What is EDMR?

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is a unique form of psychotherapy developed by Dr. Francine Shapiro in the late 1980s, designed primarily to alleviate the distress associated with traumatic memories. EMDR therapy is based on the premise that the mind can often heal itself naturally, similar to the body's healing process. The approach recognizes that severe emotional pain, resulting from traumatic experiences, can overwhelm the brain's normal coping mechanisms. When this happens, the traumatic memories seem to get "locked" in the nervous system with the original pictures, sounds, thoughts, feelings, and body sensations. EMDR therapy helps the brain process these memories, allowing normal healing to resume.

The core feature of EMDR therapy involves the patient recalling a traumatic event while receiving bilateral sensory input, such as side-to-side eye movements, hand tapping, or auditory tones. This bilateral stimulation is thought to mimic the psychological state that we enter during rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. During REM sleep, the eyes move rapidly from side to side, which is associated with the processing of emotional experiences. EMDR therapy integrates elements of cognitive therapy with rhythmic, left-right stimulation. This combination is believed to tap into the biological mechanisms involved in the processing of traumatic memories.

In an EMDR therapy session, the therapist leads the client through a series of steps that include recalling the traumatic event, identifying a negative belief about oneself connected to the event, and then formulating a positive belief to replace it. As the client focuses on the traumatic memory and the negative self-belief, the therapist administers bilateral stimulation. Over time, the distress from the memory decreases, and the memory becomes less disabling. EMDR therapy is recognized as an effective form of treatment for trauma by organizations such as the American Psychological Association and the World Health Organization. Its success has been backed by numerous studies, making it a well-respected and widely used method in the field of psychological trauma recovery.