What Is EMDR Psychotherapy?
EMDR (eye movement desensitization and reprocessing) is an adaptive information processing system developed to help clients move quickly out of stuck and blocked states. Originally used to treat returning members of the armed services dealing with the shock and trauma of battle, it is recognized as one of the most effective ways to treat PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder), other trauma, shock, anxiety disorders, phobias, and a broad range of issues.
This method causes minimal disturbance as the therapist works together with the client to build the clients’ resources, support their strengths, and uses bilateral stimulation (visual, tactile, auditory), to achieve effective results. Also, the therapist uses strategic interventions to help the client resolve issues that feel stuck and to move forward.
Often a “bridging back” technique to incidents and memories in early childhood are instrumental in resolving traumatic events that result in new more effective ways of relating to them and the people involved. Although we cannot change our history, we can change the way we relate to it.
Traumatic events may disconnect clients from feeling present in their body and their body may feel like an unsafe place to be. In trauma clients may lose their ground; so an important part of healing is learning to reestablish ground. Grounding and centering is important to create a feeling of safety: a sense that you cannot so easily be knocked off balance by your emotions and sensations. This all needs to happen leaving enough time and space for the client to make adjustments at a level of tolerance and time frame that feels manageable.