“Our wounds are often the openings into the best and most beautiful part of us.”
EMDR and what you need to know
According to the EMDR International Association, “Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy is an extensively researched, effective psychotherapy method proven to help people recover from trauma and other distressing life experiences, including PTSD, anxiety, depression, and panic disorders.” EMDR is recognized as an effective treatment model by many national and international organizations.
EMDR therapy is used to resolve traumatic memories in the brain by helping the brain process these memories, which allows normal healing to resume. Unlike some other traditional models, EMDR therapy does not require talking in detail about the distressing issue. Clients are invited to speak about their memories with as much or as little detail as desired. EMDR is built on the idea that every person has the natural ability to heal.
When most people begin EMDR, they tend to be curious or fascinated by the dual attention stimulation, known as bilateral stimulation, which is utilized during the desensitization, installation, and body scan phases of EMDR. This can be done by either moving the eyes back and forth, tapping on one side of the body and then the other (i.e., left hand and then right hand), using vibrating buzzers or by using sounds in alternating ears.
The dual attention serves multiple purposes: helps the brain to work through previously difficult material, makes recalling memory easier, and has a calming effect. It is unknown why the dual attention has this effect, but several studies support its effectiveness (EMDR Institute, 2011). Dual attention can also help a person to keep the attention in the present while allowing the brain to go to the past, which can help to decrease the potential for hyperarousal, which could get in the way of treatment. It is also thought to help with moving information through the brain so it can be filed away correctly.
EMDR 8-phases explained
There are eight phases in EMDR treatment. It is important to understand that how long a person must spend in each phase will be different for each individual. In many cases, the longest phase in duration is the preparation phase (#2).
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Therapist will gather information on the identified problem and the history surrounding this area of concern. Therapist will then collaborate with client to develop a treatment plan with special attention to traumatic events to reprocess. Therapist will also assess for internal and external resources or strengths.
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Therapist will focus on getting to know the client and establishing a therapeutic alliance. Therapist will explain the EMDR therapy process, set expectations and address client's concerns and questions. The majority of time in this phase will be spent on preparing clients for the trauma work with specific techniques to cope with emotional disturbance that may arise.
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Therapist and client will collaborate to identify the event to reprocess including images, beliefs, feelings, and sensations.
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Therapist will introduce eye movements, taps, or other dual attention bilateral stimulation while client thinks about the traumatic event. The focus will be on decreasing client's distress level until it reduces to zero (or 1 if appropriate). This will will allow new thoughts, images, feelings, and sensations to emerge.
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Therapist will strengthen a positive belief about the self that the client wants to associate with the target (traumatic) event until it feels completely true.
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Therapist will conduct a check-in with the body for any residual trauma. The client is asked to hold in mind both the target event and the positive belief while scanning the body from head to toe. Therapist will assist the client in processing any lingering disturbance from the body.
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Therapist will assist client to return to a state of calm in the present moment whether the reprocessing is complete or not. Reprocessing of an event is complete when the client feels neutral about it, the positive belief feels completely true, and the body is completely clear of disturbance.
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At the beginning of each new session, therapist and client discuss recently processed memories to ensure that distress is still low and positive cognition is strong. Future targets and directions for continued treatment are determined.
Please click here for a detailed overview on what to expect in EMDR therapy, including the 8-phase model.
At Monroe Trauma Healing Center, we use EMDR therapy to address the following:
Anxiety, panic attacks, and phobias
Attachment related disorders and abandonment
Anger and aggression
Chronic Illness and medical issues
Depression and bipolar disorders
Dissociative disorders
Grief and loss
Performance anxiety
Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and other trauma and stress-related issues
Self-esteem or self-worth
Sexual assault
Sleep disturbance (insomnia)
Violence, abuse and neglect
Please contact us if your concern is not listed above to see if/how we can help.
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