Trauma Recovery & EMDR Therapy

Traumatic experiences and distressing events can impact impact your daily life in sometimes obvious and unexpected ways.  Even if it occurred years ago, one might experience painful emotions, become stuck in unhealthy patterns, and have limiting and negative self-beliefs.  EMDR is a highly researched and powerful therapy tool that can transforms the effects of these experiences and renew a sense of empowerment and possibility. 

EMDR, which stands for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, is a unique and innovative form of therapy that targets traumatic memories that may have become locked in the brain in an unhelpful way when a person is under unusual stress and continue to effect you in your present day.  These memories may be triggered by sounds, smells, noises, and images that cause upsetting flashbacks that feel like the event is happening all over again.  Often times these experiences can be very damaging to self-esteem, such as when someone forms negative beliefs about themselves and their environment as part of that experience, such as “I am worthless,” "I am not good enough," “It's all my fault,” “I am not safe," or “I can’t trust other people.”  EMDR seeks to unlock these traumatic memories and allows the client undergoing this form of therapy to move towards healthy resolution and closure.    

EMDR uses what is called bilateral brain stimulation, often in the form of rapid eye movements (similar to what occurs during the REM phase of sleep) to better access these traumatic experiences.  Part of what makes EMDR so effective is that it does not just address your thoughts and feelings, but creates a mind-body connection.  This is achieved by assisting you in combining your memories about how your body feels, what emotions you may have, what negative thoughts come up for you, and what sensations you experience in your body as you remember these past experiences.  EMDR works by both integrating and reprocessing these past experiences, so that old memories no longer seem so upsetting, and by helping you move towards healing as you begin to think about your past and your place in it in a new way.  

If you have questions or would like to discuss EMDR as an option for you, please call me or email me to schedule an appointment.  For additional information about EMDR, please visit the EMDR Institute’s website.