EMDR for Children, Teens and Adults
In Marin County, California & online for California Residents
The brain knows how to heal itself, and EMDR therapy can provide a jumpstart to that healing.
Your current perception of yourself is based on what’s happened in the past.
But even the longest negative patterns can be broken.
You have the power to take control of yourself by giving your brain the opportunity to process old, distressing memories.
What happened in the past can impact how you want to feel in the future. By understanding where your symptoms and reactions to triggers come from, you can change how you respond to difficult life events. The causes of present challenges can be due to memories of past experiences inadequately stored in our brains and bodies. Negative memories of the past as well as triggers in the present, can be successfully reprocessed so that healthy responses in the future are possible.
EMDR (eye-movement desensitization and reprocessing) therapy targets your unprocessed negative memories and activates your brain’s information processing system so these old traumatic memories can be “digested” and stored in a way that is no longer negatively impacting your current life. When EMDR is successful, the previously disturbing memories are neutralized and integrated with other similar positive experiences and no longer hold a “charge” to your nervous system.
How it works:
EMDR is backed by extensive research and is recommended by organizations such as the American Psychiatric Association and the World Health Organization for trauma treatment.
EMDR is a whole body and mind comprehensive approach that focuses on identifying past experiences that contribute to current distress or symptoms. Through guided sets of eye movements or other bilateral stimulation (tapping or auditory), this therapy approach aims to help the brain reprocess these memories to resolve their emotional charge. This reprocessing works much like REM sleep, where the brain naturally processes important daily experiences and absorbs the information we need.
EMDR is particularly effective for processing traumatic memories that may underlie conditions like PTSD, anxiety, depression, and addiction. But it can also work to reprocess other upsetting events before your system gets overwhelmed, and you will often experience significant improvement in a relatively short time compared to traditional talk therapies.
Sessions end with reflection and discussion to integrate the insights gained and monitor progress. Overall, EMDR considers the connection between mind and body, aiming for a more integrated healing process.
How it works for children and teens:
With children, addressing trauma now can change the trajectory of a child's life and possibly keep mental illness from developing in the future. Early intervention, before many layers of memory networks are formed, allows children to work through memories well before a long-term impact takes hold. Combined with play therapy, sand tray therapy, or family therapy, EMDR for children works much the same way as with adults. By using child-friendly language, taking frequent breaks, and taking time to let the child engage in activities that provide emotional regulation, children can greatly benefit from this technique.
With teens, EMDR works best if it is their choice to come to therapy and they are motivated to feel better. If your teen is willing to accept help, has an ability to communicate thoughts and feelings, can tolerate and regulate big emotions, and is ready to process current or past distressing events in their life, then EMDR can be a very efficient and effective method. EMDR can help teens shift their focus from external influences to internal strength and control; something many teens struggle with.
“Our memories are the basis of both negative symptoms and of mental health. The key difference is the way the memories are stored in the brain. If they are unprocessed, they can cause us to overreact or act in a way that hurts us or those around us. If they are “processed, we are able to react in ways that serve our loved ones and ourselves well.”
-From Getting Past Your Past, by Francine Shapiro, PHD
How to know if EMDR is right for me?
As with any type of therapy, we will start with a thorough history taking process and will discuss if you have a history of trauma, anxiety, or other symptoms that might be rooted in past experiences as well as any current issues that are causing distress. We will also do some assessments together to strengthen your coping skills, understand how you tolerate distress, and determine your ability to “shift states.”
EMDR requires you to be able to access the past and all the thoughts, feelings, images, and physical sensations associated with disturbing memories, while also being able to shift back to the present moment and calm and regulate your nervous system. EMDR also requires active participation and collaboration between us. We will work to build a trusting relationship so you can do the challenging work to feel better and achieve your goals.
If your present responses to life’s challenges are bigger than you’d like them to be, you are likely reacting to something in the past.
Stop running on automatic and regain conscious control of your life. Many of the feelings and behaviors that undermine our happiness are symptoms that stem from the memory system that forms our unconscious.Take what you need from past experiences and get rid of what no longer serves you.