Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)

EMDR is an evidence based tool which has been shown to be effective for helping people work through trauma. We have a current understanding that traumas, which include single incident traumas like a car accident, repetitive traumas such as living in a war zone, and attachment / relational trauma such as childhood abuse, often create a living legacy of symptoms in the individual. These symptoms may include depression, anxiety, irritability, anger, addictions, low self-esteem, dissociation, etc. The painful reminders of the trauma may become trapped in the brain and body, easily triggered at a moment’s notice.

Talk therapy is sometimes not enough to help someone heal from trauma because trauma is stored in the right hemisphere of the brain and talk therapy alone is mostly working with the left hemisphere. EMDR uses bilateral stimulation (tapping, eye movements, and / or bilateral audio tones) which activates both hemispheres of the brain thereby helping to process and release information that has become trapped such as body sensations, challenging emotional states, negative thought patterns, and disturbing images.

Attachment Focused EMDR (AF EMDR)

I am trained in AF EMDR through the Parnell Institute and have received certification as an EMDRIA approved certified EMDR therapist. I have had the honor of participating in an ongoing consultation group directly with Dr. Laurel Parnell. AF EMDR uses a client centered approach meaning the client is empowered to decide what they want to work on in the therapy. AF EMDR extends the use and benefits of EMDR to those clients who have typically been less responsive to the standard EMDR protocols, for example people who have experienced early attachment wounding such as abuse or neglect.

AF EMDR can be used to treat :

• Symptoms of Trauma

• Relational Issues and/or Difficulties

• Help With Processing Psychedelic Experiences

• Working Through Childhood Abuse and/or Neglect

I have found EMDR to be a powerful, complementary tool for those people who are engaging in work with psychedelics. Both EMDR and psychedelics can activate the psyche’s innate ability to move towards more wholeness and greater levels of integration.

Sometimes in one’s work with psychedelics, repressed traumas may emerge, and EMDR is an effective way to continue the work of desensitizing and reprocessing the trauma if needed. I have also found that for some who tried EMDR and did not feel it to be beneficial, after engaging in work with psychedelics, they experienced EMDR in a new and beneficial way.

To be clear, my clients have, on their own, sought out facilitators and are engaging in those experiences separately from our work together. I am not facilitating the medicine journeys. My role is to work with the client in the preparation and integration stages, before and after their psychedelic experience.

Please Note: My practice is currently full and I’m not currently taking on new clients at this time.