My Story

Going through a challenging transition during my teens inspired in me a passion for psychology. I grew up in Colombia and, at the age of 17, I left the only home I had ever known to move to the United States and pursue a better life. My inability to speak English fluently significantly impacted my cultural transition. My struggles as I pursued “my American dream,” which was my education, led me to become interested in how life circumstances and families shaped people and contributed to their resilience and wellbeing. This curiosity guided me to pursue a career in Clinical Psychology.

While pursuing my PhD at USC, I learned how to conduct research and gained the expertise to provide mental health services to various populations. I also witnessed the limitations of society’s current conceptions of mental health, and the challenges to provide adequate and meaningful care. My first transcendental VR experience with Tilt Brush and the insights gained through my Fitbit-tracked data-inspired in me a desire to focus my research and professional career on developing technologies that could support wellbeing. I have contributed to the research, development, and innovation process of digital therapeutics in virtual reality (VR). My dissertation focused on self-disclosure patterns during clinical interviewing via virtual avatars and agents. Currently, I have been fortunate to join AppliedVR in reshaping healthcare for people with chronic pain through both VR and avatar-based therapies.