Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprocessing (EMDR)

Do you sometimes feel your emotional life is like a roller coaster ride? Do you find yourself having the same argument with your loved one or caught in an endless cycle of hurt feelings and hopelessness? Often at the root of this suffering is a well of unprocessed memories that have been pushed into the deep recesses of the unconscious. These past memories when traumatic, continue to trigger painful emotions often out of proportion to the present event.  Some of this past emotion is too painful to cope with so it is stored on a cellular level and can cause physical symptoms and even illness if left unprocessed. Studies have indicated that significant trauma actually causes pathways to develop in our brain. When we become upset by something, even if it is minimal, these pathways are triggered and can cause an emotional reaction similar in intensity to the original trauma.

EMDR is a process that heals on a neurological level. New pathways are formed and old triggers dissipate. Unlike other methods of therapy, EMDR is scientifically proven to be effective. It is short in duration and offers an alternative to traditional therapy.

I went into EMDR training with a healthy skepticism of this process which is said to have a high rate of recovery.

It wasn't until I experienced EMDR as a client that I recognized the shift in perspective regarding a recent trauma of my own. I went into a painful experience from my recent past, full of self doubt and shame. After the process I felt competent and even more important, a recognition of the truth and sincerity of my own beingness.

I recommend this therapeutic process to anyone who has felt unable to move forward because of past trauma, chronic emotional suffering or caught in a cycle of making poor relationship choices.

Update on Tuesday, November 13, 2012 at 11:30AM by Beverly Glover

Ask an Expert About E.M.D.R.

By TOBY BILANOW

The psychological therapy known as eye movement desensitization and reprocessing, or E.M.D.R., has gained increasing attention in recent years as a treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder among returning war veterans and others suffering from the results of serious trauma. The integrative approach uses rapid eye movements and other procedures to access and process disturbing memories.

 

“Recent research has demonstrated that certain kinds of everyday life experiences can cause symptoms of P.T.S.D. as well,” says Francine Shapiro, the originator of E.M.D.R. “Many people feel that something is holding them back in life, causing them to think, feel and behave in ways that don’t serve them. E.M.D.R. therapy is used to identify and process the encoded memories of life experiences that underlie people’s clinical complaints.”