EMDR – Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing is a form of therapy used to treat multiple aspects of trauma. It is a structured therapy that encourages the patient to briefly focus on the traumatic memory while simultaneously experiencing bilateral stimulation (usually eye movements), which is typically associated with a reduction in the intensity of the emotion that always accompanies the traumatic memory.
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy (Shapiro, 2001, 2017) was initially developed in 1987 for the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), guided by the Adaptive Information Processing model (AIP) (Shapiro 2007).
EMDR is an individual therapy usually administered once or twice a week, totaling 6-12 sessions, although some patients need fewer sessions.
Unlike other therapy methods, sessions can be conducted on consecutive days.
The Adaptive Information Processing (AIP) model considers PTSD symptoms and other traumatic disorders (excluding those with physical or chemical causes) as results of very intense past experiences that continue to cause distress due to inadequate processing of the memory and defective (unintegrated) storage in memory. These unprocessed memories are understood to contain the emotions, thoughts, beliefs, and physical sensations that occurred at the time of the event. Therefore, when memories that have remained unprocessed (or improperly integrated) are triggered, these disturbing stored elements are re-experienced, causing PTSD symptoms and/or other disorders.
In conclusion, unlike other forms of therapy that focus on directly modifying emotions, thoughts, and responses resulting from traumatic experiences, EMDR therapy focuses directly on the moment of the trauma, aiming to change how the traumatic memory is stored in the brain, thereby reducing and eliminating problematic symptoms through desensitization and reprocessing.
Clinical observations suggest that during EMDR therapy, an accelerated learning process is facilitated and stimulated by the standardized EMDR procedures, which incorporate the use of eye movements and other forms of left-right rhythmic (bilateral) stimulation (e.g., tones or taps). Thus, while clients briefly focus on the traumatic memory and simultaneously experience bilateral stimulation (BLS), the associated intensity and emotion are greatly reduced (Shapiro, 2017).
Read more here, in my blog article.
From a therapeutic perspective, EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) is indicated as a method of treatment, or as an adjunctive treatment, for adults, children, adolescents, and even couples, across a wide range of conditions and disorders. We can target together: anxiety, depression, sleep disorders, panic attacks, PTSD, borderline personality disorder, eating disorders, fear and phobias, or other disorders.