I am an EMDR trained clinician and am currently working towards my EMDRIA certification. I absolutely LOVE doing EMDR, it has literally changed my life and the lives of my patients. It has really re-energized me and my practice. The progress my patients make in such a short period of time makes me want more, I’m pretty sure I’m addicted to EMDR, haha. EMDR is empirically proven to be effective in the treatment of PTSD and developmental trauma. Neurobiological imaging research has actually been able to document changes in the brain as a result of EMDR (Pagani, M. 2014).

So what is EMDR? I have to explain this to my patients and I’m always finding myself over-explaining and still not making sense. So I am writing this for 2 reasons: 1. To have a place to refer my patients to so they can understand what it is and not make me sound like a voodoo practitioner and 2. To answer some of your questions for whatever reason you are here.

What does EMDR Stand for?

E-Eye

M-Movement

D-Desensitization

R-Reprocessing

“Ok that’s great... that really sounds like gibberish to me” is probably what you are thinking. So here is my explanation, as best as I can put it into words. This really is something you need to see or experience to fully grasp but I’ll do my best to explain it.

The mind is a very complex and amazing organ in our body. There used to be a belief that there was no way to heal the brain, once it was done “growing” that was it. We also often receive the message “that will kill brain cells and you’ll never get those back!” But in the past few decades, we have actually come to find out that isn’t necessarily true. The brain has the ability to heal itself. This means we can do things to help heal it or make new neuro-pathways (aka break old habits and create new ones). I often use the analogy of walking in nature, we can take the path that’s already established or we can start creating our own path. For example a tree has fallen and the trail is no longer accessible, so you create a new path around the tree to where you want to go… what happens over time? The old trail starts to disappear as the grass grows back and the new path starts to emerge with each visit.

EMDR focuses first on processing memories using eye movements, much like those experienced in REM sleep. When we sleep our brain and body go through a natural coping mechanism to process and store away memories. This is why they tell you to “sleep on it” or make sure you get enough “sleep” the night before a test. When you get into the deep stages of sleep your brain is helping you remember and process things you have learned or need to remember. In EMDR we are replicating this same process, allowing your brain to heal itself.

EMDR was originally discovered by Francine Shapiro almost by accident. After years of fine-tuning and replicating on patients, protocols were put in place. Initially, EMDR was found to be helpful with veterans who were experiencing PTSD symptoms. Since then it has been used for a wide variety of mental and physical health concerns. EMDR targets various types of memories that are associated with negative emotions, symptoms, and beliefs. These memories are considered to be unprocessed when they trigger these reactions. The idea is to desensitize those sensations and reprocess the memories in a more adaptive way so that the emotional charge doesn’t take over when reflecting back on these memories or images in the future.

When we experience an incident that elicits a strong ‘fight or flight’ response the brain shuts down the feedback loop and the memory gets “stuck” or jumbled in our unconscious brain, the emotional brain, rather than in the cortex where we use language to store memories. We often have no idea they’re even there. Francine Shapiro uses the following example in her book, “Getting Past Your Past,” when I type “Roses are Red” what words come up automatically in your head? “Violets are blue”? But she goes on to say that it’s because it’s so automatic, we don’t even have to think about it. However, she also points out that not all roses are red and violets are not actually blue but we don’t think to question this because our unconscious brain has been taught to memorize this saying. But just as we can learn these “automatic” thoughts, we can also unlearn them and replace them with something more adaptive.

There are 8 “phases” of EMDR treatment. Often phases 1 and 2 can take the most amount of time. Phase 1 consists of a thorough assessment of the past and present. This can include various questionnaires and even medical check-ups. Phase 1 helps to identify not only areas of strength but also things that are less developed. These less developed skills are strengthened in Phase 2, preparation phase. This is where you and your therapist will determine various coping skills and tools that need to be strengthened to make sure you have the necessary coping skills, support, and resources to start the process. With most therapy, things can get worse before they get better, and dealing with past traumas/experiences/lack of, can bring up a lot of ‘stuff.’

Phase 3 through 6 are where the processing happens. Each memory/target goes through all of these phases. You will be guided by your therapist who has been trained in EMDR (make sure that they have attended an EMDRIA approved training). If your therapist has obtained their EMDRIA certification, that is even better. This means they have gone through rigorous additional training with each renewal and have obtained 20 additional hours of consultation which often includes a review of recorded sessions for feedback and further learning. Typically eye movements are done, this is often in the form of the therapists’ fingers being moved back and forth across your line of sight. Eye movements can be done in a variety of ways including a light bar. Or if you’re more of a tactile processor, they will use taping or tappers that vibrate. Both of these can also be accompanied by headphones. You will be asked to hold a memory/target in your mind while this happens for short sets. The therapist will stop and check-in after each set and check in to see what you experienced during the set. The therapist does not offer any interpretation and intervenes as little as possible to allow your brain to do what it needs to do on its own. Remember, your brain has the ability to heal itself. The sets continue until the target is no longer disturbing and then you move on to instilling the positive cognition you want to believe about yourself and then the rest of the phases are done before moving on to the next target.

It’s not unusual for intense emotions, memories or sensations to not only come up in the session but also between the session. This is why it is important to have a properly trained EMDR therapist, not just in EMDR but trauma and other conditions. Your therapist will ask you to make a plan to use the coping skills set in place during Phase 2, write down anything that comes up for check-in at the next session and call your therapist between sessions if needed.

EMDR is a great way to treat such conditions as anxiety, panic, depression, stress, phobias, sleep problems, grief, addiction, pain (chronic or acute), phantom limb pain, various traumas (not only major trauma but attachment or developmental), self-esteem and performance anxiety. There has been an abundance of studies done worldwide to demonstrate the validity and reliability of EMDR. As of this post, I am aware of 20 randomized controlled studies, making EMDR the most thoroughly researched method of trauma treatment and the 2nd most researched therapy just behind CBT.

You can find out more information about EMDR by checking out EMDRIA.org, EMDR-Europe.org, and many other websites such as the VA. You can also check out the book “Getting Past Your Past” by Francine Shapiro, “The Body Keeps the Score” by Bessel van der Kolk, and “The Brain that Changes Itself” by Norman Doidge. Or checking out these videos: What is EMDR? And Can EMDR Remove Fear & Shame. If you are a therapist who is interested in getting trained in EMDR or are already trained but would like to expand your knowledge, I highly recommend PTI’s S.A.F.E. EMDR (Somatic & Attachment-Focused EMDR), you can check out their blog on what makes it different here.

If you have any questions or would like to suggest a topic for a future blog, you can reach out to me by email at Colleen@ScatteredPotential.com, subscribe to my blog, or my newsletter by filling out the form below. Follow me on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.