Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy is a method of psychotherapy that is proven to help people recover from trauma and other distressing life experiences, including PTSD, anxiety, depression, and panic disorders.  EMDR has been extensively researched and is considered a "best practice" for mental health work.

 

Our brains have a natural way to recover from traumatic memories and events. This process involves communication between the amygdala (the alarm signal for stressful events), the hippocampus (which assists with learning, including memories about safety and danger), and the prefrontal cortex (which analyzes and controls behavior and emotion). Most of the time, traumatic experiences can be managed and resolved spontaneously, sometimes they can get "stuck" and need some help to process.

 

Stress responses are part of our natural fight, flight, or freeze instincts. When distress from a disturbing event remains, the upsetting images, thoughts, and emotions may create an overwhelming feeling of being back in that moment, or of being “frozen in time.” EMDR therapy helps the brain process these memories, and allows normal healing to resume. The experience is still remembered, but the fight, flight, or freeze response from the original event is resolved. (adapted from www.emdria.org)