What Can EMDR Help With?
Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy is a psychotherapy approach that has been primarily used to treat post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, it has also been found effective in treating a range of other mental health conditions and issues. Some of the areas where EMDR therapy can help include:
- Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): EMDR is particularly well-known for its effectiveness in treating PTSD by helping individuals process traumatic memories and reduce associated symptoms such as flashbacks, nightmares, and hypervigilance.
- Anxiety Disorders: EMDR therapy can be beneficial for various anxiety disorders, including generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), panic disorder, social anxiety disorder, and specific phobias.
- Depression: While EMDR is not typically the first-line treatment for depression, it can be helpful, especially when depression is linked to past traumatic experiences.
- Panic Attacks: EMDR can assist in addressing the underlying causes of panic attacks, particularly if traumatic events or memories trigger them.
- Traumatic Grief: Individuals struggling with grief after a traumatic loss may find relief through EMDR therapy by processing the trauma associated with the loss.
- Phobias: EMDR can be effective in treating specific phobias, particularly those rooted in past traumatic experiences.
- Disturbing Memories: EMDR helps individuals process and reframe disturbing memories, reducing their emotional impact and allowing for more adaptive coping strategies.
- Low Self-Esteem: EMDR can address negative beliefs and experiences from the past that contribute to low self-esteem, helping individuals develop a more positive self-image.
- Performance Anxiety: EMDR has been used to address performance anxiety related to academic, athletic, or professional pursuits, especially when the anxiety is linked to past negative experiences or trauma.
- Relationship Issues: EMDR therapy can assist individuals in processing past traumas that may be impacting their current relationships or patterns of relating to others.
How Does EMDR Work?
The exact mechanisms by which EMDR works are still not fully understood, but it is believed to involve the brain’s natural ability to process and adaptively integrate traumatic memories when given the appropriate conditions.
What Happens During an EMDR Session?
During our first session, I will carry out an initial assessment to understand your history, symptoms, and goals for therapy. This helps to develop a treatment plan tailored to meet your needs. It is important to me that you feel safe during our sessions.
Before any processing work begins, I will talk through how the emdr process works. I will also do some preparation work with you, which might include a small meditation, breathing techniques, and tools to help you regulate.
You and I will identify specific memories, images, thoughts, emotions, and beliefs associated with the traumatic event or events. These are the targets for the EMDR treatment.
We can then begin the desensitisation phase. You will focus on the traumatic memory or target while simultaneously engaging in bilateral stimulation. I use EMDR tappers and/or an EMDR light bar. For online EMDR, I use Bilateral base, which basically involves you following a dot across the screen and possible auditory bilateral stimulation.
This bilateral stimulation will engage your brain’s natural processing mechanisms, allowing traumatic memories to be reprocessed in a more adaptive way.
As the bilateral stimulation continues, you may experience a range of thoughts, feelings, and sensations. The intensity of these experiences typically decreases as the traumatic memory becomes less distressing and more integrated with other memories and beliefs.
After the traumatic memory is processed, we can then install a positive belief to replace the negative belief that was associated with the processed memory. This helps to reinforce a sense of safety and resilience.
I will then guide you through a body scan to ensure that there are no residual physical sensations or tension related to the targeted memory.
At the end of each session, I will help you to return to a state of equilibrium, ensuring you feel grounded and safe before concluding the session.
Subsequent sessions may involve reevaluating targets, addressing any new material that has emerged, and reinforcing the positive changes made during the EMDR process.
How Can I Book an EMDR Session?
If you would like to book an EMDR session, you can contact me either by emailing info@foxtherapy.co.uk or phoning/texting 07975590268. I offer a free 20-minute consultation by phone.
