EMDR Therapy
What Is EMDR?
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is a nontraditional therapy—like CBT, DBT, etc.—that uses a patient’s own rapid, rhythmic eye movements to treat post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), panic disorders, eating disorders, addictions, and anxiety with the primary goal being to weaken the negative emotions associated with disturbing memories that might otherwise create a debilitating response. EMDR is an individual-based and composed therapy that requires the patient to temporarily focus on a traumatic memory while a therapist induces bilateral eye movement. This stimulation has been associated with the abatement in the emotion and sharpness of that specific trauma memory, making it less impactful, and less likely you will experience a psychological response.
How EMDR Works
EMDR therapy is heavily connected to how memories are stored in the brain. EMDR allows new neural pathways to be connected to the traumatic memory. The emotions and thoughts that cause stress are now intertwined with new positive pathways between the right and left sides of the brain.
What Can EMDR Help With?
EMDR is primarily known for helping individuals who suffer from trauma disorders and PTSD. Although there is not sufficient evidence that shows EMDR helps outside of those, this therapy has also been used to help:
How Can We Help
Substance Use Disorders
Peaks Recovery’s full continuum of care can treat many addictions, such as alcohol, opioids, heroin, cocaine, meth, Xanax, marijuana, prescription, and other substances that are abused and addictive.
Co-Occurring Disorders
Co-Occurring disorders are any combination of two or more substance use and mental health disorders. Treating CODs require a sophisticated approach to treat the whole person.
Mental Health Disorders
We treat individuals suffering from a primary mental health diagnosis (with no addictions) such as depression, trauma, anxiety, bipolar, and others.