EMDR Therapy: How Healing Your Past Can Heal Your Present
While traditional talk therapy can have extremely positive effects on people, there are other therapeutic interventions that can help you process past experiences. EMDR therapy is an evidence-based practice that puts the client in the driver’s seat for their healing.
What is EMDR?
EMDR stands for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. One of the most important aspects of EMDR therapy is the past-present connection. This awareness can help reprocess a past traumatic event through bilateral stimulation while recognizing the fact that you’re currently safe in the present moment.
Oftentimes, we are unable to fully process disturbing things that happen to us. When this happens, there may be situations in the present that trigger those feelings you felt when the disturbing event happened. EMDR therapy is designed to create a safe space to reprocess this traumatic memory and live your life without feeling stuck.
If Talk Therapy Is Successful For Me, Will EMDR Be Successful?
One of the great things about therapy in general is how many different interventions can be successful for one person. Therapy follows a unique approach that rarely supports a one-size-fits-all mindset. As a current/future client, you may be feeling hesitant to explore a world outside of talk therapy. It may not be something you’re used to, and that change can feel threatening.
While the new world of EMDR can feel intimidating, you will not be alone in the process. Your therapist will be by your side the entire time to guide you through the process. Repose has many therapists who are certified in EMDR and are prepared to help take you through your EMDR journey.
What To Expect In EMDR Sessions
While EMDR is not designed to be a long-term intervention, there are multiple situations that can be reprocessed over the course of many months. In a typical stretch of EMDR sessions, it starts out with getting used to bilateral stimulation and creating a safe space. This safe space not only will help you feel more comfortable when reprocessing occurs, but it will also be helpful in your everyday life when experiencing periods of distress.
Subsequent sessions will involve thinking about your past experiences that have contributed to your present triggers. Once a memory is targeted, there will be a session dedicated to reprocessing that memory. While this experience is intense, it is designed to help you come out on the other side of the memory feeling healed from what happened. Afterward, there are many different possibilities of what you would like to continue to work on. You can process future situations where a trigger could be present, or you can decide to reprocess another past memory. The flexibility of EMDR enables you to process what you want to and when you want to.
Feeling Hesitant About Addressing Past Experiences?
It is so understandable if reading about this makes you feel interested in this process, but a little bit nervous and overwhelmed at the same time. You may have spent the majority of your life doing everything you can to not think about what happened. However, that motivation to change is so important and it speaks volumes about your self-awareness and readiness. EMDR is about being brave, and your therapist will be right there with you on this journey.
Services Offered At Repose Therapy
At Repose Therapy, our goal is to provide the best HOLISTIC PSYCHOTHERAPY services among other evidence-based therapy services to you. We enjoy working with college students, mothers, parents, couples, and individuals who are seeking better mental wellness in their life. If you’re struggling or trying to find a way to move forward, then our DIVERSE TEAM OF THERAPISTS would be thrilled to work with you. If grief counseling isn’t the service you’re seeking, no worries. We offer other services at our ONLINE THERAPY OFFICE IN NEW YORK, CONNECTICUT, AND NEW JERSEY. Other services include EMDR THERAPY, ANXIETY TREATMENT, PTSD TREATMENT, AND TRAUMA THERAPY, THERAPY FOR COLLEGE STUDENTS, MATERNAL MENTAL HEALTH, MARRIAGE COUNSELING AND COUPLES THERAPY, THERAPY FOR TEENS, LGBTQIA+ THERAPY, ART THERAPY, DANCE MOVEMENT THERAPY.
Additionally, we offer many GROUPS at our practice including an adult DBT skills group MANAGING EMOTIONS WITH DBT and Art Therapy, MINDFULNESS-BASED COGNITIVE THERAPY, EMBRACING YOUR BODY, and a Ramadan group. If you’re interested in any of our other services, please reach out, we cannot wait to work with you as you improve your well-being and begin your journey towards healing.