EMDR Therapy
Manage stress, process experiences, & embrace future growth
What is EMDR?
EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing) is a comprehensive psychotherapy designed to help your brain process distressing memories and negative experiences.
Rather than relying only on talking, EMDR helps you to connect physical sensations with beliefs, feelings, and memories, unlocking your nervous system’s natural capacity to heal and resolve emotional distress.
EMDR is an evidence-based therapy recognised internationally. It’s recommended by the NHS, the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE), and the World Health Organisation (WHO).
Common questions about EMDR
EMDR isn’t as common as other forms of therapy e.g. talk therapy, so clients usually have more questions about it. I try to answer some common ones here.
You can also read my blogs about EMDR.
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At the heart of EMDR therapy is the idea that present issues (e.g. anxiety or intrusive thoughts) are caused by unprocessed experiences. So EMDR is about helping the brain process memories, so they no longer cause emotional pain in the present.
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One thing I love about EMDR is that it’s an active and experiential type of therapy. That means it involves more than just talking. Talking isn’t always the same as processing, as it’s possible to stay ‘in your head’.
But because EMDR involves taking clear and structured steps, it offers real hope for healing and change.
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No, it’s much more than just a ‘trauma’ therapy. For example, if you feel anxious a lot of the time this normally comes from somewhere. It could be due to experiences that you’ve had and EMDR can help you to find and work through these. That’s why it’s also very helpful for low self-esteem which can also be rooted in some difficult experiences.
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EMDR can be used effectively to help with the following:
The impacts of trauma including PTSD & CPTSD
Impacts of other negative experiences and emotions
Phobias and future fears
Low self-esteem
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EMDR doesn’t have to involve just eye movements. Sometimes it involves physical tapping (where you tap your own body) or other sensory tools.
The thing these have in common is they involve side to side movements i.e. bilateral stimulation. This activates your natural ability to process difficult experiences.
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I often work with clients who’ve experienced a sense of feeling uneasy in childhood, but they can’t necessarily pinpoint any specific event as such. So, they can’t see a link between the past and where they are today.
Rest assured, this is very common – I’ve worked with many clients who are not sure where things come from. I’ll work with you to find the best way forward.
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EMDR is a complete therapy, which involves some preparation and planning as well as processing. I have outlined below what you can expect from EMDR therapy with me.
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Clients often tell me that after a processing session they feel ‘weird’ – in a good way!
What happens with EMDR is that I have helped you to activate the emotional charge that often sits around an old experience and – by doing that – reduced its emotional intensity.
Like a filing cabinet, we’ve helped your brain to reorganise itself and ‘file’ the experience in a way that feels less intense.
What to expect during EMDR therapy with me.
EMDR is very different to traditional talk therapy. It’s much more interactive and focused. EMDR’s all about resolving the root causes of what bothers us in the present. And when we do that, present symptoms tend to reduce.
Therapy involves getting to know you, your experiences, what you want to focus on, and creating a plan tailored to your needs.
I help you to feel safe, supported, and grounded during the therapy process, while addressing your questions or concerns about the approach.
Together, we would work to identify what you’d like to process, along with any negative beliefs, emotions and physical sensations linked to these experiences.
A major part of EMDR therapy is activating your brain’s natural ability to process information. To do this (and this is the slightly weird bit!) I ask you to focus on your experience while moving your eyes, tapping, or using sensory and auditory equipment.
These side-to-side movements are known as alternate bilateral stimulation (another example is the butterfly hug pictured above), and it’s thought that they activate the same processing which occurs naturally during REM sleep.
But EMDR is NOT hypnosis as you remain awake and aware throughout. There’s no need to be frightened. I guide you through the process, and you’re in control so can stop at any point.
I consistently review your progress, addressing any remaining distress, and continually working toward your healing and growth.