Are you considering EMDR therapy to help you deal with some emotional stress in your life? If you’ve searched the internet you’ll quickly realize there’s a lot of different information out there.

Here we will help you understand EMDR therapy, and how it can be beneficial for your own life and journey.

What does EMDR stand for?

EMDR stands for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. That can be a mouthful but it’s not as scary as it might seem.

EMDR is a unique form of therapy that differs from traditional “talk therapy.” With this specialized type of counseling your own thoughts, emotions, and body sensations will do the work for you.

As the name suggests, the use of eye movement is used to help access your brain’s ability to  process information. Sometimes they eye movement is compared to the Rapid Eye Movement or REM sleep cycle that naturally occurs when you’re sleeping.

By simulating this eye movement you’re able to speed up the processing of memories or thoughts in your life that have somehow been stuck in your mind.

How does EMDR therapy work?

There are 8 important phases of EMDR therapy that are designed to guide you safely through the process. Each phase of counseling is designed to prepare your mind and body for the work you’re trying to accomplish.

The first part of this process is preparing you for the healing work that you’re going to accomplish. I often tell my client’s that skipping the initial work is kind of like jumping into the deep end of a pool without knowing how to swim. You want to make sure your’e ready for the work you’re about to do.

EMDR therapy is unique from other types of counseling because you’re tapping into your own self healing abilities.

As you work through the phases of EMDR your own mind and body does the healing. EMDR is a great form of therapy to use when other traditional methods of counseling haven’t been successful.

What is EMDR used for?

EMDR therapy began as a treatment for trauma and post traumatic stress also known as PTSD. Overtime it’s been developed and become a very effective way to treat other mental health problems.

Some of the ways EMDR can help include anxiety, anger or rage, depression, addiction, low self esteem, negative thoughts or beliefs, nightmares, and much more.

EMDR therapy can be very effective because it helps you deal with the root cause of your problem. It’s designed to target the root of your discomfort rather than treat the sypmtoms.

As a mental health counselor I often have clients walk into my office wanting to address a problem such as anxiety. Once we begin working on the problem they soon realize the cause of their discomfort is related to emotional pain from their past.

In these situations we will use EMDR therapy to address the underlying emotional pain, and their symptoms of anxiety are quickly reduced.

Does EMDR really work?

EMDR therapy has been studied over the years and approximately 20 controlled studies have found that it’s successful at eliminating many of the problems related to trauma or PTSD.

EMDR has also been designated as an effective treatment by many of the worlds leading health organizations including the American Psychiatric Association, the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs,  and the Department of Defense.

This highly specialized type of therapy has helped millions of people around the world heal from disturbing emotional and traumatic situations.

If you’re struggling with emotional pain you can talk with a Denver EMDR therapist to find out how counseling might be able to help.