EMDR Treatment
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What is EMDR Therapy?
EMDR stands for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. EMDR therapy has been researched extensively and has strong evidence supporting its effectiveness for people suffering from the effects of prior trauma. The American Psychological Association recommends EMDR therapy for the treatment of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Beyond trauma, EMDR can also help with symptoms associated with depression, anxiety, grief, and even performance anxiety, particularly when those struggles are rooted in past experiences.
EMDR is based on the Adaptive Information Processing (AIP) model. This model suggests that past negative events, especially traumas, continue to cause distress in the present if the memory was not completely processed. The incomplete processing of the event prevents connections to new learning and adaptive information which might help resolve the trauma. These memories contain emotions, thoughts, beliefs, and often physical sensations that occurred at the time of the event. When the memory is triggered, the elements associated with the memory are experienced and cause a disturbance.
EMDR therapy is a treatment protocol that addresses past, present, and future triggers. In its most basic sense, EMDR therapy involves eye movement (side to side) and other forms of left-to-right stimulation such as tones, taps, or vibrations. This left-to-right activity is called bilateral stimulation. EMDR therapy facilitates natural processing of unresolved memories causing them to lose painful intensity. This eight-phased and three-pronged approach targets past memories, present disturbance, and future actions. My goal in EMDR therapy is to completely process the negative experiences that are the root cause of the complaint, while bringing in new insights and perspectives that encourage a more nourishing, healthy response.
For more information, consider these articles on EMDR:
What Can I Expect?
We start by talking about your history and identifying the issues you want to address. Together we discuss how the process works and agree on the treatment protocol best suited for you. I then guide you through the processing phase, which includes desensitization using bilateral stimulation such as eye movement. The protocol is repeated and adjusted as needed until the memory or disturbance is no longer causing distress. Part of the process is replacing the old belief tied to the memory with a more realistic and adaptive one. For a more in-depth discussion of EMDR read our article.
Experiences in life, especially traumatic ones, inform our reality and block the natural healing process. As an EMDR therapist, I see the connection between trauma, the negative and self-limiting beliefs that grow out of it, and the ongoing emotional and physiological suffering. By reprocessing these negative events, we can begin to break through self-limiting beliefs.
What Special Qualifications do you Have for EMDR?
I am a Certified Clinical Trauma Professional and a Certified Therapist in EMDR through the EMDR International Association (EMDRIA). Not all therapists who integrate EMDR into their practice are certified. Certification is a rigorous process requiring additional consultation with EMDRIA-approved consultants, a minimum number of supervised EMDR sessions with clients, professional recommendations, adherence to EMDRIA’s Professional Code of Conduct, and ongoing continuing education. If you are seeking an EMDR therapist, consider working with a certified therapist. You can read more about the difference between EMDR trained and EMDR certified therapists.
How Many EMDR Therapy Sessions are Required?
The number of EMDR therapy sessions varies depending on the person and the nature of the underlying issues. I treat each client as unique. Some people notice meaningful relief relatively quickly, particularly with single-incident trauma, while more complex or longstanding trauma generally takes longer. Either way, the goal is to complete the reprocessing so the relief lasts.
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