If something horrible has happened to you such as physical or sexual violence, emotional abuse or neglect, you may feel as though you are stuck in the past. You may feel persistent feelings of sadness and hopelessness; difficulty controlling anger, and have a hard time concentrating.
If you have experienced traumatic events, the material gets stuck in the long-term memory and it can bother you for a long time. It may impact your sleep, your relationships and your overall well being. It is very hard to feel hopeful and empowered when painful memories are always present.
Imagine no longer being triggered or experiencing anger and sadness when thinking about something bad that has happened to you. EMDR will allow you to remember events but without the negative emotional charge associated with them.
When this pain is removed you are open to experience more positive emotions and feel lighter, less burdened. You will feel less powerless, more hopeful and content. The painful intrusive thoughts are gone and you will feel less anxious and will look forward to the future.
If you are carrying traumatic memories, they may be consuming your thoughts or you may feel triggered and anxious when something reminds you of the memory. With EMDR you will no longer experience these emotions and will remember the events as just something that happened. So the painful memories are no longer painful and the effects of the memories, like anxiety, are no longer present.
EMDR facilitates trauma recovery by first identifying a painful memory. That memory is retrieved from the long-term memory through a therapeutic process and moved to the active working memory. Pressure is then placed on the working memory using a light bar (which guides your eyes right and left) and hand-held pulsars, that also buzz left then right. The combination of this pressure imposed while you are thinking about the event causes the memory to become desensitized.
When the emotional charge is gone, it becomes easier to think about the experience in a more adaptive way. EMDR helps you reprocess traumatic memories and the distress associated with them is gone.
Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprocessing is a an effective treatment for trauma. It is an evidenced-based psychotherapy proven to help people recover from trauma. It is endorsed by The World Health Organization, the American Psychological Association, and the Department of Veterans Affairs as a preferred treatment method for trauma and PTSD.
There are several reasons why EMDR works. It mimics the rapid eye movements of the REM sleep phase, a critical period for processing daily experiences and emotions. By intentionally guiding the client through specific eye movements, EMDR may facilitate the reorganization of traumatic memories, aligning them more with a person’s adaptive beliefs. It is also a memory reconsolidation therapy where pressure (using hand-held buzzers and a light bar) is placed on the working memory while someone is thinking about disturbing memories and events.
Anyone who has experienced painful life events such as sexual or physical violence, emotional abuse and neglect or any other negative event can benefit from EMDR.
Each one-hour session is $200 and is covered my most insurance providers. Check your insurance details for coverage under psychology benefits.
This depends on different factors such as the nature of the problem, your history, and your ability to tolerate short periods of emotional distress during the session (when the memory is activated). The length of time can vary from two to three sessions, several weeks or months. In complex cases it could take much longer. However when EMDR is administered effectively by a trained therapist the length of time is often much less than traditional talk therapy.
If you feel stuck, have symptoms of trauma such as flashbacks, painful disturbing memories or unresolved pain then EMDR can help. It is also recommended for people who have engaged in “talk therapy” but feel they have not recovered through that process.
Sessions are booked based on client preference. They can take place once a week or more and can be booked longer than one hour.
If you would like to discuss how you can heal from trauma please schedule a free 15-minute phone consultation on our booking page. You can also call or text at (587) 844-0443 or email us at wendy@calgaryemdrclinic.com. Calgary EMDR Clinic is pleased to support you in your growth and recovery.
The Calgary EMDR Clinic exclusively offers EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprocessing).