A patient walks on a treadmill while wearing a virtual reality headset, guided by a therapist who helps them process traumatic memories. This is 3MDR—Multi-Modal Motion-Assisted Memory Desensitization and Reconsolidation—a novel psychotherapy that combines exposure therapy, virtual reality, and physical movement. Trials with military veterans show the treatment is effective, with benefits lasting at least 12 months. But its effects on the civilian brain remain largely unknown, and researchers do not yet understand how it works neurologically. This project brings together an international, multidisciplinary team to study whether 3MDR can help public service workers—emergency department staff, social workers, paramedics—who also face repeated trauma on the job. The team will also assess how well the therapy performs in real-world clinics serving diverse clients, rather than in tightly controlled research settings. If successful, this work could expand access to a ground-breaking trauma treatment for millions of people who currently lack effective options, moving 3MDR from promising trials into routine mental health care.
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Multi-Modal Motion-Assisted Memory Desensitization and Reconsolidation (3MDR) is a novel exposure-based psychotherapy for treating psychological trauma. It is delivered in a virtual reality environment by a trained therapist while a person walks on a treadmill. Patients select images and music for use in 6-10 treatment sessions. Trials indicate 3MDR is very effective with military members and veterans, with benefits lasting at least 12 months. Benefits of 3MDR for the civilian population is yet largely unknown and we still know very little about the effects it has on the brain. We believe that 3MDR would be useful for public service workers who may also have been exposed to traumatic situations, such as emergency department staff, social workers and paramedics. While a small number of Alberta-based clinics are currently delivering 3MDR in a clinical research context, we need to learn more about how well it will work in real world clinics who serve a diversity of clients. We will bring together an international multi-disciplinary group of experts with experience of delivering 3MDR, understanding and evaluating healthcare programmes with emergency service workers, and considerable experience of bringing the voice of the patient into research. Since trials of this psychotherapy have been extremely promising, we would like to conduct further necessary research so that this ground-breaking approach can be made available to as many people as possible who are suffering from the debilitating effects of trauma.
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