Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR) Therapy
Are your past experiences impacting your mental health, relationships and well-being? Do you need help processing the negative emotions and beliefs associated with past traumas? If so, eye movement desensitisation and reprocessing (EMDR) Therapy, online or in person, can be incredibly beneficial.
Designed to reprogramme your emotional responses to traumatic incidents, EMDR is recommended by the National Health Service (NHS) and the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) in the UK.
What can EMDR Therapy help with?
The most common use of EMDR Therapy is in helping with Post Traumatic Stress Disorders (PTSD). More specifically, it can be used to help with the following issues:
- Depression
- Anxiety
- Sexual or emotional abuse
- Emotional recovery from accidents
- Trauma
- Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
- Bullying
- Bereavement
- Loss
What is EMDR Therapy?
EMDR is a direct and unique therapeutic technique which helps people to heal from the emotional distress and consequential effects of traumatic events and distressing experiences in their lives.
In many cases, past traumatic events can be intense and become ‘stuck’ in people’s brains. It aims to reprocess memories of traumatic events and make the emotional impact of these memories less acute.
To do this, EMDR Therapy asks the person to recall the events whilst they do the following:
- Move their eyes from side to side
- Hear a sound in each ear alternately
- Feel a tap on each hand alternately
Performing these three actions aims to modify the processing system in the brain, helping to reduce the intensity of the impact of trauma. New processes and information will be imprinted as a new memory.
EMDR Therapy works similarly to natural rapid eye movement (REM) during sleep. REM causes your eyes to move from side to side as you process the day’s events. Giving the brain ‘something else’ to do while processing events can help to make them less vivid. This allows the person to distance themselves from them healthily.
Does EMDR Therapy work?
Studies show that online and in-person EMDR Therapy can significantly decrease PTSD-related issues in just a few sessions. The number of sessions required in a programme of EMDR Therapy can be increased if the individual has experienced a series of traumatic events.
EMDR is an internationally recognised Therapy endorsed by many renowned bodies, including the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), the World Health Organisation (WHO), The International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies, and the National Health Service (NHS) in the UK. Over 10,000 Therapists, including therapists at the Leone Centre, are currently qualified to deliver EMDR Therapy in the UK.
EMDR Therapy at the Leone Centre
EMDR Therapy can be integrated into your Counselling therapeutic process or used as a focused and primary approach. Leone Centre’s team of highly qualified Therapists offers a high level of experience and Counselling services that take an integrative approach to a wide range of issues.
Leone Centre EMDR Therapy is available in person at our centres in London and online, along with Individual, Couples, Relationship, and Family Therapy services.
EMDR FAQs
Your questions about EMDR answered
What is EMDR?
Eye movement desensitisation and reprocessing (EMDR) is a type of Therapy carried out for mental health. This method involves moving the eyes in a specific way while processing traumatic memories. EMDR Therapy has a long-term goal of helping someone to heal from past trauma or other distressing life experiences.
Have you got EMDR Therapists at Leone Centre?
Yes. Currently, our EMDR Therapy is provided by Lynn Buckley and Violeta Jawdokimova. We offer EMDR Therapy to treat issues such as PTSD, anxiety, chronic stress, eating disorders, and unresolved traumatic past events, both in London and online.
What is the difference between EMDR and Brainspotting?
Both EMDR and Brainspotting therapies practise using eyes and eye movements.
EMDR involves the client being guided to move their eyes from side to side whilst processing thoughts and memories.
Brainspotting focuses on specific locations where the client’s eyes automatically go whilst pinpointing issues and physical feelings.
I am not sure if I have PTSD. Can I still try EMDR?
Our trained Therapists can talk through issues and feelings a person may be experiencing to provide support and decipher whether the client is experiencing symptoms of PTSD.
EMDR is a psychological technique which has been found to be highly successful in reducing symptoms of PTSD, including distressing memories, thoughts, and feelings related to trauma.
Can I have EMDR therapy online?
Yes, in-person EMDR and online EMDR Therapy are very similar, and online EMDR is very effective for supporting issues around trauma and anxiety from any safe and convenient location. Due to the sensitive nature of the issues being discussed, many people choose to have EMDR therapy from the comfort of their own homes. Leone Centre Therapists can deliver EMDR Therapy online or in person, to accommodate a wide range of needs.
Citations
EMDR Therapy: An overview of its development and mechanisms of action IFEM DR
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