Eye Movement Densensitisation and Reprogramming (E.M.D.R)
E.M.D.R. is a very effective method of working on a variety of issues including
- trauma
- abuse
- phobias
- anxiety
- low self-esteem
- performance anxiety
- symptoms resulting from early childhood attachment problems
E.M.D.R. has been recognised by the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (N.I.C.E.) since 2005 as the treatment choice for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (together with trauma focused C.B.T.) and is widely used by psychologists in the N.H.S.
I work with this method within the broader context of Process Oriented Psychology which informs my philosophy and theory of psychotherapy and of life in general. E.M.D.R. sessions can take place as short-term work where a single issue or memory is targeted e.g. a recent accident, within a longer term therapeutic relationship where the work has become stuck and needs the extra input of an E.M.D.R. technique and it can be also longer term work using primarily EM.D.R. to process and heal a series of painful memories such as childhood abuse.
There is a structured protocol to E.M.D.R. and this is detailed in my article “Freedom and Space” about working with a specific client. The eye movements activate parts of the brain and neurology so that clients' painful history can be desensitised. They are then free to discover their own unique self-healing and insight, often changing negative beliefs about themselves in a radical way, and leading to deep personal transformation.