Healing Trauma: An Introduction to EMDR Therapy
Living with the aftereffects of trauma can be incredibly difficult. Whether your trauma stems from childhood experiences, accidents, grief, prolonged illness, or other threats, trauma can affect every aspect of your life. Fortunately, there are now highly effective therapeutic techniques to help you heal from these experiences. One of the most popular therapies today is eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR).
What is EMDR?
EMDR is a structured therapy in which the client focuses on a traumatic memory while simultaneously going through bilateral stimulation. Bilateral stimulation typically means moving the eyes from side to side, but the therapist can also use finger taps or snaps or other sensory cues to get your attention to your left and right sides rhythmically. This process is believed to help you “store” the traumatic memory correctly, thereby reducing its negative effects in your life. Though EMDR was initially met with skepticism, study after study has backed up its efficacy in the use of trauma therapy.
The process of EMDR
EMDR therapy consists of eight phases:
History taking: The therapist gathers detailed information about your history and determines if EMDR is an appropriate treatment. This phase involves understanding the nature of your trauma and what specific symptoms you’re experiencing.
Preparation: The therapist explains the EMDR process and the techniques they’ll be using. This phase also includes teaching self-soothing techniques to manage the emotional distress that may come up during EMDR sessions.
Assessment: You and your therapist identify specific memories to target during these sessions. You’ll focus on visual imagery you associate with the memory, any negative beliefs about yourself, and how your body feels.
Desensitization: This is when you focus on the traumatic memory while engaging in bilateral stimulation, such as moving your eyes back and forth. If recounting the memory is difficult for you, the therapist may ask you to focus on emotions or images you associate with it instead.
Installation: After the traumatic memory has been processed, you work with your therapist to install positive beliefs about yourself into the target memory. The therapist will again use bilateral stimulation to strengthen this positive association with the memory.
Body scan: The therapist asks you to scan your body from head to toe to find any residual tension. If there’s lingering discomfort, you’ll go through reprocessing.
Closure: Each session ends with your therapist ensuring you feel stable and safe before leaving. They may guide you through relaxation exercises and discuss any emerging thoughts or feelings.
Reevaluation: At the beginning of each new session, you and your therapist reevaluate your progress and address any new issues that arise.
How does EMDR work?
The exact mechanisms behind EMDR are not fully understood. One theory is that EMDR helps to reprocess and integrate traumatic memories by stimulating the brain’s information processing system. Bilateral stimulation may facilitate communication between the two hemispheres of the brain, allowing for better emotional regulation and cognitive processing. This dual-attention stimulus (focusing on the memory while engaging in bilateral stimulation) may also allow the brain to access and reprocess traumatic information so that it’s no longer harmful.
Who benefits from EMDR therapy?
Research has shown that EMDR can be effective in treating a wide range of trauma-related issues, including:
post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
anxiety disorders
panic disorders
phobias (including social phobia)
depression
eating disorders
obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
Is EMDR Right for You?
EMDR therapy is not the right fit for everyone. If you struggle with severe dissociation, have recently experienced trauma you’re not ready to confront, or are currently living in an abusive situation, EMDR might not be the appropriate therapy. Talk to a therapist to find out if you meet the criteria and can benefit from EMDR sessions.
To learn more about how EMDR can heal your trauma, please reach out and schedule a consultation today.
About the Author
Nicole Mendizabal is a licensed marriage and family therapist providing virtual therapy services in Florida.
