top of page

EMDR Therapy: Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing

What is EMDR?

 

EMDR stands for Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing. EMDR was developed by Francine Shapiro in 1987. When something upsetting happens to us, the mind can often heal itself naturally. It is believed that much of this natural coping mechanism occurs during sleep, in particular REM (rapid eye movement) sleep. It is believed that by using eye movements similar to those that happen during sleep, this natural healing mechanism can be stimulated, and the distressing events can then be processed.

​

What happens when you are traumatised?

 

Most of the time, we routinely manage new information and experiences without being aware of it. However, when something happens to us that is out of the ordinary and overwhelming (for example a car accident), we are subjected to repetitive distress (for example childhood neglect), or when something happens to us that is too confusing to understand, our natural coping mechanism can become overloaded.

 

This can mean that disturbing experiences remain “unprocessed”, and can feel frozen or stuck in our brain, and we can keep reexperiencing them through flashbacks, intrusive thoughts and feelings, nightmares, and distress. These unprocessed memories and feelings are stored in a “raw” and emotional form, rather than in a verbal “story” mode.

 

These traumatic memories can be triggered when you experience events similar to, or that remind you of, the difficult experiences you have been through. Sometimes the memory is long forgotten, but the painful feelings such as anxiety, panic or despair are triggered in the present. EMDR helps to create connections between the brain’s memory networks, enabling your brain to process the traumatic memory in natural way.

What happens in an EMDR Session?

 

We will do a thorough assessment, exploring the symptoms you are experiencing in the present, and how they relate to what has happened to you in the past. I will then ask a set of questions about a particular memory, and then ask you to perform a series of eye movements, similar to those during REM sleep. I use a light bar, so I will ask you to follow the light moving on the light bar with your eyes. The eye movements will last for a short time, and then I will pause the light, and ask you to report back on what you have experienced during the eye movements. This may be feelings, sensations, thoughts or memories.

 

We will repeat the sets of eye movements until the memory has lost its painful intensity, and becomes a neutral memory of an event in the past.

 

It is fairly common not to “complete” a memory during one session. When this happens, I will pause processing, and make sure you are feeling OK before the session ends. We will then restart processing the same memory in the next session.

 

What can EMDR be used for?

 

As well as using EMDR to help with PTSD and the processing of traumatic memories, it can also be used to help with:

  • Anxiety and panic attacks

  • Depression

  • Stress

  • Phobias

  • Grief

  • Pain

  • Self esteem

How long does EMDR treatment take?

 

I offer 60 or 90 minute sessions for EMDR, priced at £75 for 60 minutes, and £100 for 90 minutes.

 

EMDR tends to be a fairly rapid process, but this obviously depends on how many memories we identify to work on together. It’s impossible to say how many sessions you might need, but I am happy to work to a limited number of sessions, and will then discuss with you what we can achieve in that time.

 

Will I remain in control?

 

During EMDR treatment, you will remain in control, fully alert, and wide awake. You can stop the process at any time.

 

What qualifications do you have?

 

As well as being an experienced psychotherapist, with lots of experience in working with trauma, I am an EMDR Therapist, and have completed the EMDR accredited training with the EMDR Academy.

​

What next?

​

If you'd like to explore having EMDR with me, then please contact me, and we'll get the process started.

bottom of page