT Enterprise Forum