What is Step Out?
Step Out is a virtual reality (VR) program designed to support users who experience anxiety or distress related to leaving their home or participating in everyday social situations. Through immersive VR environments and guided behavioral exercises, it helps you practice coping strategies and gradually engage with common real-world situations.
Step Out is a prescription-only application intended to be used under the supervision of a healthcare professional as an adjunct to standard care.
How Does It Work?
You'll choose from 5 real-life social scenarios, each made up of 5 levels that gradually increase in difficulty. Each session lasts around 30 minutes, once a week for approximately 5 weeks. Throughout the program, you are guided by Nic, a virtual therapist, who walks you through each environment using Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) techniques.
Virtual Therapist Guidance
Nic, your virtual therapist, accompanies you at all times. She introduces the program, explains the rationale behind each exercise, encourages you to drop safety behaviors, and provides positive reinforcement as you complete tasks.
Interactive Social Scenarios
You'll practice in 5 real-life social environments. Each scenario has 5 levels that increase in difficulty based on the number of people, noise level, and degree of social interaction. The available scenarios are:
- Café – Order a drink as the café gets busier and the queue grows.
- Doctor's Office – Wait in a queue and interact with a receptionist and other patients.
- Shop – Complete a shopping list while staying focused on tasks rather than other people.
- Street – Step outside an apartment onto a street and wait for a taxi as the environment gets noisier and busier.
- Bus – Wait at a bus stop, board a bus, and pay for a ticket while standing in close proximity to others.
Progress Tracking
At the start of the program and throughout your journey, Nic will ask you questions about how you're managing everyday situations. Your answers create a baseline and help track your progress over time.
Step-by-Step Guide for First-Time Users
- Select Step Out from the XR Portal Library.
You will find the app under Behavioral Space. - Meet your virtual therapist, Nic.
Nic will introduce the program, explain how VR works, and guide you through getting started. - Complete the initial feedback questions.
This helps the app understand your current state and create a baseline for tracking your progress. - Select a scenario and level.
Choose the scenario and level you feel most comfortable starting with. - You're in!
Nic will guide you through the virtual environment and support you every step of the way.
Pausing and Exiting the App
How to Pause
At any point during a scenario, press the Pause button on your left controller to open the pause menu.
From here you can:
- Resume – Continue the current scenario.
- Restart Level – Restart the current level from the beginning.
- Change Level – Return to level selection within the current scenario.
- Settings – Adjust app settings.
- Quit – Exit the scenario and return to the Select Scenario screen.
How to End a Session
When you finish a scenario or press Quit, you will be taken to the Select Scenario screen ("What would you like to do next?"). From here you can select another scenario to continue practicing, or press End Session to finish.
After pressing End Session, you will be asked to rate your confidence — the same questions you answered at the start of the session. Once completed, you will exit the app and return to the XR Health Portal.
Your 5-Week Journey
Step Out is designed to be completed over 5 weeks, with one 30-minute session per week. During each session, you are encouraged to progress through all 5 levels of a single scenario, with each level taking around 5 minutes. You may use the device more often if desired.
| Week 1 | Weeks 2–4 | Week 5 |
|---|---|---|
| Virtual therapist introduction | Select a scenario and complete all 5 levels | Select a scenario and complete all 5 levels |
| Initial feedback assessment | Progress check-in with Nic | Final progress assessment |
| Select your first scenario and level | Optional: revisit previous scenarios or levels | Reflect on progress and next steps |
Notes:
- The minimum recommended dose is three 30-minute sessions over the course of 6 weeks.
- If a task is not completed within the allowed time, the program will return you to the virtual therapist's room to reflect and decide whether to re-attempt the level.
- You can select a different scenario each week or continue working through levels of one you've already started.
Disclaimer
Step Out is a prescription-only software application. It is intended to be used under the supervision of a healthcare professional and does not diagnose, treat, or prevent any medical or psychiatric condition.
Participants may stand to operate the VR. Make sure you are in a safe, open indoor space free of obstacles. If you feel unwell or need a break, you can exit to the virtual therapist's room at any time.