Can EMDR Treat Anxiety?
Your eyes dart back and forth tracing the room. You swear you saw something out of the corner of your eye. The curtain moves, and your eyes dart to the swaying of the cloth against the window.
You're convinced you heard something behind you. Your stomach drops, your heartbeat quickens, and you can't seem to catch your breath.
You're anxious, paranoid, and on edge. You're fully aware that the culprit is your anxiety, but you can't seem to change your mind's belief that it may be something else.
Since your eyes are already accustomed to moving back and forth by scanning the room on a consistent basis, you've been looking into EMDR. Can EMDR treat anxiety? Let's find out!
What is EMDR?
EMDR stands for eye movement desensitization and reprocessing. It's a form of therapy that uses bilateral stimulation and exposure in order for someone to heal from a past traumatic event or negative thoughts. EMDR was first discovered in 1987 by a therapist, Francine Shapiro. Shapiro was hiking in a forest and noticed that her anxiety started to fade once she started to move her eyes back and forth to view her environment. After that experience, she started testing this on clients and found that they experienced the same type of relief.
How Does EMDR Work?
During a session, a therapist will work with their client to help them remember certain parts of their traumatic experience. While the client is thinking about their trauma, the therapist will guide the client's eyes to move back and forth in a specific way in order to reprocess their traumatic experience and let go of some of those negative associations.
It's believed that EMDR and rapid eye movement or REM sleep go hand in hand. The REM stage during the sleep cycle occurs when someone dreams. Scientists theorize that the brain processes information during this time in a similar way that EMDR processes information during a client session.
EMDR and Anxiety
People who suffer from anxiety can see a lot of benefits from EMDR. EMDR can help someone struggling with anxiety to regain control over their thoughts and feelings.
Anxiety can bring on a lot of signs and symptoms that can affect someone's behaviors, and emotions, and cause physical reactions in the body. An EMDR session has shown to bring also instant or automatic relief to individuals struggling with anxiety.
A huge benefit of EMDR treatment for anxiety and other disorders is that you don't have to reexperience the traumatic event. Experiencing a traumatic event is something that you don't want to have to go through again. Talk therapy can be a bit intimidating for individuals, especially those that dealt with a traumatic event. Thankfully, EMDR is a form of therapy in that you don't have to talk much or be exposed to the trauma. This is a huge benefit for a lot of clients when deciding to start EMDR therapy.
Does EMDR Actually Work?
Yes, EMDR actually works! There are many forms of anxiety that EMDR has been known to help with, such as the following:
Generalized anxiety disorder
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
Panic disorder
Performance anxiety
Phobias
Social anxiety
Next Steps
EMDR is a very promising therapy option for those who may be struggling with anxiety. Even though EMDR has been proven to be highly effective for treating anxiety, one of the best ways to figure out if it's a good fit for you and your personal needs is to talk to a licensed and trained mental health professional or a therapist.
Reach out to us today to learn more about EMDR therapy and to set up an initial consultation.
Sea Glass Counseling and Consultation is an EMDR therapy practice in Dublin, Ohio. Our compassionate, skilled therapists use evidence-based techniques grounded in the neurobiology of stress, trauma, and relationships to make sure your treatment is personalized and effective. Sea Glass therapists provide telehealth counseling in Ohio for individuals and couples. We’re best known for providing Intensive EMDR therapy, anxiety treatment, and sex therapy for Christians. Interested in working together? Contact us today to get started with a Certified EMDR therapist in Ohio.