An Overview of EMDR Therapy

What is EMDR Therapy?

Put plainly, EMDR therapy, which stands for Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprocessing (EMDR), is an evidence-based therapy that focuses on memory reprocessing. It’s a bit different than talk therapy. EMDR is more about identifying the memories connected to your current distress & using bilateral stimulation (think back & forth movement like walking) to decrease the associated cognitive, emotional, & physical distress. Initially, EMDR therapy for PTSD was studied and further developed. However, EMDR therapy has been further studied and found effective for many different concerns and/or issues.

How is EMDR different than talk therapy?

If you’ve been in talk therapy before, some parts of EMDR therapy will be familiar. Identifying emotions and beliefs and increasing coping skills are typically a part of the process in EMDR therapy. However, instead of focusing on talking through what you know and have experienced, you change your relationship to your memories and shift how you live with these experiences.

How does EMDR impact & change my brain?

The theory behind EMDR is called Adaptive Information Processing (AIP). The theory supposes that “unprocessed” memories are stored maladaptively in the brain and this is what causes present issues. These traumatic and/or distressing memories hold the negative thoughts, feelings, and physical sensations and are “locked” in place in that way. The bilateral movement (e.g., eye movements back and forth) “unlocks” the mechanism by which we process memories and restarts the natural process we have to digest memories.

What does that mean for you?

Sometimes, after experiencing something traumatic, your brain doesn’t process away the distress the way it is built to.

For example, if you were in a car accident and your brain didn’t “process” the distress, months or years later, you might be very fearful of getting into cars. You might feel overwhelm in your body and have the sense that “I’m unsafe” at the prospect of getting into the car.

When a memory is stored like this, even though you can think about it and talk through how you are safe now, the image, sensations, thoughts, and feelings don’t change.

What EMDR does is “reprocess” the memory, so that you can digest the memory and no longer feel that same distress when thinking of the car accident or about getting into a car. This is part of why EMDR therapy for PTSD and trauma can be effective.

What will EMDR Therapy look like?

Below is an outline of the eight phases of EMDR therapy. It’s not necessarily always in this order, but this is generally what the components of the therapy include.

How Effective is EMDR Therapy?

The EMDR Institute has compiled many different studies, meta-analyses, and organizations which approve EMDR as a recommended treatment. You can read more about those studies here.

Will EMDR help me if I don’t have PTSD? How do I know if it will help?

EMDR therapy can still be effective for those that don’t meet the criteria for PTSD. One of the things EMDR can help with is if you experience a disproportionate reaction to an experience. So, you know that what you’re feeling, the intensity of what you feel, and your thinking in an experience aren’t quite matching what is happening in the present moment. The best way to get a sense of if it may help is speaking with a trained EMDR therapist.

Where can I find a trained EMDR therapist?

You can find a trained or certified EMDR therapist through the EMDR International Association. You can also reach out to Lisa Stepelevich, LPC to chat more about EMDR and if it might be helpful for you.