Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR) Therapy
EMDR is an evidence based psychotherapy and recommended by NICE guidelines as a treatment for post traumatic stress in both adults and children. It enables you to heal from the emotional distress and symptoms of trauma or other distressing life experiences.
Studies have shown that using EMDR can help heal psychological trauma in a shorter period of time where it once might have taken years of psychotherapy to make a difference. EMDR therapy shows that the mind can in fact help heal from psychological trauma like the body recovers from physical trauma. When you cut your hand, your body works to close the wound. If a foreign object or repeated injury irritates the wound, it festers and causes pain. Once the block is removed healing resumes.
EMDR therapy demonstrates that a similar sequence of events occurs with mental processes. The brain’s information processing system naturally moves towards mental health. If that system is blocked or imbalanced by the impact of a disturbing event then the emotional wound festers and can cause intense suffering. Once the block is removed, healing resumes. An EMDR therapist helps their clients to activate their natural healing processes using the protocols and procedures learned in EMDR training.
EMDR facilitates the accessing of the traumatic memory network, so that processing of those memories is enhanced, with new associations forged between the trauma memory and more adaptive memories or information. These new associations are thought to result in complete information processing, new learning, elimination of emotional distress and development of cognitive insights.
Successful treatment results include:
- Reduced emotional distress
- Revised negative beliefs
- Reduced Physiological arousal (fight and flight) symptoms
Benefits of EMDR over other exposure therapies:
- You will attend to the disturbing material in brief doses whilst focusing on an external stimulus
- No homework
The Research
Some studies have shown that 84-90% of single-trauma (type 1) victims no longer have post-traumatic stress disorder after only three 90-minute EMDR sessions. Another study, funded by the HMO Kaiser Permanente, found that 100% of the single-trauma victims and 77% of multiple trauma victims no longer were diagnosed with PTSD after only six 50-minute sessions. In another study, 77% of combat veterans were free of PTSD in 12 sessions.
Given the worldwide recognition as an effective treatment of trauma, you can easily see how EMDR therapy would be effective in treating the “everyday” memories that are the reason people have low self-esteem, feelings of powerlessness, and all the myriad problems that bring them in for therapy.
Are there any side effects?
As with any form of therapy, there may be a temporary increase in distress as unresolved memories may emerge and some clients may experience reactions during a treatment session that neither they nor the administrating therapist may have anticipated. This may include a high level of emotion or physical sensation. Don’t worry your therapist knows how to support you if this happens and you will spend some time exploring and practicing soothing skills before you enter into the processing phase.
Inbetween sessions
Inbetween sessions the processing of incidents/material may continue and enter dreams, memories, feelings may emerge. This is your mind processing the material and it can be useful to jot it down and share with your therapist who is there to support you all the way.
Reference EMDR Institute, Inc
www.emdr.com