EMDR

What is EMDR?

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is a psychotherapeutic technique allowing clients to process material that has become “stuck” or “frozen in time.” By alternately stimulating the right and left hemispheres of the brain, usually through directional movement of the eyes, EMDR elicits a succession of images, thoughts or feelings that have the effect of processing troubling memories and beliefs.

Clinical controlled studies have demonstrated the effectiveness of EMDR in decreasing or eliminating the symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder. EMDR has also proved effective for dealing with anxiety, panic attacks, grief, disturbing memories, sexual and/or physical abuse, phobias, eating disorders, performance anxiety, and stress reduction. EMDR offers the benefit of processing trauma without re-traumatizing.

EMDR and Core Beliefs

EMDR offers a powerful tool for rapidly changing those stubborn core beliefs, stemming from early childhood neglect or abuse, that are so difficult to uproot in traditional psychotherapy. Imagine a piece of food stuck in your throat--stomach enzymes can’t get at it; mouth enzymes can’t get at it—so it remains undigested, unassimilated, unmetabolized. EMDR allows the brain to process traumatic experiences that have become “stuck.”

Dealing with early disturbing memories has a kind of “domino effect” which clears out years of emotional attachment to negative beliefs, such as “I am powerless” or “I have to be perfect.” The original memories remain intact after processing but lose their power to inflict emotional damage. EMDR processes negative memories that interfere with the way a person perceives the world and relates to others.

A Session of EMDR

As a client you are invited to name the ten most disturbing incidents or memories in your life and, with the therapist’s guidance, to choose one as a target for treatment. Clients report a variety of experiences during the process of bilateral stimulation (usually following the therapist’s fingers with their eyes): some see only images, perhaps beginning with the target incident and then skipping to various scenes throughout the client’s life; others perceive a succession of phrases or brief thoughts; still others experience a number of moods or emotions. Many report a combination of these different possibilities.

You do not need to capture, analyze, criticize or correct any of these phenomena. Instead, like a passenger on a train, you simply report on the passing scenery, trusting in the power of the mind and body to carry on the process of healing.

Click here for a statement prepared by the International EMDRIA Association.

A column on EMDR appears in each issue of the quarterly newsletter, "Change Your Mind." If you would like to be added to the mailing list, please drop a line to arthur.wenk@live.com.

Arthur Wenk, psychotherapist
Office: 1242 Landfair Crescent, Oakville ON L6H 2N3
Serving clients in Oakville, Mississauga and Burlington
905-842-8188, arthur.wenk@live.com