Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy

What is EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing)?

EMDR is a treatment helpful for people who need to overcome trauma; whether that be a major life event, a series of life events or who have one or two issues they need to work through.

It is proposed that PTSD/trauma symptoms result from:

• blocked information processing – the disturbing material can’t be properly filed away in your brain.
• every time that particular trauma memory is triggered, your brain thinks it’s still happening and therefore reacts accordingly.

It makes sense why your brain still feels the need to be on “red alert” to try to protect you.

EMDR helps to process the disturbing memories so that they can be filed away as something that happened in the past but not now.

Who is EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing) for?

EMDR is for anyone wanting to:

• process to overcome your trauma reactions, (to reduce your distress and emotions linked to painful events)
• change their problems in living linked to past, present or future life traumas or stressors
• work with, a compassionate and respectful therapist, who can help you take the path of processing Trauma or strong emotion related issues
• aim for living life better in the moment & to be able to feel joy in your life.

What does EMDR help with?

Research evidence shows that EMDR therapy can help many people with different difficulties as outlined above.

What happens in one to one EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing) therapy sessions?

Our Clinical Psychologists offering EMDR aim to help build a good safe working relationship with you so that you can process your experiences, feelings and belief with your therapist’s help.

Your therapist will help you process difficult experiences either from:

• the past,
• present or
• in anticipation of a future difficulty (such as anxiety before a major presentation).

Your therapist will work with you, taking into account how much emotions can be tolerated at any one time. The aim is to work safely with you.

Your therapist aims to help you process and resolve this past trauma experience to be psychologically “healthy” again (- a “psychologically healthy integration”, Shapiro, 2001).

Adaptive Information Processing (AIP) is the main theoretical model associated with EMDR.

As Clinical Psychologists are trained in other therapies too, the therapy offered can be agreed with you after the getting-to-know-you stage.

For example, you may agree on a course of EMDR first/with another therapy approach to help you reach your life goals (when you are ready for that).

Do you need a diagnosis to have EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing)?

No, you don’t need to have any diagnosis. Many people have found having EMDR life-changing.

Find the right EMDR therapy near you

Our Clinical Psychologists are trained in and experienced in offering EMDR, offering EMDR in the UK.

Your Clinical Psychologist will help you look at different aspects of yourself that you want to change and to work out the best, individually tailored, route of how to get there.

This may involve using EMDR, either alone or in combination with other therapies.

Our clinical psychologists are trained and experienced in offering EMDR

Our Clinical Psychologists provide that specialist EMDR.

How do I make an appointment for EMDR?

We currently have appointment slots available, either online or some face to face same-room appointments in certain parts of the country.

To see one of our Clinical Psychologists, do make contact using the green button or call to help us fix a good day and time for you.

Please keep an eye out for our email reply, in case it goes into your spam/junk box.

Please click here to see our Clinical Psychologists you could work with.