What is EMDR and how does it work?

I had been practicing therapy for several years when I began to encounter a common sentiment among the people I was working with. After a few weeks or months of working together we would be able to identify some memories or past experiences that formed present beliefs and behaviors that were negatively impacting the person’s overall mental health and life. But then we would get stuck. They would say “Okay, I get it. I know this is related to (some issue in the past). I know that this belief/behavior isn’t rational or logical, but it still feels true. So what should I do with that?”

If I’m truly honest- I didn’t know. I didn’t have a good answer. I realized I needed something beyond talk therapy, something that could get deeper into the feeling that was stuck. That’s when I stumbled across EMDR. 

EMDR stands for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. It is a type of therapy that was invented by accident. A therapist named Francine Shapiro was walking in the park one day while thinking about something that bothered her, when she was watching some birds that were flying around. As her eyes moved back and forth, she noticed that she didn’t feel as upset anymore. She then started trying this out with clients and found that it also helped to resolve a lot of the thoughts and feelings that they were bothered by. This then rapidly gained attention of the psychology community and became a huge focus of clinical research, which found that it was incredibly effective at treating a range of different issues and has since become an essential treatment in resolving the impacts of trauma. 

So why does this work and how do you use it in therapy? There are a few theories as to why this works. There is a concept in EMDR therapy called Adaptive Information Processing. AIP is basically the theory that our brains are able to heal in the same way that our bodies are. Our brains naturally let go of material that is not helpful, processed and no longer needed. But when something too big comes up and impacts our nervous system, our brain has difficulty letting it go. Especially when we are in fight or flight mode, our brain stores that information to help us survive. The issue is that once that battle is over, our brains don’t let this go on their own. It’s basically like getting a cut on our leg. Tiny cuts may just require a band-aid. But a deeper cut that isn’t properly cleaned and stitched up doesn’t heal properly. 

EMDR cleans out the old wounds so they can naturally heal on their own. It’s like jumpstarting the brain’s healing process, with the therapist there to take out any debris that isn’t coming out on its own. While the client focuses on a traumatic or challenging memory or feeling, the therapist has the client follow something with their eyes (or this can be done with alternating sounds or taps). This helps them to stay present in the moment as their brain and body starts to process through the old feelings, memories, thoughts and images. At times the client may get stuck on something and that’s when the therapist intervenes to remove the barrier and allow the processing to continue. 

Once I started using this type of therapy, I witnessed people become unstuck. Most of the time, it gets right to the core of the issue and begins to work it through. I’ve watched many people heal from their past with this work and have made it a clinical focus of mine, taking the time to take trainings and consultation to get certified in the process to ensure I am doing it as effectively as I can. I like it because it’s faster than talk therapy too. Instead of spending months trying to figure out where something comes from, we can let your brain do the work and figure it out much faster. Send me a message if you are interested or would like to learn more! 

There is also great information about EMDR from EMDRIA (EMDR International Association). Check out their website as well: 

About EMDR Therapy - EMDR International Association