If you’ve been in therapy or have a friend in therapy or have listened to a celebrity like Prince Harry talk about therapy you’ve probably heard of EMDR therapy and/or Brainspotting. When we put these two treatment modalities side by side what are the similarities and what are the differences you may be wondering?
Brainspotting & EMDR Are Both Brain Therapies
Both of these types of therapies are considered “brain-therapies”. This is different from talk therapy where a lot of the processing in brain therapies happens on the neurological level. Plus in general, they have less narrative/story sharing from the client that is typically involved in talk therapy. These newer methods work to unlock creativity, process through past trauma, and otherwise make some truly significant progress with your Brainspotting or EMDR therapist that may have grown stagnant after doing talk therapies. EMDR and Brainspotting have been developed around the client’s line of vision. EMDR utilizes eye movements as a form of bilateral stimulation, while Brainspotting focuses the eye on a fixed gaze position. The position of your eyes, or where your gaze is directed, can actually unlock some deeper insights that have not yet been recognized.
When comparing the two types of therapies it’s important to know that Brainspotting has roots in EMDR and supports reprocessing trauma and retraining the brain to respond differently to emotional situations. Brainspotting and EMDR are therapeutic interventions that help the client and therapist access deeply stored emotional, somatic, traumatic, and often subconscious information. Both interventions may involve bilateral stimulation as well as building somatic awareness. The objective of each type of therapy is to ease the building of new neural networks that allow the client to have decreased symptoms that may be associated with trauma, increase emotional regulation, and be able to sustain being in what is referred to as the Window of Tolerance.
The Main Differences Between Brainspotting & EMDR Therapy
The primary differences between the two involve the procedure used and the role of the therapist.
Brainspotting Therapy
Brainspotting therapy focuses on the neural networks associated with trauma. While EMDR focuses on a specific memory. This is an important difference between the two models in that a specific or detailed memory is not necessary or as important for brainspotting. Dual Attunement is a primary tenant of Brainspotting in that the attunement of the therapist activates attachment brain pathways associated with safety, support, and connection towards the client. The brainspotting therapist applies minimal interventions during the process to allow the client’s inherent healing to occur. Many clients at WellMinded Counseling find this to be empowering, instinctual, and flexible.
EMDR Therapy
EMDR therapy follows more of a passive presence where the client is leading their processing. While the EMDR therapist only interjects when the client appears to be stuck. Attunement is not at the forefront of the EMDR model and isn’t necessary for processing. However, the clients’ ability to self-regulate their emotions is critical for there to be safety in the session.
Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing follows a very specific protocol in which the EMDR therapist leads and guides the client through a series of eight repetitive steps. The EMDR therapist applies the primary interventions and leads the client on when to start and stop the rapid bilateral movements. As part of this process, the client focuses on one traumatic issue, event, or core belief while experiencing bilateral stimulation. The client is guided by the EMDR therapist to repeatedly re-experience the issue while being led through the steps in the process. In this way, EMDR focuses more on one issue at a time vs brainspotting which allows for the possibility of organic processing of multiple traumas in one session.
Start Healing With Brainspotting or EMDR Therapy in Colorado & Florida
Hopefully, that helps bring some more clarity to the similarities and differences between the two treatment modalities. If you have more questions about Brainspotting therapy or EMDR therapy we would be happy to explore those with you. Follow these steps to start the process of healing at our therapy practices in Colorado and Florida.
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OTHER COUNSELING SERVICES We Offer in Denver, CO & Tampa, FL
We offer a variety of additional services besides brain-spotting and EMDR therapy. WellMinded Counseling also offers the following therapy services: