Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR) is a psychotherapy that assists people heal from the symptoms and emotional distress of trauma and other disturbing life experiences (EMDR Institute, Inc.).
Extensive studies have shown EMDR therapy can provide lasting therapeutic results that sometimes once took years to make a difference and it is now recognised as an effective form of treatment by organisations such as the American Psychiatric Association, the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies, World Health Organisation and the Dept. of Veterans Affairs, Dept. of Defence (EMDR Institute, Inc.).
EMDR therapy needs to be undertaken by a trained clinician and consists of using detailed protocols and procedures. Done correctly, EMDR shows that the mind can heal from psychological trauma and disturbing life events like the body recovers from physical trauma (EMDR Institute, Inc.).
EMDR is an eight-phase treatment utelising a three pronged approach - (1) the past events that are the foundation of dysfunction are processed which have produced new associative links with adaptive information; (2) the current circumstances that bring about distress are targeted and internal and external triggers are desensitised; (3) imaginal templates of future events are incorporated, to help the client in acquiring skills needed for adaptive functioning (EMDR Institute, Inc.). Your clinician will discuss this in depth with you, provide you with further information and discuss any queries or concerns that you have to enable you to make an informed decision.
EMDR has been shown to be effective in treating: Anxiety, Panic Attacks, Phobias, Grief, Loss, Pain, Performance Anxiety, Stress, Addictions, Body Dysmorphic Disorders, Eating Disorders, Weight Loss, Personality Disorders, Anxiety, Tinnitus and Chronic Pain.
Please contact if you feel EMDR may be an effective treatment for you.