Training of Relaxation Breathing in Virtual Reality Using Biofeedback: Comparison Study

In this intervention, biofeedback is provided based on the respiratory rate measured by a Vernier Go respiration belt. This belt sends signals (respiratory effort) to the application that calculates the level of synchronisation and gives the visual biofeedback in two forms: 1) a deer simultanously breathing with the participant (realtime biofeedback, present in the initial phase only), 2) a growing tree - if breathing is regulated following a given rhytm, a growing tree is giving the targeted biofeedback.

In this control intervention, participants' respiratory rate is still being measured by the respiratory belt VernierGo; however, they are not receiving any visual biofeedback inside the virtual relaxation application (no deer is present, the tree is constantly growing regardless of the breathing pattern of the participant).