What Is EMDR Therapy?
“We’re not responsible for the negative experiences we had as children. However, as adults we are responsible for deciding what to do about them. If you’ve discovered things about yourself that you would like to change, the question to consider is whether you can accomplish it on your own or whether you need assistance.” - Francine Shapiro, PhD
What is EMDR?
Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) is a psychotherapy approach that was originally developed by Francine Shapiro in the late 1980s to help individuals process traumatic memories and alleviate symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). It is one of the most research evidence based therapy modalities to help with trauma. The benefit of EMDR is that clients don’t have to tell their entire trauma narrative. The therapist will focus on present symptoms and how they limit day- to-day activities. EMDR works to disarm belief systems and change negative cognitions through a series of bi-lateral eye movements, tapping or sound, while the client is asked to create the picture of pain and danger (trauma) that disturbs them most. EMDR can alleviate symptoms in as little as one to three sessions.
Key Components of EMDR Therapy:
Dual Attention Stimulus: EMDR involves using bilateral stimulation techniques, such as rapid eye movements, hand tapping, or auditory tones, to create a dual attention focus. This bilateral stimulation is thought to stimulate both sides of the brain and help facilitate the processing of traumatic memories and associated emotions.
Phases of Treatment:
History Taking: The therapist gathers information about the client's history, trauma experiences, current symptoms, and personal strengths.
Preparation: The therapist educates the client about EMDR, teaches coping skills for emotional regulation, and ensures the client is prepared for the processing phase.
Assessment: Specific traumatic memories or distressing experiences are identified as targets for EMDR processing.
Desensitization: During this phase, the client focuses on the traumatic memory while simultaneously engaging in bilateral stimulation. The goal is to process the memory and associated negative beliefs, emotions, and physical sensations.
Installation: Positive beliefs or adaptive coping strategies are reinforced to replace the negative beliefs associated with the traumatic memory.
Body Scan: The therapist ensures that the client no longer experiences distress related to the targeted memory and checks for any remaining physical tension.
Closure: Each session ends with techniques to stabilize the client emotionally and ensure they feel grounded before leaving.
Reevaluation: Subsequent sessions may involve reevaluating progress and addressing any remaining issues related to the traumatic memory or new targets for processing.
Adaptive Information Processing (AIP) Model: EMDR is based on the idea that many psychological symptoms arise from unprocessed memories that are stored in the brain in an "unprocessed" or dysfunctional way. Through bilateral stimulation and guided processing, EMDR aims to help the brain reprocess these memories, leading to resolution of emotional distress and symptom reduction.
Who Might Benefit?
EMDR therapy has been proven to help individuals with a variety of conditions. It is most widely known to help individuals who suffer from the effects of trauma and PTSD. Some symptoms present as anxiety, depression, panic attacks, nightmares, or feeling stuck in repeated patterns of behavior. Dealing with these symptoms may decrease the quality of someone’s day-to-day life and make it feel difficult to complete what used to be considered a basic task for them. Other conditions that EMDR can help with include bipolar disorder, psychosis, anxiety disorders, substance abuse, and eating disorders.
With EMDR therapy, individuals have the opportunity to recognize feelings associated with the traumatic event and eventually let go of the cyclical pattern of thinking. Once this happens, the individual undergoing treatment is able to develop more positive self-beliefs.
Applications of EMDR Therapy:
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): EMDR is most well-known for its effectiveness in treating PTSD by processing traumatic memories and reducing associated symptoms such as flashbacks, nightmares, and hypervigilance.
Anxiety Disorders: EMDR has been used to treat various anxiety disorders, including phobias, panic disorder, and generalized anxiety disorder.
Depression: EMDR can be helpful in addressing depressive symptoms, especially when they are linked to past traumatic experiences.
Pain Management: EMDR has shown promise in reducing chronic pain by addressing underlying emotional distress and trauma related to the pain experience.
Performance Enhancement: EMDR techniques have been adapted to help athletes, performers, and professionals improve their performance by addressing performance anxiety and past negative experiences.
Therapist Corner:
Sherrie Bloemendaal, LCSW, shares her experience using EMDR with clients:
“Sometimes saying the words out loud to someone even if that someone is a paid professional can be almost as painful as the trauma. Treating trauma with traditional psychotherapy usually includes CBT, prolonged exposure therapy, or developing ways to cope with the symptoms that persist following a traumatic event. What I like about EMDR as a therapy tool for treating trauma is that clients develop resources for coping with strong emotions and work toward processing and resolving the trauma. The client controls how much or little they verbalize during processing. It gives the client an opportunity to be more in control of the healing process and helps them resolve the negative beliefs linked to the trauma.
Trauma comes in Big T’s and Little t’s. We usually think of the combat veteran suffering PTSD symptoms such as nightmares and flashbacks but there are little t’s that also respond well to EMDR. The student who has ADD and has the running dialogue in her head that says, “pay attention, you’re never going to get this done, you failed the math test again” is living from a core belief that says “I’m not a good student.” Using EMDR we can process that negative belief and replace it with “I can learn to be a good student.” Later the same student who had no idea what her grades were or what homework was due is turning in homework and tracking her test scores.
EMDR doesn’t make the client forget what happened but it does change how they feel about themselves and the feelings and emotions linked to that memory. Processing opens neural pathways that were previously blocked. Clients who have processed the loss of someone will later state they can remember the positive memories without being overwhelmed by the loss. It helps the young women who was molested by her teacher shift her core belief from “It was my fault and I deserve whatever I get in life” to “It wasn’t my fault and I deserve better.” She is better able to access the positive things she knows about herself that following the trauma were blocked by the negative belief.”
Resources
Recommended Books for Adults:
“Getting Past Your Past. Take Control of Your Life with Self-Help Techniques from EMDR Therapy.” by Francine Shapiro.
“The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma.” by Bessel van der Kolk, M.D.
Resources and books for parents and caregivers:
https://www.anagomez.org/
Podcasts:
https://emdr-podcast.com