Eye Movement Desensitisation Reprocessing (EMDR) is a trauma treatment technique, discovered by Francine Shapiro in 1987. Since it first started, it has evolved and been refined by hundreds of practitioners to the incredible tool it is today.

Combined with in-depth talk therapy and strong somatic awareness, bilateral stimulation (through eye movement, sound, or touch) allows us to reprocess traumatic memories. That is to say, memories that are stuck and that hold as much power over us today as the day they happened, even if it was years ago. If you are struggling to let go of an event, be it the worst thing that ever happened to you, or something that now seems silly but keeps coming back again and again, EMDR can help you process the event and file it once and for all as a memory: something that happened in the past and belongs in the past.

EMDR involves first an in-depth exploration of your self and history, so we can place the event in context. Second, we will do as much resource building as you need: because I am not going to let you revisit traumatic events without feeling strong, safe, and armed against the past. Only then will we use bilateral stimulation to reprocess memories, and we will go at your pace, respectfully, and sensitively. Finally, together we will explore the new narratives that arise once the past has been put where it belongs: behind you.

EMDR can produce impressive and rather fast results on single-event trauma. It can also work for complex trauma and traumatic events where you don’t have clear memories — it might take a bit longer then, and talk therapy might play a bigger role.