EMDR Therapy – What Is It?

Our unconscious mind uses past experiences to invisibly affect our current thoughts and behaviors. Unknown triggers may cause sudden anxiety or stress. Often time, we are unaware of how past experiences impact how we behave today. EMDR treatment works to reduce the intensity and discover the underlying cause or causes.

EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) is an evidence-based therapeutic treatment that is highly effective in relieving strong emotions related to previous experiences.

Extensive research since it’s development supports that EMDR is effective in treating post-traumatic stress disorder. Clinicians also find that clients find a reduction of symptoms related to anxiety, panic attacks, phobias, complicated grief, stress, history of abuse and neglect, and more.

For clients who have suffered a traumatic event, these past experiences can cause a “frozen” response, leaving the person experiencing memories, emotions, and physical responses to a trauma over and over again even though the traumatic event has ended. Treatments such as EMDR help the brains of trauma survivors process information differently, allowing them to “unfreeze” and resume normal information processing.

Robin Goben is trained in several types of trauma processing treatment methods:

• Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
• EMDR

EMDR is best used within a therapeutic relationship where rapport and trust have been established. Your work will be tailored to meet your therapy goals. EMDR therapy can be used in an adjunctive manner with traditional talk therapy.