Do you have post-traumatic stress disorder
or face several challenges daily?
People have to come to terms with several challenges that they should not have experienced in the first place. Women, men, and children all suffer from a sort of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) if they have experienced events that have felt traumatic to them such as sexual assault, childhood abuse, motor-vehicle accident injury or loss, work accident injury or loss, and several or even some minor traumatic events such as being snaked by a parent.
EMDR is a therapy we now offer at Expressions Counselling that today is used to treat a wide variety of clinical problems such as sleep anxiety, social anxiety, phobias, and more.
What is EMDR?
EMDR stands for Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing. It can be a very overwhelming method of counselling at first, but most clients at Expressions Counselling find relief from their symptoms after continued treatment. EMDR is one of the most effective treatment modalities in the world.
The way it works is it uses a patient’s own rapid, rhythmic eye movements, which then dampen the power behind an emotionally charged memory of a past traumatic event. Your therapist will move their hands back and forth in front of your face and ask you to follow these hand motions with your eyes.
Alternatively, they may use a tapping method depending on the type of processing that you need. Your therapist will then have you recall a disturbing event. This includes the emotions and body sensations that go along with it. Gradually, the memory will lose its charge and your therapist will guide you to shift your thoughts to more pleasant ones.
How long is an EMDR session?
EMDR sessions can be 20 minutes (1 sessions) or 100 minutes (equivalent to 2 sessions). 100 minutes sessions are often more effective.
Is EMDR right for me?
Repeated studies have shown that using EMDR therapy can help people experience the benefits of therapy that once took years to make a real difference. EMDR is a technique best suited for those who have suffered from negative childhood experiences with their parents, who have PTSD from accidents at work or while driving, who were victims of childhood sexual abuse, and who are past or present processing abusive dynamics.
Clients who are interested in EMDR need to have a certain amount of emotional well-functioning to be a good fit for this treatment modality. This is because EMDR can cause more emotional pain at first and the clients need to be able tolerate and self-regulate while getting through the first stages of their EMDR treatment. However, this treatment often gets easier over time.
If you have any questions about this method, feel free to send us a message or an email. We will be happy to answer your questions about EMDR therapy.
