EMDR Therapy
EMDR stands for Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing
I offer EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing) therapy which is a therapy that has been found to be especially useful for processing trauma, whether single event such as an accident or complex post traumatic stress from the events in the past.
EMDR is a standardised, eight-phase, trauma-focused therapy. It is intended to help your mind process difficult memories that still upset you. While targeting these memories you’ll follow movements with your eyes.
I integrate EMDR into my existing psychotherapeutic practice. This means that we spend a number of sessions building trust and safety before we begin to process any disturbing memories.
How does EMDR work?
Psychological distress is often overwhelming and, in some cases, the brain is unable to process the information as it usually would. The distressing memory seems to become frozen on a neurological level and recalling the event can feel like or seem like re-living the experience.
Such 'flashbacks' can be very distressing and disruptive so much so that a person can block off their memories of the even or even 'zone out' to avoid frightening or uncomfortable feelings.
EMDR therapy relies on alternating left-right stimulation of the brain, through side-to-side eye moment, which appears to help the brain to process the frozen or blocked information. Besides eye movements, bilateral stimulation can be achieved through auditory or tactile means, such as by alternating buzzing tappers.
About EMDR
EMDR was developed by Dr Francine Shapiro, an American clinical psychologist in the 1980s who published the first research data confirming the efficacy of EMDR in 1989.
Training is reserved to mental health professionals, i.e. any therapist would need to have a primary modality in which they initially trained and it's important to work only with therapists who have undertaken an accredited training course recognised by the EMDR Europe and EMDR UK & Ireland Associations.
EMDR is a focused therapy, with a set of principles, protocols and procedures. While I follow the protocol, I believe the relationship we establish around safety and trust is fundamental to the work.
As part of my integrating EMDR with Gestalt I spend quite some time at the start, letting us both get to know each other and exploring what safety might feel like for you in the space.
- During that phase I will ask you about your history, the kind of distress you are experiencing, and any emotional, psychological and physical problems you may be facing.
- We would then spend some time establishing an imagined 'safe space' and resourcing you for the work.
- I will then ask you to pick a particular image that represents the distressing event, we would discuss negative and positive thoughts, your feelings, the level of distress you might feel and where you feel it in your body.
- With that picture in mind then using bilateral stimulation (e.g. buzzers or lights) after 25-30 seconds I will ask you what you have noticed, what has come to mind. And we will proceed through sets of stimulation for a period to process the distressing memory.
- There is nothing you 'have to do', and no wrong way to do this, it's a matter of letting your brain process old memories. Some distress may show up but continuing to process will usually reduce the impact.
- We would close the session by going back to the 'safe space' and tapping that in to close that session.