ALL ABOUT EMDR

What is EMDR?

First, I want to tell you that EMDR is an acronym, kind of like the word SCUBA, where we don’t know what scuba stands for any more or it doesn’t really apply. Scuba stands for self contained breathing apparatus. S.C.U.B.A. Much like that example, EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing is sort of the same concept in that EMDR has evolved quite a bit, and for most EMDR therapists, we don’t use the Eye Movement part of it at all when we provide EMDR to a client. Some clinicians still do - they learned a version of EMDR I’d like to call ‘EMDR 1.0’. Years later, we are at version like EMDR 6.0.

What happens during EMDR?

A week before your actual EMDR session, you and I will have an EMDR Prep session. During this session, I will explain what will take place during your EMDR session, help you set up a few things that you will use during your EMDR session, teach you about how we will use bilateral stimulation during the virtual EMDR session and also, see what your home setup will look like where you will have your EMDR session. We’ll want to make sure it’s super comfortable for you and ensure that the camera setup works for the virtual EMDR session.

The next week when you have your EMDR session, I will guide you through reprocessing your memories about these upsetting events using bilateral stimulation. Bilateral stimulation is accomplished with tapping on top of your knees during the EMDR session, something I will teach you how to do during the EMDR Prep session the week before so you’ll be all set and ready.

During EMDR, I will lead you through short sets of bilateral stimulation while you focus on the visual image related to the trauma memory, your emotions and body sensations and your negative beliefs. This will help you access the emotionally disturbing material in small doses, while also relaxing and staying grounded in the present moment. As you move through these sets, your feelings and perceptions about the event will shift. This allows your brain to tone down the intensity of the memory and create new connections between the traumatic memory and more adaptive beliefs. EMDR changes the way your brain stores the traumatic memory so that you will be able to remember the upsetting event without experiencing emotional distress or other trauma-related symptoms.

Many of my clients who have had EMDR have told me that they could see and feel the trauma move from current memory to past memory, which is what resiliency is all about. Trauma is really when that resiliency hasn’t happened as it should and stays in current memory, affecting the mind and body.

With EMDR, not only will you feel less disturbed by the memories, but also the meaning and story you tell yourself about the trauma will shift in a healthy way. For example, a victim of assault may transform from believing they are unsafe or unworthy to strongly believing “I survived and I can thrive” or “I am worthwhile regardless of what happened.” They now recognize that these degrading or disturbing past experiences do not diminish their worthiness or value.

Successful treatment of trauma with EMDR does not require you to talk out loud about your upsetting experiences in great detail. However, you will need to think about your trauma, so you may feel some discomfort during the process. These feelings are usually temporary and decrease as you proceed with EMDR. Your therapist will also support you in tolerating this distress throughout your EMDR treatment.

What Types of Issues Does EMDR Help?

Many people have been through upsetting, stressful, anxious or frightening experiences in their lives. Sometimes those experiences can have lasting impacts by causing psychological trauma or high anxiety symptoms. Trauma is not the disturbing event itself but the emotional distress you experience when the negative event overwhelms your ability to cope or is out of your control. When this happens, your brain’s natural ability to process information about your experiences in an adaptive way is disrupted or blocked. The unprocessed trauma blocks your brain’s natural ability to heal, like the way a splinter blocks your physical body’s ability to heal a cut. Untreated trauma can feel like living with an emotional injury or wound. That injury might cause symptoms that change the way you feel or think, and interfere with parts of daily life. Those changes may look like any of the symptoms listed below.

• Flashbacks—reliving the traumatic event, including physical symptoms, such as a racing heart or sweating

• Recurring memories or dreams related to the event

• Distressing thoughts

• Physical signs of stress

• Staying away from places, events, or objects that are reminders of the experience

• Avoiding thoughts or feelings related to the traumatic event

• Being easily startled

• Feeling tense, on guard or on edge

• Having difficulty concentrating

• Having difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep

• Feeling irritable and having angry or aggressive outbursts

• Engaging in risky, reckless or destructive behavior

• Trouble remembering key features of the traumatic event

• Negative thoughts about oneself or the world

• Exaggerated feelings of blame directed toward oneself or others

• Ongoing negative emotions, such as fear, anger, guilt or shame

• Loss of interest in previous activities

• Feelings of social isolation

• Difficulty feeling positive emotions, such as happiness or satisfaction

EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) is a method of psychotherapy that has been shown to be effective in treating these symptoms of trauma. EMDR is designed to relieve emotional distress, reformulate the negative beliefs caused by trauma, and reduce physiological discomfort. Dr. Francine Shapiro began developing EMDR in the late 1980s and it now has a significant body of research demonstrating its efficacy. It is recognized as an effective form of treatment for trauma by organizations such as the American Psychiatric Association, the World Health Organization, and the Department of Veterans Affairs. Dr. Shapiro hypothesizes that EMDR helps to unblock our brain’s natural ability to adaptively process information about the trauma, like removing the splinter so that the healing of a cut can continue.

Is EMDR Right For You?

EMDR has been shown to be effective in treating the effects of trauma, as well as a wide range of other mental health conditions such as anxiety and depression disorders, eating disorders, as well as OCD and phobias. In my EMDR work with clients, I’ve helped clients process experiences of sexual abuse, violence and physical assault, medical fears, grief, post-pregnancy loss grief in order to get pregnant again, anxieties, OCD, phobia and painful relationships. Even issues that might not be traumatic to others, but were traumatic to those clients individually. Their stories about these events have transformed from those of loss, shame, powerlessness and self-blame into stories of survival, empowerment, self-worth, trust and safety. With these emotional wounds transformed, my clients are able to experience authentic self-worth and confidence, connect meaningfully with their friends and family and pursue their most fulfilling lives.

EMDR may not be appropriate for individuals with severe psychiatric conditions like schizophrenia. EMDR may also not be appropriate for individuals who have difficulty managing intense emotions or dissociate regularly until they develop improved emotion regulation skills. The best way to find out whether EMDR may be helpful for you is to speak with an EMDR-trained therapist directly about your experiences and concerns.

If you are struggling to cope with or understand the troubling past events from your life, I invite you to reach out to us to see if I can help. You can schedule a free 30 minute consultation to learn more about my services and see if EMDR may be a good fit for you.

In my practice, I have clients who see me just for EMDR sessions, clients who see me for both EMDR and ongoing talk therapy and clients who see me for just ongoing talk therapy. Clients are each individuals and we will work together to setup a plan of treatment that works for you as an individual.