You've heard of it ... But what exactly is EMDR?

Some of you come to The Counseling Center because you want EMDR therapy. Others of you have never heard of it, or maybe you’ve heard of it but aren't really sure what it is. What, exactly, is EMDR Therapy?

EMDR stands for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. It's a big fancy title for a type of therapy that is ideal for trauma and breaking persistent patterns of thinking. In fact, it's one of the only methods of therapy that has been endorsed by the Veterans Association to treat veterans with PTSD. That's a big deal!

But you don't need PTSD to benefit from EMDR. Most of us have negative patterns of thinking like ''I'm worthless" or "I don't deserve love" that have been with us since childhood.

Those thought patterns, just like flashbacks from a trauma, get "stuck" in the brain. And when a trauma or thought pattern gets stuck, it's not easy to change it. We've all tried to stop intrusive thoughts and sometimes no matter how much we want to stop the thoughts, we can't.

EMDR Therapy specifically targets those "stuck" areas in your brain. Don't worry, it's not as scary as it sounds. In fact, most clients find it not only extremely helpful, but also relaxing. Using tones in a headphone and little buzzers that you hold in your hand (or moving your eyes from side to side), your EMDR therapist will walk you into some particular thoughts and memories that have been discussed in advance, and then we just let your brain do the work it needs to do to heal.

All of us here at The Counseling Center are trained in this type of therapy because we have seen how effective it is. It is remarkable.  If you want more information, you can visit the EMDR website at www.emdr.com or www.emdria.org.  Or schedule an appointment with one of our therapists to see how EMDR might help you!

Written by Stacy Stoddard, LCMFT