What is EMDR?
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is an evidence based, eight phase psychotherapy model that helps individuals heal from distressing life experiences. Currently, it is considered a first line treatment for trauma around the world. Originally developed by Dr. Francine Shapiro in the late 1980’s, EMDR utilizes the brain’s innate capacity to heal. After several decades of development and dozens of research studies, EMDR has been proven effective, safe, and often much quicker than traditional talk therapy.
Our brains are wired to adapt and move towards balanced mental health, but sometimes our system is overloaded and painful experiences remain stuck and unprocessed. This can cause nightmares, panic attacks, depression symptoms, ruminating thoughts, impaired sleep, addictive behavior, and even just feeling on edge or unworthy a lot of the time. This can happen after single traumatic incidents, like car accidents or natural disasters, in developmental trauma, as well as stressful life events that we might not even think of as traumatic. EMDR helps your nervous system fully metabolize and digest the unprocessed parts of the experience.
We use the AIP model (Adaptive Information Processing) as a lens for understanding human struggles and resiliency. AIP assumes that our nervous system has an innate capacity to heal and that no nervous system exists in isolation. We are the product of our relationships and our past experiences. When we can resolve and process an experience, the nervous system knows what to do. When an experience goes unresolved
Combining the latest science on attachment, the nervous system, and memory storage.
We use EMDR.
Wait-isn’t that just for traumatic events like war, accidents, etc?
Is it just tapping or eye movements?
What if I don’t think I’ve had any trauma but I still find myself feeling stuck…
We practice attachment-based EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) therapy. We believe that overwhelming and unprocessed experiences, particularly in our attachment relationships, changes the way our brain stores and uses our past experience to inform our present responses.
No!
How does it work?
EMDR begins with a thorough clinical assessment and then prep work, often things like deep breathing and relaxation exercises. Your therapist, using the EMDR approach, will help you identify and choose the stuck points you want to target with EMDR. During the re-processing, your therapist will use back and forth eye movements while bringing up the distressing experience. The combination of returning to the experience while engaging in the back and forth eye movements (or alternating tapping) often lessens the emotional charge, cognitions, and memories related to it. Your nervous system will be healing itself.
Is this hypnosis? Or just exposure therapy?
No, we are not hypnotizing anyone. You are fully conscious and in control of the process the entire time. EMDR is not a form of exposure therapy. In both theory and practice, the two therapies are very different.
That depends! Every client and situation is different. When EMDR is used to process a single incident, it can take just a few sessions, but other clients and situations might need 8-12 sessions or more. It’s easier for us to gauge a general timeline after we have completed the assessment process.
How many sessions will it take?
EMDR isn’t right for every problem or every person. Definitely talk with your therapist about EMDR and how it might be helpful for you.