About EMDR Therapy
Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing
EMDR is a comprehensive psychotherapy (developed by Dr. Francine Shapiro in 1987) which accelerates the treatment of disturbing life events that impact current functioning. Extensive controlled research, using EMDR with PTSD, has demonstrated its effectiveness as a method of treatment. Additionally, hundreds of published case reports using EMDR to effectively treat a wide range of presenting symptoms have also been documented. The theoretical basis of EMDR is the Adaptive Information Processing Model (AIP) which holds that trauma interferes with brain processing. EMDR is a method of accessing and resolving disturbing life experiences/memories that have resulted in disrupted self-beliefs, negative emotions and distressing body sensations. EMDR therapy facilitates more adaptive neurological connections, thus allowing the brain to better access its normal healing abilities. Bilateral stimulation in the form of eye movements, alternating sounds or kinesthetic stimuli, while revisiting distressing memories in a defined protocol, has the capacity to produce a more fully processed memory, resulting in greater integration, resolution and calm.
Examples of the presenting issues at the Midwest Center for EMDR Training and Therapy for which EMDR has been used include but are not limited to the following: