EMDR is a powerful and effective therapeutic approach that addresses numerous types of distressing events that an individual may have experienced. EMDR appears to have a direct effect on the way the brain processes information. No one knows how any type of therapy works in the brain. What is known is that when a person is upset, or triggered, their brain processes information differently. The memory of a distressing event, or trauma memory, may feel as if that event is happening in present time because memories are stored with all the images, smell, and sounds of the actual event. These memories have a lasting negative effect that interferes with the way a person interacts with other people and the world.
EMDR appears to be similar to what occurs naturally during dreaming or REM (rapid eye movement) sleep.
So, EMDR can be thought of as a physiologically based therapy that helps a person see disturbing events in a different, less distressing way, or stated another way, takes the emotional component of memories away.
After determining if a client is appropriate for EMDR, the therapy begins. I conduct typical EMDR sessions in 90 – 120 minutes, or 60 minutes two days in a row. How long EMDR takes depends of the memory, life circumstances, the amount of distressing, traumatic events an individual has had in his or her life. Research conducted over the last 20+ years supports the effectiveness of EMDR as a rapid and effective treatment. For further information visit www.emdr.com or www.emdria.org.