EMDR Therapy in Squamish and Online
Healing through EMDR Therapy
If you are experiencing difficulties with responses surrounding trauma, anxiety, depression, grief or loss, alcohol or substance use, chronic pain, fears or phobias, stress, dissociation or disconnection, or performance anxiety, Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy could be a supportive therapeutic approach to support healing and change.
As a therapist who specializes in EMDR, I have seen the positive impacts on how it can help people move beyond past experiences and mental health responses holding them back to the change and growth they are desiring. I offer in-person services of EMDR therapy in Squamish and online services for Online EMDR therapy throughout British Columbia.
What is EMDR Therapy
EMDR therapy is an evidence-based treatment that has been extensively researched and proven effective to help people to recover from trauma and other distressing life experiences. EMDR is a neurological-based approach, unlike talk therapy, which focuses on the brain’s ability to process and reprocess traumatic memories to help shift memories — both physiologically surrounding nervous system distress and psychologically in terms of meaning.
EMDR therapy supports the brain to process and consolidate traumatic memories that become stuck or frozen. Processing these memories, which can lead to negative self-beliefs, functional impairment, relationship ruptures/wounds, and negative automatic responses supports a person’s innate resilience to move towards greater positive beliefs, understanding of past experiences, more positive interpersonal relationship processes, and reduced painful traumatic responses.
The efficacy of EMDR therapy for post-traumatic stress injuries (PTSIs) and the diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has been established in extensive research studies. Research has found EMDR shows quicker results with fewer sessions for improvement and reduction in trauma responses than Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy (CBT).
How EMDR Works
EMDR therapy involves recalling distressing past, present, or future experiences while engaging in bilateral stimulation, such as eye movements, taps, or sounds. Recalling, processing, and reprocessing past distressing experiences using bilateral stimulation helps require the brain’s neurological response to these memories to allow the memories to be processed in more adaptive ways to not impact a person’s present in the same manner.
More can be found out about EMDR through the EMDR International Association (EMDRIA) website, which offers resources including a description of the EMDR process.
What EMDR Can Treat
EMDR is highly effective for treating a range of challenges and mental health responses, which include:
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Post-Traumatic Stress Injuries (PTSIs)
Anxiety and Panic
Depression
Fears, Phobias, and Negative Self Beliefs
Grief and Loss
Chronic Pain
Performance Anxiety
Alcohol and/or Substance Use
Early Attachment Experiences — Processing Ruptures and Wounds to Relational (or Personal) Repair and Healing
Courtesy of EMDR International Association
My Approach As an EMDR Therapist
As a trained EMDR therapist, my approach is trauma-informed and based in collaboration where the client drives the process of the change they are seeking. I have completed my EMDR specialized training through EMDR Consulting, which is an approved EMDRIA training and certification program. I continue to engage in clinical supervision surrounding my EMDR work, which is part of psychotherapy best practice, to ensure ethical and best care for those I work with. I am an advocate about attachment-informed EMDR to help find and heal attachment wounds to require and process relational experiences.
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Experiences of trauma, distressing memories, and mental health responses are unique to a person requiring a personalized and individualized treatment approach. EMDR therapy is specified to a person’s needs and goals for counselling.
In all of my therapeutic work, I begin supporting those I work with by developing the therapeutic relationship. I offer a complimentary phone consultation to begin and a longer 80-minute intake session where we can discuss the experiences that have occurred, goals for counselling, and create a treatment plan to support goals for change or healing.
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My priority in therapy is to create a safe, secure, trusting, comfortable, and supportive space based in non-judgment and collaboration. Discussing past challenging events is difficult and takes courage. I meet clients where they are at with their unique experiences and stories understanding they are the experts of their lives.
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I offer EMDR therapy both in-person in Squamish and online to support the needs of those I work with, as well as to be able to support those who live throughout British Columbia.
A discussion of how EMDR works and the differences that can be gained for in-person versus online therapy formats can be discussed either in a consultation call or first intake session.
What to Expect in EMDR Therapy
EMDR therapy occurs in eight phases; a video from EMDRIA explaining these phases can be found here.
Below is a brief explanation, which offers a summary of the eight phases of EMDR, to provide an understanding of what a person can expect with EMDR therapy:
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The first session is an longer 90-minute intake session, which involves a thorough assessment of a person’s history, mental health responses, experiences (both negative and adaptive or positive), self-beliefs, and goals for counselling. Having this as the beginning of the therapeutic relationship helps understand a person’s unique needs and to adapt therapy to a person’s needs.
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Safety and stabilization are the primary focus of initial counselling sessions examining needs surrounding safety planning, coping, or supports. Before moving forward, grounding and coping strategies are discussed that are based in relaxation and mindfulness to help enhance a person’s resources to handle any distressing emotions that may arise when discussing past challenging experiences.
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A person can stay in the above initial space in counselling or can continue to the reprocessing phase where specific experiences, memories, challenges, or mental health responses are worked on using bilateral stimulation. Bilateral stimulation can be completed either with eye movements, physical sensations using buzzers, or through sounds using alternating auditory simulation. Both online and in-person formats of bilateral stimulation have proven to be effective in EMDR therapy treatment.
Reprocessing traumatic memories to help reduce their nervous system responses in the present and support a reduction of mental health or relationship challenges that are providing challenges for them. If a person chooses to engage in EMDR, processing experiences that have caused the person pain helps to support healing, adaptive coping mechanisms, positive views of self and the world, and a reduction of reactions in the present that are not serving them.
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After reprocessing, therapy is focused on integrating the new insights, adaptive self-beliefs, resources, and growth processes into a person’s daily life and relationships. Reinforcing the positive beliefs, new understandings of the past, and new coping strategies for the future supports the long-term efficacy of EMDR therapy. The neurological response systems of individuals experience change so that they no longer have the same activated responses to past distressing experiences in the present, which significantly improves a person’s current functioning, mental health responses, relationships, and future.
How EMDR Therapy Can Help
If you are struggling with mental health responses, especially trauma or distressing memories, EMDR can be effective in being a long-term change therapy. For those who have found past talk therapy as challenging or ineffective, EMDR therapy has been shown to be helpful.
I have found in my practice it is particularly helpful for childhood or attachment trauma, as well as for those who face high-exposure to trauma in their workplaces (e.g., first responders or Public Safety Personnel). Often individuals may not consider the experiences they have faced as traumatic in nature or not connect their other mental health responses to past distressing experiences; discussing these connections can be helpful in an intake session to guide therapeutic planning.
To read more about trauma responses, trauma therapy and how EMDR can help, please visit my blog post.
Get Started with an EMDR Therapist in Squamish
Please do not hesitate to reach out with any questions you may have about EMDR, if it could be a supportive process to you, or if another therapeutic approach I support client’s with may be better at this time. Please reach out with any questions by scheduling an introductory complimentary consultation or initial intake session.