EMDR Therapy Explained: What is It?

[@Kyleigh320]

Unless you have tried this, don’t knock it please. And don’t call it fake. I did one very long treatment and it undid my entire childhood and some as an adult of very hurtful memories caused by my mother. Of course I could remember it if I wanted to, but I never cried or was traumatized by it again. Also, I don’t feel a need to keep remembering it and was able to forgive my mother eventually. That was very healing in itself. The way it was explained to me is your brain is able to file it in a different spot in your brain where it’s not always in the front of your brain or all you can think of. It was a miracle for me.

[@PhoenixTraumaCenter]

Happy it’s helpful!

[@joannego856]

Thanks so much for sharing your success with this method.

[@docv73]

This was excellent. I'm a military vet, I worked Search and Rescue in Colorado, I was a paramedic for a couple decades, I worked for the Department of Homeland Security for several years, and I've been a cop for over 23 years (several of those overlapped), and I had a very traumatic childhood. Needles to say, after years and years of seeing, hearing, smelling, and experiencing all of the s4!t I have, I finally started recognizing some issues and finally sought help a few months ago. My therapist specializes in EMDR and is recommending it, but she wants me to understand it first, so she sent me some links to read up on, and I've researched a lot on my own. This video, in just 30 minutes, has been unbelievably helpful in understanding and being willing to give this a try. She says it'll be a while before we start doing this, but my anxiety about it has been significantly reduced. THANK YOU!

[@PhoenixTraumaCenter]

Aww, I’m so happy the video helped reduce your anxiety about Emdr - in excited for you and the healing you are likely to experience from it!

[@GeorgeEnke]

doc - Looks like our backgrounds are very similar. I'm about to start this program and I'm part excited, part skeptical. But mostly, I'm praying for success. Do you have any advice?

[@calicobear6485]

Good luck..you have many years of service to the public that's comes with horrible situations. Thank you for your service 🤗💖

[@MyDogBen]

The way you explained the science behind it is very helpful.

[@PhoenixTraumaCenter]

Glad it was helpful!

[@trauma2happiness]

I am an EMDR therapist now but I was a client of EMDR first. I did both eye movement and audio as a client and I found audio much better. It was easier to cut out distractions with my eyes shut.

[@PhoenixTraumaCenter]

Everyone responds differently to the various forms of BLS and has their own preferences! Glad you found what worked for you!

[@clboymom9467]

There’s no providers for it here, and I have no coverage. Is there anything I can do at home to help myself?

[@savvygood]

I have a lot of traumatic and disturbing memories. Once I hear about this eye movement therapy, I started doing it. Whenever I was washing dishes or going for a walk and a disturbing memory pops up, I think to myself, “I need to desensitize this memory and make it just a neutral memory.” And I think of the event and rapidly move my eyes. After trying this a few times, I have found that I’ve never had that memory resurface. It’s been a relief.

[@fridge3489]

Wow, there's a glowing review. And it costed you nothing in money.

[@furthereast6775]

Amazing; I wondered if this could be done-it-yourself in any way.

[@googleman8074]

What is the technique? Simply move your eyes?

[@vibrantrain3530]

​@@googleman8074to my understanding, yes. But also while thinking about that memory, or certain aspects of it.

[@YesJellyfish]

@@fridge3489just be careful 12:58

[@BracaPhoto]

My eyes are searching for an answer - looking for patterns in my mind Instead of finding a pattern it tends to get stuck in a loop - inaction or conditioned action follows Using the moving target allows me to focus on a singular path forward while allowing my eyes and brain to search in it's natural form ❤❤❤ Great discussion - ive never tried it but I've tried similar exposure techniques

[@leanneclare3750]

Thank you for this well informed and presented video. I’ve just started EMDR and this really helped me understand the process and purpose behind it. I liked the tone of your voice and the professional approach to the video. 👍

[@Hellbending]

This explains a lot… like why writing lyrics can be so healing… especially so if you read it over again immediately, with whatever the mental muse was at the time that provoked the emotion you’re distilling into written word… very interesting, everyone always says the most disturbed minds create the best art

[@heiker1351]

Writing can be a powerful therapy tool. I use automatic writing, reading it again and again afterwards to desensitize, but also to dive deeper sometimes. If therapy isn't available and/or there's nobody to talk to this is the best way for me to understand and heal.

[@LandonGavin]

Thank you for making this video. My therapist is wanting to start me with EMDR soon. Knowing I need a support group in case of traumas surfacing has me questioning if now is the best time to take this approach. Thanks again.

[@angelamossucco2190]

ACA is a good support group. Best wishes.

[@iUnderstand]

I feel you.

[@AnjoGal]

I often wonder if this is why ASMR often helps with my anxiety & depression. It helps me go to sleep when I'm feeling overwhelmed with too many intrusive racing thoughts.

[@BigManJake69]

It is most likely a relaxation technique to calm you down before sleeping, relieving your nervous system by pleasing sensory information and shifting the negative thoughts and feelings to the back of your mind rather than processed. But possibly the grounding of calming sensory stimuli helps you to ground in the safety of the present instead of living in your mind where your nervous system was previously overstimulated therefore having a dual impact in helping you sleep and be relaxed :) EMDR would still be very helpful to process these thoughts and feelings that are triggering the bodily and mental reactivity causing anxiety and depression if it is traumatically rooted. This is because instead of coping with the impact of the trauma, it is processing the memory to the long-term store by addressing it which can eliminate the unconscious impacts of it being unprocessed and fragmented in your unconscious that is contributing to your distress :)

[@androidery1999]

Would love to hear what helps for sleep?

[@iUnderstand]

​@@androidery1999Not sure what helps her, but what helps me is ASMR back scratching/tracing. You can try just searching "ASMR for sleep" and you can test the different kinds. Many of them have a sample at the beginning of the video, of what will be shown in the video. Another thing that could help might be the binaural beats hz frequency music.. 528 hz is pretty relaxing... and it can also be good when it has the positive affirmations in the background (they sink into your subconcious to help make you feel better, more positive, more comfortable in your skin and in the world and in life). You could try brown noise or pink noise, or there are even lullaby and bedtime story channels

[@AnjoGal]

@@androidery1999 I've been finding that a combo of brown noise, an allergy tab called chlorpheneramine, and a muscle relaxer (I get those for back pain) gets me a solid 6 hours.

[@SignoraReina]

ASMR actually makes my depression and anxiety worse so I had to start avoiding it all together. Awesome that it works for you though.

[@SistiStephen]

Thank You, I really Appreciate it as future Psychiatrist.

[@PhoenixTraumaCenter]

Glad it was helpful!

[@upsidedownhat]

Very informative. Thank you. I do wonder how to deal with things you DO NOT remember but figured out that they must have happened and had a massive impact on you life till this day.

[@heiker1351]

I have the same problem. Repressed near death experience. I hope to start EMDR soon, but I had to deal with my problems alone for decades. I can't remember the real thing, but there are stories and "irrational" fears and I am sure I know quite well what and how it happened. I can trigger feelings with movies and also games. The bad ending of the witcher 3 triggered a very powerful reaction, I depersonalized and lived through almost a flashback. No images, but it felt like dying. I am sure, having those experiences, that you don't need to really remember. I am not sure how to do something like that in therapy, but I hope we can figure something out. I can't trigger my fears alone, they are too serious. But with a little help it should work, I'm very susceptible.

[@upsidedownhat]

@@heiker1351 I hear good stuff about Feedback therapy. I read about it from the "Body Keeps the Score " book by Bessel Van Der Kolk. Good book,lots of help

[@marialock007]

I am doing my second certified course on EMDR and I'm excited to start practicing it.

[@PhoenixTraumaCenter]

Best of luck!

[@WandaKelly61]

Great explanation for me as a LCSW.

[@PhoenixTraumaCenter]

Thanks for watching!

[@GeorgeEnke]

About to embark on this technique.... Not sure what to expect but I'll give it a shot.

[@gamingwithgraciemae]

i always thought of the eye movement as you're "looking" for a way out of trauma and such

[@richardrowe1538]

Thanks, I am thinking of venturing into EMDR training. I see many veterans in my practice and believe learning this therapy model would be helpful to my clients.

[@PhoenixTraumaCenter]

Happy to help!

[@taylorlconner]

Thank you! Very helpful information

[@PhoenixTraumaCenter]

Glad it was helpful!

[@miacarbery2585]

Thank you for this great explanation!

[@PhoenixTraumaCenter]

Glad it was helpful!

[@alwaysartz]

Fun fact-My friend trained with Francine and said that she was walking on the beach here in Southern California when she started to discover emdr.

[@PhoenixTraumaCenter]

Very interesting!

[@nedazamani4256]

Tanks, learned alot ❤

[@PhoenixTraumaCenter]

Glad to hear that!

[@TrueRandomization]

what do all the acronyms mean next to your name?

[@edwingarcia2943]

How is this on C-PTSD I've been trying to find help in this. I'm diagnosed with C-PTSD. I've seen other PTSD therapists but none have helped. Is this available at UPenn. They treat PTSD but not C-PTSD. HELP

[@PhoenixTraumaCenter]

I’m not sure if UPenn offers it. CPTSD is not recognized by the DSM so insurance won’t pay for CPTSD therapy, therefore most larger systems won’t advertise that they treat CPTSD. You may be better off finding a smaller group practice that specializes in trauma

[@scottymills9739]

What is C-PTSD?

[@madisonhayes7332]

@@scottymills9739complex PTSD, meaning multiple traumatic events

[@Angel-ni2yn]

Complex ptsd ​@@scottymills9739

[@Somebodyelse141]

​@@scottymills9739 supposedly complex PTSD. Like the guy said, it's not recognized by the dsm

[@clboymom9467]

Can it work and help if you are still in the same situation that caused it?

[@StarMasterUA]

Greetings, Dr Giacomucci! I've started working with a therapist recently. She introduced me to this method, I can't help but feel a little sceptical. The thing is, my whole childhood is filled with pain and traumatic events, but I hardly feel anything about them. I'm used to depersonalizing and shutting myself from anything going on. Damn, even nightmares are not scary. So... what is the best approach in my case?

[@Lauren-i8i]

❤

[@DonBraidwood]

Look into IFS

[@MayvenFunk]

As a massage therapist, I help trauma patients.

[@Lauren-tt5se]

Can EMDR be used for OCD & severe intrusive thoughts, rather than CBT?

[@annalaurenciamayer95]

Yes, I think ocd is also just another symptom of things that are repressed Ocd can also be a symptom of ptsd

[@Lauren-tt5se]

@@annalaurenciamayer95 Thank you. I might give this a try. I have been using the eye method every time I have an intrusive thought & ones that require compulsive behaviour & I can honestly say, it has calmed down my body’s reaction to the thought.

[@ellenberg7961]

Have not tried this theraphy.

[@helenUS2630]

I need this therapy as a veteran. Are they doing this treatment/therapy at the VA?

[@PhoenixTraumaCenter]

Yes absolutely!

[@Ocean1688]

It worked for me ❤

[@PhoenixTraumaCenter]

Great to hear!!!

[@samantha-kemp-therapy]

Really good thank you

[@JD-5250]

How is this therapy with functional neurological disorder?

[@nicholaasr-rz2fe]

Would it be helpful for someone with ptsd but a lot of the truama is fuzzy

[@PhoenixTraumaCenter]

Yes absolutely, it often helps integrate fuzzy memories

[@GodisSemperfidelis]

Tell me why my eyes move back and forth when I'm thinking and people are telling me about something that is interesting and then the people talking to me look at me weird. I I just heard about this from a friend and I just listened to the video about moving the eye from left to right and I do that sometimes when I think but it's not A bad memory that I'm recalling it's as if I see it in my mind's eye

[@DonBraidwood]

Some people when lying move their eye to a certain position

[@jamesyoungquist6923]

Thank you

[@PhoenixTraumaCenter]

You're welcome!

[@marypower1261]

ECT damage. Can you recover lost (STOLEN) memories through EMDR? Was reduced to a virtual vegetable with intensive multiple ECTs + max level drugs. Parts of me never recovered. I desperately WANT to remember what happened. Some memories have come back - but its the blank spaces, the executive dysfunction which made me unemployable for the rest of my life. It all happened 48 years ago i am still overwhelmed every time a new scrap of memory comes back. And for God's sake don't advise me go to a psychiatrist!!!

[@kglasgow1990]

What happens if you are emotionally cut off from the traumatic memories?

[@PhoenixTraumaCenter]

Emdr helps to connect the feelings and sensations to the memory too

[@aayushabhattari-v4z]

Can we do EMDR ourself?

[@PhoenixTraumaCenter]

I wouldn’t recommend it if you don’t have experience with it. Some people do it on themselves and find it helpful but many people have hurt themselves by trying to do emdr on their own

[@aayushabhattari-v4z]

i live in a country where mental health is not taken seriously so there is no any EMDR services so i think to try by myself

[@heiker1351]

​@@aayushabhattari-v4zI trigger my traumatic memories with various methods, also due to the lack of professional help. You have to be prepared for powerful and sometimes disturbing reactions. And nobody can snap you out of it if you are alone. The good thing is that nobody can make it worse by losing their s*it because you behave strange. Every coin has two sides. When I started this I lost words. They were gone, completely. It was quite the experience and it lasted the whole evening. The next morning all the strange things are gone for me, but that is luck. This can spiral out of control. I am trained to be absolutely rational so I don't fall into those states for long, I can overcome the fear they induce. My tv started to talk to me when I watched a movie that triggered a lot. It took me some hours to understand that I read the subliminal messages that come with every piece of media. I read between the lines, so to speak. But in a movie that can feel very strange. If you get scared you might start to hear it as a voice. Many people who experience this think that aliens or the bad guys are trying to control them. This can lead to serious paranoia. After so many years of doing that I can watch two or even more layers of a movie at once or supress the subliminal messages completely. I still get the meaning, but it is abstract, it does'nt feel like a second film underlying the obvious images. It's hard to describe. You might trigger unconscious, overwhelming fears that manifest in various, sometimes disturbing ways. If you can manage fear and don't lose contact to reality or develop paranoia then EMDR should be safe. Being prepared and knowing that can happen might help. Stay strong and good luck. I healed a lot with triggering and desensitizing, so for me it was good.

[@XRP-fb9xh]

I used to be a mental health professional as well. EMDR is the new brand of cognitive behavioural therapy. It’s being promoted as scientifically proven(or evidence based), but in reality, it’s a production line to get people back to work. People seem to report some kind of placebo effect. I would be curious to know who funded those EMDR studies. I wouldn’t be surprised to see disability insurance companies behind this scam. Freudian psycho analysis therapy will always be the flagship kind of psychological help. It’s slower, more painful, very expensive, but it works like clockwork.

[@DonBraidwood]

Interesting

[@samantha-kemp-therapy]

Can this be effective with people traumatised but who have epilepsy

[@PhoenixTraumaCenter]

One would need to be cautious, consider the risk, and avoid using an Emdr light bar which could increase seizure risk (use tactile bilateral stimulation or eye movement following an object instead)

[@samantha-kemp-therapy]

@@PhoenixTraumaCenter Brilliant thank you

[@priyaobrien8946]

A client found thos therapy really worked for trauma. Her challenge now is living with the emptiness.

[@CJDane-rf1je]

What a discouraging shitty comment on a site that traumatised people are coming to

[@DonBraidwood]

Good place to start

[@ekleru]

wow! is your name really Doctor?

[@MayvenFunk]

I'm a massage therapist.

[@DuncanDennis-y4t]

250 Bergstrom Divide

[@AnnaSantamaria-o4q]

Pietro Walks

[@bobydayowenasesa9821]

081 Kassulke Route

[@GrantJocelyn-x6v]

Wilderman Ports

[@CJDane-rf1je]

What's with all the names people are putting in the comments?

[@PhoenixTraumaCenter]

I’m not sure, I’ve been wondering the same. When I google it, it says that KZbin bots comment names but I don’t see how they benefit from that?

[@JenniferFord-t6h]

Do we actually have to talk about the tragic events or just think about it?

[@PhoenixTraumaCenter]

Emdr can be done without talking about the trauma

[@DonBraidwood]

I think we need to talk about it

[@RosalindAbdulmateen-y9s]

Buckridge Ford

[@stephencarrington718]

707 Janick Springs

[@WalkerChanning-m6y]

Macejkovic Overpass

[@EllenSheila-v3v]

945 Schultz Wells

[@FeMankoski-i2l]

Hoppe Shores

[@LouiseOwens-e5m]

Jennings Parkway

[@BrynnNotte-p3k]

Flatley Mission

[@GloriaBrown-b8c]

Lee Jose Lewis Brenda Garcia Edward

[@RussellSeibert-x3c]

Orland Lake

[@WillaGelbach-w3r]

Quitzon Hollow

[@HicksAlvis-e4v]

Brooke Rue

[@JeanaEdgin-d9n]

Osinski Gateway

[@DaniellWilcox-t9e]

Frami Throughway

[@steveb60879]

It seems far too simplistic to me and the theory proposed seems very tenuous. Just becuase you have REM sleep it doesnt mean that during that REM sleep you are dealing with memories or experiences in a positive or effective way. I have dreams and nightmares nearly every night and im left feeling disturbed when i often wake from these feeling tired and not very motivated during the day

[@misspat7555]

Really, no one has any idea why it works. An awful lot of solutions discovered accidentally for problems are that way. However, no one is required to use this method of therapy; it clearly requires a lot of cooperation and couldn’t just be forced on someone.

[@SaadFarooq]

It's a "purple hat therapy"... all the actual work is done by the actual therapeutic principles borrowed from other therapists. The eye movement does actually do anything. kzbin.info/www/bejne/hovQp55pZcx9e7M

[@lynnessmacadam3029]

037 Spencer Pike

[@BenthamLuther-b8g]

Lottie Highway

[@GrahamRuth-z2x]

267 O'Kon Viaduct

[@RichardRobinson-j3u]

10503 Lori Road

[@TylerBernard-l5i]

Iva Dale

[@LeonardLorraine]

5811 Nestor Loaf

[@WmSirois-x7p]

Rashad Drives

[@OscarWilhelmina-f1d]

Jeffrey Fords

[@helenconors3899]

26548 Alex Grove

[@EricHernandez-v1v]

Crona Rapid

[@ClaraIda-x1e]

Brown Betty Moore Eric Hall Lisa

[@BillyQuentin-r5l]

Stamm Mount

[@JacobSophia-c5z]

Gusikowski Ways

[@FoxMeredith-b4y]

Allen Charles Hall Betty Williams Jeffrey

[@NoctisAquila]

????

[@AndreasEdleston-l2c]

Devonte Estate

[@claudiamanta1943]

I don’t know about how other people feel about this, but I guess that a person with PTSD who cannot afford it would not be very happy to learn about it. Think about it. It’s quite cynical.

[@Somebodyelse141]

What?

[@misspat7555]

I have to say, the bit about “Oh noes, what if big bad feelings show up???” was kinda infantilizing and condescending, and I bet most heavily traumatized people would feel the same way. If the mere thought of someone else not wanting to live scares the therapist that badly, seems to be a them problem to me. Maybe work on that paranoia that one of your clients is going to self-end and thereby end your career. It’s interfering with actually helping people with this very common situation for someone seeking therapy. You’re worried I could get hurt? That’s very amusing; nothing that could happen in the therapy room could be near as bad as what I’ve already survived, but I guess your concern is cute and sweet, like my seven-year-old being concerned about me? 🤷‍♀️

[@CharlieChan-l6u]

This story is not true, she just got this idea from an Indian Phil work called Spanda Karika

[@NeonDungeon]

If you have to explain something like this and defend it so much its probably bulls**t.

[@BigManJake69]

He literally used scientific rationale to explain something? In this case does this mean everything ever produced by science is bs? Jesus christ mr Neon Dungeon

[@Damir_35519]

Im sorry you had a bad day❤

[@djhcdjjfjllgfth]

Thinking about anything multiple times can eventually desensitize you to the thought regardless of the movement of your eyes... so yeah, idk how substantial the eye movement actually is.

[@kshirley63]

I’ve done some EMDR work and it was definitely beneficial.

[@daniellogansa8101]

@@djhcdjjfjllgfthwhat about people with literal PTSD who continue to think about traumatic events over and over and don’t get desensitized?

[@bettymoore6135]

Shut up and get to the point

[@CIA.2024-u9b]

Mildly inappropriate!

[@MortonMarico]

4673 Greenholt Plaza

[@michellelewinese6423]

3661 Stroman Ports

[@GreshamBrook]

0937 Hartmann Mills

[@AnthonyLewis-r1i]

39199 Khalil Underpass

[@WodehousYork]

8128 Kessler Pass

[@PiersAlberta]

14980 Volkman Well

[@DierserSusie]

0173 Trisha Harbor

[@GibbonKelly]

448 Javon Heights

[@TempleJefferson-b5z]

37364 Lakin Branch

[@SymonsTiffany]

3489 Hanna Mills

[@SonSirles]

96455 Samara Stream

[@JanetLashley]

69872 Amanda Harbor

[@RayleignRuby]

9499 Rohan Track

[@ZollMisc-c1w]

Jones David Jackson Karen Clark Linda