EMDR

  • “I’ve always felt like something is missing, but I don’t know what it is.”
  • “I have a hard time connecting to others.”
  • “I never feel good enough.”
  • “I sometimes get strong emotions that seem to come from nowhere.”
  • “I don’t really feel strongly about things.”
  • “I can’t remember much of my childhood.”
  • “I feel really anxious in my relationships.”
  • “I often feel like I have several conflicting parts.”
  • “I don’t like thinking about myself.”
  • “I pick relationships that are bad for me.”

– These are some examples of where EMDR can help. 

EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) is a type of psychotherapy I use to help clients who have experienced various types of attachment issues and trauma throughout their lives. Sometimes trauma is acute and can be pinpointed to an event such as an accident, an assault or a death. Often people will experience PTSD from these traumas. Other times trauma can be complex and even be disguised as anxiety, difficulty developing healthy relationships, passivity, depression, ADHD, anger, low self-esteem and more. It can be the result of a difficult childhood, multiple physical, emotional or sexual assaults, being raised by parents who have mental health or substance abuse issues, or perhaps one of the other Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACES).

According to the EMDR International Association: “EMDR enables people to heal from the symptoms and emotional distress that are the result of disturbing life experiences.  Repeated studies show that by using EMDR therapy people can experience the benefits of psychotherapy that once took years to make a difference. It is widely assumed that severe emotional pain requires a long time to heal.  EMDR therapy shows that the mind can in fact heal from psychological trauma much as 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 toward mental health.  If the system is blocked or imbalanced by the impact of a disturbing event, the emotional wound festers and can cause intense suffering.  Once the block is removed, healing resumes.  Using the detailed protocols and procedures learned in EMDR therapy training sessions, clinicians help clients activate their natural healing processes.”

For more information, please refer to the EMDR International Association’s website.