Eye Movement Desensitisation & Reprocessing (EMDR)

Maslow Therapies is extremely proud to offer Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR) as a treatment approach. EMDR is an evidence based psychotherapeutic modality designed for working with distressing or traumatic life experiences. According to the research, it is believed that many psychological difficulties are the result of distressing life experiences which have not been stored in memory properly and are said to be “unprocessed” or “blocked”. As such, these traumatic memories may need some help to become processed, and EMDR is one way to do this. Due to our commitment towards maintaining professional standards, all of our trained EMDR therapists are accredited by relevant governing bodies (i.e., EMDR Europe Association).

What “blocks” my trauma memories?

Our normal memories are stored by a part of the brain called the hippocampus. Essentially, the hippocampus is a sort of librarian which catalogues (i.e., processes) events and stores them in the right place. Unfortunately, some of the traumatic life experiences that we experience (i.e., accidents, abuse, disasters, or violence) are so overwhelming that the hippocampus is unable to do its job properly (i.e., process). When this happens, memories are stored in their raw, unprocessed, form. As such, these trauma memories remain easily triggered, leading them to replay and cause distress over and over again.

What is EMDR used to treat?

The research base offers high quality evidence which suggests that EMDR is an effective treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE, UK). Although EMDR may be an effective treatment modality for other conditions, much more research is required.

What do these eye movements really do?

Bilateral stimulation (i.e., following a rhythmic pattern with eyes from left to right) has been found to enhance memory processing of traumatic events via permitting inter-hemisphere communication.

How long will my treatment take?

EMDR sessions can sometimes be slightly longer than typical therapy sessions in that they may last up to 90 minutes per session. As a rough estimate, as per NICE guidelines, 8-12 sessions may be appropriate to treat simpler traumas, with more sessions required for more complex traumas. It should be noted, that the number of sessions that you might need will depend on the type and severity of trauma in which you experienced.