EMDR Therapy: Unlocking the Path to Healing
What Exactly is EMDR?
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is a powerful counseling approach that harnesses our brain’s natural abilities to heal and find wellness. Originally designed to treat trauma, EMDR has since been extensively researched and proven effective for a wide range of mental health issues, including but not limited to: Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Generalized Anxiety Disorder, Social Anxiety Disorder, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Panic Disorder, Agoraphobia, Major Depressive Disorder, complex trauma, and specific phobias. Not sure if you fit any of the above diagnoses but know that you want to feel better? EMDR is an effective & holistic therapy approach that can help you leave behind the negative core beliefs that keep you feeling stuck.
In this blog, I’m explaining the therapeutic technique known as EMDR and who it’s most effective for. My name is Amanda Parmley and I’m a therapist in Carolina Beach, NC. I specialize in using EMDR to treat clients struggling with anxiety, low self-esteem, PTSD & other trauma-related disorders.
Ready to get started in your EMDR journey? Click the button below to schedule a free consultation phone call.
Understanding Trauma: “Big T” and “Little t” Trauma:
Trauma can broadly be categorized into "Big T" and "Little t" traumas. Understanding the distinction between these types of trauma can help individuals recognize and address the impact of various experiences on their mental health.
Big T Trauma: Also known as "capital T" trauma, this type refers to significant, often life-threatening events that cause intense fear and distress. Examples include natural disasters, serious accidents, sexual assault, physical violence, and combat experiences. Big Traumas are typically what most people think of when they hear the word "trauma," and they often lead to conditions like Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
Little t trauma: This type of trauma includes less severe but still distressing events that can accumulate over time and significantly affect an individual's well-being. Examples include chronic stress, bullying, emotional neglect, attachment issues, relational conflicts, and financial difficulties. Little t traumas may not be life-threatening, but their cumulative effect can be just as impactful as Big T Traumas, leading to anxiety, depression, distress, and other emotional difficulties.
Both types of trauma can be effectively addressed with EMDR therapy, as it helps reprocess and integrate the negative memories that often create and reinforce negative core beliefs we have about ourselves & our environment. By reducing the emotional charge of these memories our brains are able to establish new neural connections, resulting in healthier core beliefs.
EMDR Can Help You Let Go of Negative Beliefs
Do you find yourself struggling to let go of negative beliefs, no matter how hard you try to adopt newer, healthier beliefs about yourself? EMDR can help you move from:
I’m not good enough to I am good enough.
I have to be perfect to I am allowed to make mistakes.
I should have known better to I am only responsible for what I can control.
My best isn’t good enough to my best is the best I can do.
I am not safe to I am safe.
I can’t trust myself to I can trust myself.
I am not in control to I am in control.
I am powerless to I do have power.
I am stuck to I have control over my future.
I’m defective to I’m whole.
I’m a failure to I am confident in who I am.
Ready to make the change? Click the button below to discuss whether EMDR is a good fit for your therapeutic needs.
EMDR Therapy: What Is It Good For?
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): PTSD is one of the most well-known conditions treated with EMDR therapy. This disorder often develops after experiencing or witnessing atraumatic event, leading to symptoms such as flashbacks, nightmares, severe anxiety, and uncontrollable thoughts about the event. EMDR helps individuals process and integrate these traumatic memories, significantly reducing their intensity and the distress they cause.
Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD): Characterized by chronic and excessive worry about different aspects of life, GAD can be chronic and debilitating. EMDR helps reduce the underlying anxiety by addressing and reprocessing past experiences that contribute to the current worry.
Panic Disorder: This disorder involves sudden and repeated panic attacks, which can significantly impact daily functioning. EMDR targets the root causes of panic attacks, helping to diminish their frequency and intensity.
Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD): Social Anxiety Disorder involves an intense fear of social situations. EMDR can help individuals reprocess memories and beliefs that contribute to their social anxiety, leading to increased confidence and social comfort.
Depression: Depression can often be rooted in past traumatic experiences or negative life events. EMDR therapy helps individuals process these experiences, leading to a reduction in depressive symptoms. By transforming negative beliefs and emotions, EMDR can help individuals build a more positive outlook and improve their overall mood.
Phobias: Specific phobias, such as fear of flying, heights, or certain animals, can be effectively treated with EMDR. By targeting the memories and experiences that underlie the phobia, EMDR helps reduce the fear response associated with these triggers.
Complex Trauma: EMDR is particularly beneficial for individuals with complex trauma, also known as Complex PTSD, resulting from prolonged exposure to traumatic events, often during childhood. EMDR helps integrate fragmented memories and reduce dissociative symptoms.
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD): OCD is characterized by intrusive thoughts (obsessions) and repetitive behaviors (compulsions). EMDR can be used to address the traumatic or distressing memories that contribute to these obsessive-compulsive patterns, helping to reduce their intensity and frequency.
Grief and Loss: The grieving process can be complicated by traumatic memories associated with the loss. EMDR therapy helps individuals process these memories, facilitating a healthier grieving process and alleviating symptoms of complicated grief.
Performance Anxiety: EMDR is also used to treat performance anxiety, which can affect individuals in various fields, including sports, arts, and public speaking. By reprocessing past experiences that contribute to anxiety about performance, EMDR helps individuals perform with greater confidence and less stress.
Do any of the above diagnoses sound familiar? If you’ve tried other types of therapy in the past & haven’t been fully satisfied with your results or it feels like no matter how hard you try, you can’t seem to move past certain negative beliefs, EMDR may be a good option for you. Interested in learning more?
EMDR’s ability to address and reprocess traumatic memories makes it particularly effective for disorders related to trauma, but its applications extend to many other areas, including anxiety, depression, phobias, and more. By working with a qualified EMDR therapist, individuals can experience significant and lasting improvements in their mental health and overall well-being.
So How Does EMDR Work?
EMDR therapy involves an eight-phase treatment approach that includes the following steps:
Preparation: The therapist helps the person feel safe and teaches them coping strategies for dealing with emotional distress.
Assessment: The client & therapist work together to identifiy specific memories to work on.
Desensitization: Using eye movements or other bilateral stimulation such as tapping, the therapist helps the client reprocess the identified memory. This part involves focusing on the memory while noticing thoughts, feelings, and physical sensations.
Installation: Positive beliefs about oneself are strengthened to replace the negative ones associated with the trauma.
Body Scan: The person checks for any remaining physical tension related to the memory and addresses it.
Closure: The therapist helps the client return to a state of calm and provides tools for self-care between sessions.
Reevaluation: The therapist assesses the client's progress and determines if further sessions are needed.
Benefits of EMDR Therapy
EMDR therapy offers numerous benefits, including:
Improves Emotional Well-being: EMDR can help reduce anxiety, depression, and other emotional difficulties. It helps people feel better and more in control of their emotions instead of feeling controlled by their emotions.
Quick Results: While this may vary, many people experience improvement in their symptoms after just a few sessions of EMDR. This can be faster than traditional talk therapy.
Non-invasive: EMDR does not require medication or extensive talking about traumatic events. It uses guided eye movements or other forms of bilateral stimulation, such a tapping to help the brain process memories.
Long-lasting Effects: The benefits of EMDR are often long-lasting. Once a traumatic memory is processed, it typically does not return with the same intensity.
Improves Self-esteem: By processing negative beliefs and emotions, EMDR can help improve self-esteem and self-worth. When negative beliefs & emotions are processed, it allows the brain to build healthy connections often yielding a more positive view of self.
Holistic Approach: EMDR addresses both the mind and body. It helps integrate emotional and physical aspects of traumatic memories, leading to holistic healing.
Adaptable: EMDR therapy can be adapted based on a client’s needs and treatment goals.
Reduces Symptoms Related to Trauma: EMDR is especially effective in treating Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder & symptoms related to past trauma. It helps clients process and reduce the intensity of traumatic memories, effectively taking the sting out of past traumatic experiences.
We are shaped by our experience both negative and positive. EMDR therapy is a groundbreaking approach to healing trauma and emotional distress triggered by negative experiences and painful past memories. By addressing the root causes of psychological pain, EMDR helps individuals reclaim their lives and achieve lasting well-being.
Optimizing your EMDR Experience
Tips for Success:
Stay Committed: Consistency is key to reaping the full benefits of EMDR therapy.
Practice Self-Care: Incorporate relaxation and self-care techniques into your daily routine.
Communicate Openly: Keep an open line of communication with your therapist to address any concerns or questions.
By following these guidelines and working with a qualified EMDR therapist, you can unlock the path to healing and transformation.
EMDR Therapy with Amanda Parmley, MA, LCMHC
Have you tried other types of therapy but still yearn for deeper changes? If you’re ready for deep rooted & long-lasting change, EMDR may be a good fit for you.
How to Get Started
1. Click the button below to request a free 15-minute consultation.
2.. Take the phone call from Amanda Parmley at the prearranged & agreed upon time.
3. Start your EMDR journey
Ready to prioritize your well being? Click below to start your journey to feeling better.
Additional Services Offered by Amanda Parmley:
In addition to providing EMDR. I also specialize in working with clients experiencing anxiety, low self-esteem, past trauma and chronic insomnia.
Interested in attending counseling in the office? I’m located at 1328 N Lake Park Blvd, STE 109, Carolina Beach, NC 28428. Once you cross over Snow’s Cut Bridge, take the first left at the light & I am located in Carolina Beach Pavilion.
Online EMDR
Are you interested in EMDR but live too far to commute into session? Studies show that online counseling is as effective as in person services, with the added bonus of convenience. If you are located within the state of North Carolina & are interested in online EMDR and/or telehealth counseling, reach out today to discuss whether this is the right option for you.