What is EMDR?

---

EMDR (which is an abbreviation of Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) is an evidence-based treatment geared toward clearing the negative symptoms often left over in a person’s mind after a personal trauma. The EMDR-trained therapist works with the client and asks him or her to revisit the traumatic moment or incident, recalling the physiological feeling surrounding the experience as well as any negative thoughts, emotions, and memories. The therapist then holds their fingers about 12-18 inches from the client’s face and begins to move them back and forth activating the REM (Rapid Eye Movement) cycle / function of the brain. There are other techniques, but the primary one involving eye movements is said to be the most effective. The client tracks the therapist’s movements with their eyes as if watching ping pong or a tennis match while playing the memory of the traumatic event being worked on like a little movie in their mind, and this results in what is called “dual attention stimulation”. The more intensely the client focuses on the memory, the easier it becomes for the memory to come to life. As these quick and vibrant messages arise during the therapy session, they are processed by the eye movements. Though the process itself can be taxing as it involves bringing up material from the mind that may have been repressed before (thereby causing the symptoms in the first place), the end result of working through in this manner is emotional suffering being exchanged for more peaceful, loving, and resolved feelings.  The EMDR-trained therapist has been equipped with the knowledge of how to gauge the level of any particular client's distress and to adjust the treatment to prevent the client from being totally overwhelmed by symptoms of trauma while moving forward with maximum effectiveness toward resolving said trauma.

Please check out  the website of EMDR Institue, Inc.  The site can be accessed here.  The EMDR Institue was founded by Dr. Francine Shapiro herself.  There are many more details about the use, efficacy, and origin of this very powerful psychotherapy technique there.