EMDR

〈Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing〉

Have your heard of EMDR Therapy?

EMDR, a therapeutic modality developed in1987 by Dr. Francine Shapiro is a powerful form of psychotherapy that assists with left brain – right brain integration of past negative experiences. EMDR is an evidenced based therapy and has been extensively researched and proven effective for the treatment of trauma. Although EMDR was originally developed to specifically treat trauma, to date, EMDR has helped millions of individuals to relieve a variety of psychological conditions including trauma and PTSD, anxiety depression, performance anxiety, fear and panic, stress related issues, adjustment difficulties, phase of life difficulties, eating disorders, body image disturbance and body dysmorphic disorders, grief, substance use and addictions, dissociation, recurring memories and nightmares.  

As incredible as our brains are, traumatic experiences including both “big T” and “little t,” can overwhelm the brain’s processing ability, causing negative memories to get stuck, frozen in time, in state specific form. When a memory network is triggered, an individual’s nervous system, limbic system and bodily system respond in the same way that way it did during the original experience. The trauma is not stored in the body as some may think, rather it is stored in the brain and reexperienced over and over in the body. A trigger activates a negative belief system along with an emotional and somatic response. Maladaptively stored memories can cloud an individual’s windshield, distorting the lens in which an individual experiences life. Over time, this causes suffering, addiction, dysfunction, disconnection and many other difficulties. This is where EMDR comes in. 

How Does EMDR Therapy Work?

Eye movements assist the brain in desensitizing and reprocessing these “frozen” experiences and allowing adaptive information processing to resume. When we clear up the past, the present feels different, and we don’t have to work hard to make ourselves feel better each day. A person experiences the present moment differently because the past has been reprocessed and stored in the memory networks in a more adaptive way. 

Eye movements have been researched and found to reduce the intensity of disturbing past events. Eye movements, also known as bilateral stimulation (BLS), allow memories to remain intact while allowing emotional and somatic experiences are neutralized and released. Appropriate positive cognitions are accessed, installed and stored with the memory. In simple terms, the disturbance is cleared, and the memory is stored adaptively. When this happens, an individual’s windshield, the lens in which they experience the world around them, changes. EMDR Therapy can create deep healing. It seems magical. The healing happens because of the brain’s own innate neurobiological processes that are designed to discharge the negative, restore balance, and direct the brain towards adaptive information. Individuals can reach peaceful resolution of the past. They gain insight. They find relief from suffering and experience a lessening of emotional and somatic distress. Individuals feel better. 

What does an EMDR session look like?

EMDR uses a set of standardized protocols, follows an eight-phase process, and includes past, present and future prongs. It can be used alongside and integrated within a variety of other therapeutic modalities. In a standard EMDR session, the therapist will lead the client in a set of lateral eye movements while the client focuses on a maladaptively stored past memory, present trigger or future experience. Left-right eye movements are administered in a variety of ways and lead desensitization, reprocessing and activation of adaptive networks in the brain. This process allow for more rapid resolution of psychological and physical distress. The client will watch the memory as if they are on a train, keeping one foot in the present and one foot in the memory. As the session progresses, the level of disturbance reduces, adaptive information is onboarded, cognitions shift from negative to positive, and somatic disturbances are lessened. When we clear the past, the present is experienced differently, our experience within our body can transform, and triggers dissipate. 

Can you tell me more about EMDR?

EMDR Therapy can include the utilization of various advanced protocols. For example, it can assist with desensitizing triggers, urges and feeling states related to compulsive and addictive behaviors. It can assist with desensitizing defenses and avoidance patterns. It can also assist with enhancing internal adaptive resources, expanding an individual’s window of tolerance, building adaptive information, nurturing strengths and enhancing performance, to name a few. BLS can be applied in many ways to allow the individual to feel comfortable and engaged. EDMR is simply amazing, and I could not imagine doing my work as a counselor without it.

EMDR Therapy can be offered to individuals across age, gender, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, neurodiversity, socioeconomic level, abilities and disabilities. Cultural competence, respect, curiosity and humility are important components when integrating EMDR with individuals with varying intersections of identity.

EMDR Therapy can be creatively administered. It allows for creative implementation and use with children, adolescents and those who benefit from less structured methods of implementation. BLS can be administered in all types of ways and clients can find a method that feels comfortable to them.

Do you want to learn a little bit more about EMDR Therapy?

Additional Resources