What is EMDR Therapy?
EMDR, or Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, is an innovative therapy proven to reduce symptoms related to anxiety, depression, trauma, addictions, phobias, and other emotional problems. It works by activating different parts of the brain in order to process negatively charged memories, feelings and or beliefs. The results are in increase in positive feelings, clearing fears and other unpleasant feelings, and improved beliefs about the self and the world.
How Can EMDR Help Me?
More than 100 randomized clinical trials have been done to test the efficacy of EMDR therapy. Some of the studies show that in about 84-90% of victims who have been through a single-incident trauma no longer have post-traumatic stress disorder after only three 90-minute sessions. Another study, funded by Kaiser Permanente, found that 100% of the single-event trauma victims and 77% of multiple-event or complex trauma victims were no longer diagnosed with PTSD after only six 50-minute sessions. Another study showed that 77% of combat veterans were free of PTSD in only 12 sessions. There has been so much research on EMDR therapy that it is now recognized as an effective form of treatment for trauma and other adverse life experiences by organizations such as the American Psychiatric Association, the World Health Organization and the Department of Defense. Given the worldwide recognition as an effective treatment, you can see how EMDR therapy would be effective in treating the unpleasant memories and unhelpful or negative beliefs that are the reason people have low self-esteem, feelings of powerlessness, and all the myriad problems that bring them in for therapy. Hundreds of thousands of clinicians use EMDR Therapy throughout the world. Millions of people have been treated successfully with this treatment since its creation, over 37 years ago.
Is EMDR Only For Treating Trauma?
Definitely not! EMDR started as a treatment for with with PTSD but has since been utilized and studied on a variety of people and diagnosis. A large meta-analysis of Randomized Control Trials evaluated the effectiveness of EMDR. The review found that EMDR can successfully treat several disorders beyond PTSD and Trauma. In 17 trials with 647 patients (Yunitri et al., 2020), results demonstrated that EMDR is successful in the reduction of anxiety, panic, phobia, behavioral, and somatic symptoms. In our practice, we have utilized it for all of the mental health challenges listed above as well as heartbreak, grief, OCD, attachment issues and negative beliefs about the self (e.g. I’m not good enough, I’m a failure) and others.
SCHEDULE A FREE CONSULTATIONWhat does EMDR therapy entail? How Does EMDR Work?
EMDR Therapy has 8 phases of treatment: history and treatment planning, preparation, assessment, desensitization, installation, body scan, closure, and reevaluation. At the beginning, we gather your history and information needed for treatment. This can include your current symptoms, positive and negative experiences, identifying unhelpful core beliefs that impact your life today. Most importantly, we utilize your positive life experiences, influencers, and other tools to increase your ability to feel supported and empowered. Second, we create a toolbox of coping skills, we move on to the EMDR desensitizing phase. Here, we use bilateral stimulation (a side to side activation of the brain with eye movements, sound, or tapping) to weaken the negative memories, unpleasant emotions and beliefs we identified. In addition, disturbing memories are reprocessed in the brain, resulting in painful feelings being exchanged for resolved, peaceful feelings. Many clients see dramatic results in just a few EMDR sessions.
Will EMDR or Trauma Therapy be overwhelming?
Some clients who have already experienced trauma therapy or who have not addressed their traumas yet, are weary that the therapy will cause intense emotions. This is rarely the case with our unique EMDR treatment approach. We utilize a lot of supportive and uplifting EMDR therapy tools to avoid re-experiencing your adverse experiences so that you leave your sessions feeling lighter and contained.
Is EMDR Therapy Effective When Done Online or Via Video?
Our practice has seen that EMDR treatment sessions are just as effective as in person sessions. In addition, many people report preferring their home for EMDR treatment. Firstly, remote EMDR sessions are done in a familiar and safe place to process traumatic memories. Secondly, with video sessions, there is the benefit of not driving after a session, which allows for more time to decompress and limits the stress from driving. Lastly, online sessions allows you the ability to schedule a treatment session into a busy life schedule.
Contact us
We are happy to answer any questions you may have. We serve clients out of California, Texas, and Florida for video sessions.