The point is still to lean toward the discomfort of life and see it clearly rather than to protect ourselves from it.
Pema Chodron
What is EMDR?
EMDR, or Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, is a highly researched, evidence-based form of therapy that helps reduce the effects of distressing memories by engaging your brain’s natural adaptive processing mechanisms. By engaging your brain in bilateral stimulation, you can help your brain reprocess traumatic or stressful memories that are still impacting your life today. EMDR has proven to have high success rates in a shorter amount of time. Though everyone’s experience is different, some people report relief after only a few sessions!
Normally, when something distressing occurs, your brain will naturally process all the information associated with the event and come to a logical, adaptive conclusion that allows you to move forward in life. However, some events are so traumatic that they stay “stuck” in a fight/flight/freeze/fold response, meaning anytime you think about the memory or perhaps experience a sound, smell, sight, taste, or sensation that reminds you of the event, you feel just as distressed as when it actually occurred. You may also develop negative beliefs about yourself in relation to the event that can trigger low feelings of self-worth.
I interweave yogic practices into your EMDR experience in the Resourcing phase of treatment. This phase helps you learn tools to manage stress during treatment and long after!
EMDR is a technique that helps your brain reprocess through these memories via bilateral stimulation. This bilateral stimulation engages your brain’s natural adaptive processing mechanisms and can greatly impact how a memory affects you. You can still recall the event, but it no longer feels quite as distressing. EMDR also helps you form more healthy beliefs about yourself in regard to the event and reduce the re-experiencing of the images and sensations of the event. EMDR can also be helpful for phobias, panic attacks, and complicated grief.