EMDR (eye movement desensitization and reprocessing) is a well-researched, evidence-based psychotherapy originally developed by psychologist Francine Shapiro to resolve PTSD and trauma. In addition, current literature documents the efficacy of EMDR for a wider array of disorders, including anxiety disorders, depression, and somatic symptoms. The classic symptoms of trauma and PTSD, including hypervigilance, dissociation, flashbacks, anxiety, inability to think clearly under stress, nightmares, and intrusive thoughts are attributed to maladaptive encoding or incomplete processing of traumatic experiences.
EMDR employs biolateral stimulation, or alternating stimulation of the right and left hemispheres of the brain. This is done either with the client following the movement of the therapist’s fingers with the eyes, through auditory biolateral pulses via headphones, or tactile stimulus using hand-held buzzers.
One theory of the effectiveness of EMDR comes from research on REM sleep. During REM sleep, the eyes are moving back and forth, sometimes up and down. These eye movements seem to be helping the brain integrate the experiences of the day into long-term memory storage. In trauma and PTSD, the incomplete experiences remain as memory and sensory fragments, often triggered by a present-day experience. The goal in EMDR is the fully reprocess these traumatic memories and move them into long-term memory storage, no longer to intrude on present-day life. Linda Baird has been a certified EMDR therapist since 2001.