EMDR Therapy
What is EMDR Therapy?
When we experience trauma, the way the memory gets stored in our brain doesn’t follow the normal process. Instead of our recollection fading over time, we have a lasting impression of what happened that feels palpable and present. If we are triggered by something that reminds us of this event, the sensory memory can flood our nervous system and make us feel as though we are reliving that moment.
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is a highly effective therapy model for individuals who have experienced trauma.
[1] With EMDR therapy, the traumatic memory gets processed so that it no longer holds the same level of intensity that it once did. The EMDR process creates new neuropathways in the brain to change how we think and feel—not only about the event that occurred but about ourselves.
Although EMDR was created to treat Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), it can also be a beneficial treatment for anxiety, depression, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD), chronic pain, panic, phobias, and other mental health issues like negative self-talk.
After being developed in 1987 by Dr. Francine Shapiro, EMDR therapy has been continuously researched and endorsed by internationally-recognized organizations, including the World Health Organization (WHO), the American Psychiatric Association, the U.K. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. What’s more, “EMDR therapy has even been superior to Prozac in trauma treatment (Van der Kolk et al., 2007).” [2]
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What To Expect In An EMDR Therapy Session
Before getting EMDR underway, we will first build rapport in therapy sessions to ensure you feel comfortable with the process and that I understand how the past currently affects you. It’s also important to develop good coping skills to be equipped to handle any nervous system dysregulation that may arise when you revisit a disturbing memory during an EMDR session.
Once we decide which memory to target, we utilize bilateral stimulation as a way to access the nervous system where memories are stored. For in-person visits, you will be asked to hold tappers in either hand—devices that buzz at different frequencies—with eyes closed as you recall the experience. Holding the tappers as they buzz stimulates both hemispheres of the brain simultaneously so that you can reprocess the memory effectively. For virtual therapy sessions, bilateral stimulation can be achieved through rapid eye movement that mimics REM sleep.
Once reprocessed, I will guide you through some grounding exercises that allow you to self-soothe and calm your nervous system. The best results can be achieved when you provide honest feedback and don’t rush through the process. Although some have found relief as soon as 1-2 sessions, it’s okay if it takes longer. Many clients who utilize EMDR treatment have found it helpful in diminishing their fight-or-flight response that had previously been triggered whenever something reminded them of the memory.
Who Can Benefit From EMDR Therapy?
“Ongoing research supports positive clinical outcomes showing EMDR therapy as a helpful treatment for disorders such as anxiety, depression, OCD, chronic pain, addictions, and other distressing life experiences (Maxfield, 2019).” [3] In addition to these issues, I also recommend EMDR counseling to clients suffering grief in various forms, such as the loss of a loved one or the end of a relationship.
In the short term, I will help you learn cognitive and physiological coping skills to settle your nervous system and create a healthy emotional distance from challenging thoughts. In the long term, we can work through traumas that have kept you stuck and help relieve lingering emotional distress. In addition to EMDR, I incorporate elements of mindfulness, solution-focused therapy, and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) into sessions. Each of these modalities provides you with tools that can improve how you think and feel about yourself and the world around you.
EMDR Takes A Bottom-Up Approach To Therapy
Therapy is not a one-size fits all proposition. If it doesn't seem helpful or you feel like you’ve reached a point where you’ve gotten stuck, switching the approach can lead to new breakthroughs. Many people have found relief after implementing EMDR into therapy.
Rather than a top-down cognitive-based approach, EMDR is experiential and body-based. EMDR treatment can promote new insights that swim under the surface and aren't always conscious to us. Many of us tend to be overly rational and can’t puzzle out where our worries and fears originate. Rather than rely on the logical left hemisphere of the brain to figure it out alone, EMDR stimulates both hemispheres equally so that the pieces can be put together.
Ever since starting my practice, I have been inspired to add helpful and effective therapeutic modalities to my toolbox so clients can access different layers of healing. I had many clients looking for another option beyond talk therapy to help them process past experiences on a deeper level—a way to access long held memories and beliefs that couldn’t be addressed cognitively.
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing can help you build more self-awareness and rewire the way you think about yourself in relation to past events in a relatively short amount of time. If you are open to trying something different than traditional talk therapy, I encourage you to try EMDR.
Find Out How EMDR Therapy Can Help You
If you would like to learn more about EMDR and how working with a trained therapist can help you, visit my contact page or call 720-336-8884 to schedule a free 15-minute call.
[1] https://www.emdria.org/about-emdr-therapy
[2] https://www.emdria.org/about-emdr-therapy
[3] https://www.emdria.org/about-emdr-therapy/
