EMDR

EMDR certified thearpist San Diego.jpeg

What is EMDR?

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), is and integrative psychotherapy that is extensively researched and has shown to be effective in treating trauma and other distressing life circumstances, including PTSD, panic disorders, anxiety, and depression. The EMDR approach believes past emotionally-charged experiences are overly influencing your present emotions, sensations, and thoughts about yourself. As an example: “Do you ever feel worthless although you know you are a worthwhile person?”

EMDR therapy SD.jpg

EMDR can help with:

  • Chronic and persistent personal negative beliefs

  • Present day trauma

  • Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

  • Anxiety and panic attacks

  • Depression

  • Phobias

  • Racial Trauma

  • Complicated grief

  • Disturbing memories

  • Low self-esteem

  • Stress reduction

  • Addictions

  • Bulling

  • not being accepted for being LBGTQ+

  • Perfectionism

  • Childhood trauma including emotional neglect

  • Performance Anxiety

  • Sexual/physical/emotional abuse ongoing and/or in your past

SD therapist addiction.jpg

How it works.

Based on neurobiological research, we know that when you get very upset, your brain cannot process process information as it does ordinarily. A moment can become "frozen" in time and remembering a trauma may feel as bad as going through it the first time because the images, sounds, smells and feelings have not changed. Such memories have a lasting effect that interferes with the way you may see the world and the way you relate to other people. EMDR has a direct effect on the way that your brain processes information. Therefore, EMDR can be thought of as a physiologically based therapy that helps you see disturbing material in a new and less distressing way. 

EMDR-brain scan

Benefits of EMDR.

People who have experienced or witnessed violence, disasters, crimes, sexual assault and other traumas, victims of crime and professionals such as police, emergency workers and firefighters; accident victims and anyone who has experienced a serious loss (such as the death of a close friend of family member, divorce, etc.). EMDR is also very effective treatment for people suffering from phobias--fear of flying, water, spiders, etc.

Because EMDR has the power to relieve any type of emotional block or fear, It can also be used to enhance the performance of athletes, actors, musicians, students, public speakers and executives. Reduce performance anxiety and stage fright.

A recent study of individuals who experienced rape, military combat, loss of loved ones, disasters and serious accidents, found that 84-90% had relief of their emotional distress after only three EMDR sessions. Another study showed that EMDR was twice as effective in half the amount of time of standard traditional psychotherapeutic care.

EMDR therapy San Diego.jpg

What to expect.

A typical EMDR session begins with the therapist gently guiding the client to pinpoint a problem or event that will be the target of the treatment. As the thoughts and feelings come to the surface, the therapist and client work together to re-direct the eye movements that accompany the briefly recalled experience. As the eye movements are re-directed, the accompanying emotions are released. The patterns of eye movements continue until the emotions are neutralized and the event is re-associated with positive thoughts and feelings about oneself, such as" I realize now that it wasn't my fault".

 
 

For more info go to emdria.org.

https://www.emdria.org/about-emdr-therapy/

Set up a consultation today to get more questions answered about EMDR.