Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing or EMDR is a psychotherapy designed to work with distressing or traumatic memories. EMDR works upon the premise that many psychological difficulties are the result of distressing life experiences which have not been stored in the memory properly and are said to be unprocessed or blocked. These traumatic memories may need some help to become processed, and EMDR assists in this process. 

A comprehensive assessment takes place prior to commencing the processing phase of EMDR and the assessment phase as well as the preparation phase are equally important for a positive outcome from EMDR, as the processing phase of the therapy. Neural pathway stabilisation and foundational resourcing is a must for effective resolution of trauma when providing EMDR therapy. 

At the beginning of the processing phase of EMDR you will be asked to bring into your conscious awareness all the components of the trauma memory network including the event/sensory stimuli, the emotional/physical memory and the personal meaning.

The therapist will commence BLS (bilateral stimulation) once the trauma memory is activated and this will occur through eye movements, butterfly hugs, tapping, and/or with thera- tappers.

This produces electrical activity in the brain that enables the trauma memory to be released. The memory with change and after processing the memory will no longer has the same affect upon you as it did prior to the EMDR processing. 

Lengthy discussion does not occur with the therapist during the processing phase of EMDR so that the trauma is able to be released from the brain and so the electrical activity is not disrupted. 

You will be asked to ‘just notice’ or observe the feelings, beliefs, sensations and images that emerge during the processing phase. During this time you don’t need to analyse, sensor or block any of the distressing emotions or bodily sensations, just simply go with them as this is when the brain is working with the electrical activity to work your brain toward trauma recovery and resolution.

Processing can occur for up to 48 hours after the EMDR session, and your body and brain will be working during this time to toward clearing traumatic memory. It is recommended during this time after EMDR therapy that consumption of alcohol and/or diazepam type medication is not taken as it exacerbates the brains capacity to resolve the trauma memories worked upon during the session.

Questions about the process can be discussed with your therapist.

What is different about trauma memories? 

Normal memories are stored by a part of the brain by the name of the hippocampus. It is the library part of the brain and it catalogues events and stores them in the appropriate place. Trauma events such as accidents, being abused, disasters and/or violence are so overwhelming for our brains that our brain is busy using everything it has to get us away from the danger that it is incapable of sending the trauma memory to the hippocampus, and the hippocampus cannot do its job properly. When this happen’s memories are stored raw, in an unprocessed form. These trauma memories are easily triggered by things that you see, smell, taste or touch that somehow reminds us of the traumatic event. Sometimes the traumatic events also come back to us as flashbacks.  

The memories of traumatic events can cause physical sensations such as anxiety, depression, stress, shame and core beliefs about oneself can manifest such as I am not good enough, I am a failure, I am not safe and there are many more beliefs that are not conducive for healthy self-esteem. It can almost make the world an unsafe place to be interacting with and life can become very difficult.  

Renee uses EMDR along with ego state therapy, and is informed in internal family systems and interweaves these therapies to process developmental trauma, as EMDR alone for developmental trauma is not enough. Renee is accredited in EMDR via EMDRAA, the governing body for EMDR in Australia, and this means that Renee receives regular case consultation and this ensures that appropriate case formulation is assured for the individual needs of the client, and she also takes part in annual training and peer supervision in order to keep up to date in the ever evolving world of trauma recovery.