For 27 years, Vibeke Andersen heard voices telling her she was worthless. The 53-year-old, diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia, endured repeated hospitalizations as the voices dictated her actions and sowed distrust even in her family. “They told me that I was not worth living as a human being. Nobody cared about me,” Andersen told Euronews Health.
In 2020, Andersen joined an experimental treatment that required confronting her hallucinations directly. Instead of distancing herself from the voices, therapists guided her into a virtual reality (VR) environment where her dominant auditory hallucination was personified as an avatar. Using voice-transformation software, therapists engaged in simulated dialogues with the avatar, allowing Andersen to actively challenge and reclaim control over the voices.
During the treatment, Andersen faced intense emotional and psychological strain. By her fourth or fifth session, her therapists considered discontinuing the program. “They told me that I better drop off this treatment,” she recalled. “I was still stubborn and I thought, ‘No way. I’m going to do this treatment to the end.'” Eventually, Andersen channeled her frustration into a cathartic moment in a forested VR environment, shouting, “F**k off. I don’t want these voices anymore. They had to get out of my life.”
The trial, part of the CHALLENGE project led by Copenhagen University Hospital and the VIRTU Research Group, involved 270 participants with persistent auditory hallucinations. Those receiving VR therapy underwent seven sessions, while control groups received standard care. Published in The Lancet Psychiatry in 2025, the study revealed significant reductions in hallucination severity and frequency among VR participants, extending benefits into 24-week follow-ups. Lead researcher Louise Birkedal Glenthøj noted that externalizing symptoms through VR—making internal experiences tangible—empowers patients to regain agency over their mental health.
Today, VR therapies developed by the VIRTU program are being integrated into Denmark’s psychiatric care, with plans to expand research into psychosis, eating disorders, social anxiety, autism, and depression. “We can achieve meaningful change through brief interventions,” Glenthøj emphasized. While the approach may overwhelm some individuals, therapists adapt session pacing to manage anxiety responses, ensuring the treatment remains “safe and tolerable.”
Andersen’s breakthrough came during her final session, when the voice vanished entirely. “I came to my last treatment after Christmas and said, ‘I don’t have to say goodbye to something which is not there.’ So I left the session. I said, ‘I think I’m cured,'” she shared. At five years post-treatment, Andersen remains symptom-free and has begun studying to become a social worker. “I felt some meaning in my life for the first time,” she said. “I was a human being, not just a diagnosis.”
Looking ahead, the VIRTU team is exploring AI-driven tools to scale access to such therapies. One proposal involves an AI-powered virtual therapist for at-home practice, while generative AI could aid in recreating personalized VR environments based on patient narratives. However, safeguards will be critical to ensure ethical and clinical integrity in these innovations.
