
EMDR stands for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, which is a widely used therapy that helps individuals living with a wide range of mental health symptoms. But, as this therapy grows in popularity and use, more people are wondering, “Does EMDR work and would it for me?”. Knowing more about a therapy that could possibly help you and whether or not you are a good candidate is a good place to start when considering any mental health therapy option, including EMDR.
More About What EMDR Is – Does EMDR Work?
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing is a type of therapy that was developed to help people living with the negative effects of traumatic experiences and PTSD. But, after many years, it has been determined that EMDR can help people living with other mental health issues as well as it can assist with dealing with negative emotions that are developed as the result of a variety of mental health disorders. It can help people to process their feelings and thoughts as they affect their mental health and deal with them in a healthy way, assisting with making progress and meeting goals during mental treatment.
Essentially, EMR works by having a therapist guide an individual through traumatic events and identifying the causes of negative emotions during sessions. Then, while processing memories that relate to negative emotions, patients are asked to move their eyes laterally by following an object or the therapist’s fingers. These eye movements are believed to associate with eye movements in REM sleep. Thus, helping to convert negative memories and emotions into something more available to process mentally. As a result, patients who use EMDR are able to process their trauma and negative emotions as a result of mental health issues in a more manageable way.
Who Can Benefit From EMDR Therapy?
When considering mental health therapy options, it’s best to identify whether or not you could benefit from the therapies you are considering. Not all mental health treatments work to help with all mental health issues. And, different people may benefit from mental health therapies in different ways. Basically, EMDR can help people better process the negative emotions that are associated with traumatic events and memories. It helps people to change negative thoughts associated with these traumatic memories into more positive ones in order to better manage symptoms of PTSD and other negative effects that come about as the result of these experiences.
Furthermore, mental health issues can often develop as a result of experiencing trauma. So, people living with a number of issues and mental health conditions can benefit from using EMDR including people who are living with:
- Anxiety disorders
- PTSD
- OCD
- Personality disorders
- Grief
- Depressive disorders
Is EMDR Therapy Right for You?
EMDR therapy is a great tool to utilize, especially in combination with other mental health approaches. All kinds of people may benefit from EMDR therapy, and there is no one kind of candidate that is perfect criteria. So, if you believe that you experience negative effects and emotions due to living through a traumatic event, EMDR therapy may be beneficial to you.
EMDR Therapy at Synchrony Brain Health
Synchrony Brain Health offers mental health therapy tools for people living with a variety of mental health issues. Our brain-based approaches help our patients better understand how the brain is a part of mental health and offer services that adjust how the brain works to improve the benefits of mental health treatment. This includes the use of EMDR for patients who have suffered from traumatic events. Find out more about our services and EMDR therapy available at our facility today from our website.