EMDR Therapy: A Powerful Path to Healing

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy is an extensively researched and effective psychotherapy method proven to help people recover from trauma and other distressing life experiences, including PTSD, anxiety, depression, and panic disorders. It is recognized as an effective treatment for trauma processing by numerous national and international organizations. EMDR therapy supports the brain’s natural ability to heal from disturbing memories, allowing individuals to be informed by these memories without being controlled by them. For many clients, EMDR therapy can be completed in fewer sessions compared to other psychotherapies.

How EMDR Therapy Works:

Our brains have a natural way to recover from traumatic events through communication between the amygdala (alarm signal), hippocampus (memory and safety), and prefrontal cortex (analysis and control). When traumatic experiences are not processed effectively, they can lead to overwhelming feelings and a sense of being stuck in the past. EMDR therapy facilitates the processing of these memories. While focusing on a specific distressing event, the therapist guides the client through sets of bilateral stimulation (BLS), such as side-to-side eye movements, sounds, or taps. For children, other playful movements like patty-cakes, drumming, or dancing can be used. This process helps to reduce the disturbance associated with the memory, allowing for new insights, feelings, and beliefs to emerge. Clients have full control and can stop the reprocessing at any point.

What EMDR Therapy Can Help With:

EMDR therapy has been shown to be effective for a wide range of issues in both adults and children:

• Trauma-related conditions: PTSD and CPTSD (complex post-traumatic stress disorder)
• Anxiety and mood disorders: Anxiety, panic attacks, phobias, depression, and bipolar disorders
• Difficult life experiences: Grief and loss, violence and abuse, sexual assault
• Physical and emotional difficulties: Chronic illness and medical issues, pain, sleep disturbance, eating disorders, substance abuse and addiction
• Challenges faced by children and youth: School problems, bullying, cyberbullying, death, divorce, foster care, family problems, eating or sleep disturbances, difficulty paying attention, changes in school behaviors, irritability, low self-esteem, reenactment of traumatic events, and aggressive or sexualized behavior.

For more information or to set up an appointment with our EMDR specialist: