In development
Virtual Reality at Gecko House
Virtual reality enables people to experience some of the fear without the situation being real. It uses many of the techniques of exposure therapy but the exposure is virtual. For some people this can be a manageable stepping stone to overcoming their fear.
Needle phobia treatment will be available for bookings in November 2026. It is a complete program and is useful if you have a fear of needles or injections.
Contamination fear and OCD
Exposure and response prevention is the standard psychological treatment for obsessive compulsive disorder. It involves approaching what sets off the obsession while not performing the compulsion that usually follows.
A built environment makes that encounter easier to arrange. It can be designed precisely, repeated without having to find the same situation twice, and made harder or easier a step at a time. The program is for adults and runs on a standalone headset.
Needle and blood phobia
Fear of needles and blood keeps people away from blood tests, vaccinations, dental work and surgery. It differs from other phobias in one respect that matters for treatment: many people faint, because blood pressure drops rather than rises.
Treatment therefore pairs graded exposure with applied tension, a technique of deliberately tensing the muscles to keep blood pressure up. The program under development works through a blood test from arrival to aftercare.
If you are interested
You are welcome to get in touch if you would like to hear when any of this becomes available, or if you are a clinician or employment provider who would like to talk it through. The established treatments these programs are built on, including exposure and response prevention for OCD, are available now in the ordinary way.
Phone: 0416 157 751
Please leave a message if we cannot answer — we return all calls within one business day.