Why I Use EMDR Therapy

So What’s This EMDR Business Everyone Keeps Talkin’ About?

You might have seen Prince Harry crossing his arms, or Sandra Bullock on Red Table Talk. Or you might have come here due to plain, old curiosity - well the good news is you have found the right place. Eye Movement Desensitization Re-processing (EMDR) is an effective and extensively researched therapy backed by the World Health Organisation, U.S Dept of Veteran Affairs and the UK National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (among other Institutes), commonly used to treat symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. The good news is [and what makes this treatment so effective] is that the individual does not have to talk about the distressing issue in detail. How does it work? Well the beauty lies in the neuroscience of the work; EMDR involves bilateral stimulation movement (left-to-right) to encourage different parts of the brain to communicate between each other. When a distressing event happens, memories can become “frozen”, or “stuck in a loop”, so that it can feel as though the event is happening in present time. EMDR helps resolve this by supporting the brain to process the event where the memories are “stuck” so that the normal process of healing can resume. The distressing event is still remembered - however the individual’s distress reaction in the fight/flight/freeze parts of the brain is resolved. This is a powerful tool to use in the therapy room and one gaining momentum internationally - My goal in supporting supervisees is to inspire them and offer an insight into the power of working with ‘bottom-up’ based approaches to therapy.

*EMDR requires specific training and strict training requirements which is not offered by Bridge Back EMDR and Consulting.

Keen to know more? Hit the knowledge link to find out some frequently asked questions, answered by Australia’s EMDR Association.