What is EMDR?

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is a powerful psychotherapy approach that has helped an estimated two million people of all ages. When a person is very upset, one stressful moment can become “frozen in time.” Remembering a trauma may feel as bad as going through it the first time. EMDR seems to have a direct effect on the way the brain processes information. Following a successful EMDR session, a person no longer relives the images, sounds and feelings of the traumatic event with such intensity.

How Does it Work?

EMDR functions by asking the client to remember distressing events, while the therapist leads him or her through a prescribed set of eye movements, similar to what happens every night in deep or REM (rapid eye movement) sleep. Processing painful memories while engaging the eyes in this way, the client learns to free herself from the emotional weight and habitual energy drain of past events.