How do you feel and process your traumas?
Have you ever tried seeking professional help?
EMDR therapies, CBT, and many other therapies are introduced after thorough research to help people suffering from PTSD and help them return to their normal lives. Here, EMDR therapy in the UK is now being used by many certified professionals to help people process their traumas.
Today, we will discuss the EMDR brain processing mechanism in detail to make you aware of the benefits of this therapy. So that whenever you or someone you know is in need of help to get out of their past trauma stress, they can seek the right help to process the dilemma and return to their normal life easily.
What is EMDR Therapy
EMDR stands for Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing. It is a technique where the therapist makes use of a moving stimulus, such as a light or a finger, while the patient is asked to recall the trauma and focus on the moving object.
They are not required to recall the trauma or event in detail that disturbs them again or trigger the sadness or anxiety. The purpose is just to shift the focus of the brain to help it move out of that situation.
The repeated sessions of the therapy with a certified professional help the affected’s brain to process the stress and trauma and return to normal life. After recovering from the trauma stress through these sessions, the person will stop feeling the same intensity of the memories as they did when the incident actually took place.
We do get sad and develop stress and anxiety over the unhappy situations and events that disturb our lives. But they should not cast a lasting gloominess over our lives. They should fade their impact over time, as time is the best healing medicine. But if someone remains unable to process through PTSD, they need professional help.
We at Pinnacle Therapy are always available to help you come back to normal and enjoy your life to the maximum.
How Does EMDR Therapy Help the Brain Process Trauma
Now that trauma therapy is explained, let me tell you how our brains process trauma and deal with emotions. When an incident happens that makes us feel sad, a part of our brain helps to recover and makes it a part of our past memories, and brings us back to life, where we start behaving normally.
But sometimes a trauma affects our brain so badly that it cannot process to make it a part of past memory. It keeps returning and affecting our emotions, triggering gloominess again and again every time it is recalled. Here, the person who is struggling with PTSD needs help to get rid of the trauma stress.
This is where EMDR comes to help when other techniques fail. It uses a moving stimulus and requires you to recall the memory, not every detail of it, and keep your eyes focused on the moving stimulus. This reactivates the part of your brain and helps it function to make the trauma a part of your memory or take it distant.
EMDR Success Rate Studies
The research on EMDR has been growing since the late 1980s, and the results are very encouraging.
Multiple studies confirm that EMDR is highly effective for PTSD. The World Health Organisation officially recognises it as an effective PTSD treatment. Research consistently shows that the majority of single-trauma PTSD cases respond well to EMDR within a small number of sessions.
What makes EMDR success rate studies particularly interesting is that the therapy produces results much faster than many traditional talking therapies. Some studies show EMDR achieves in eight to twelve sessions what other approaches might take far longer to accomplish. People who struggled for years have found meaningful and lasting relief through EMDR.
For complex trauma histories involving multiple events, the process takes longer. The work is deeper and more gradual. At Pinnacle Therapy, our therapists always work at a pace that feels right for each individual.
EMDR vs CBT and Other PTSD Treatments
Traumas affect us badly. Some people process them with time easily, while others find it difficult to return to their normal routines. In such situations, it is recommended to seek PTSD treatment in the UK. This will help them process their trauma-related anxiety.
Now there are people who feel it is okay to recall their trauma memories in detail, and this is what is required in CBT treatment for PTSD recovery. But some people’s brains stop processing and move out of the traumatic state and remain stuck at the same point. This is where the EMDR brain processing mechanism can help them to get out of the post-traumatic stress and start living a normal life. They are not required to recall the traumatic experience in detail.
How Quickly EMDR Works
The recovery speed differs for every person and their trauma history. A bad accident or something that has caused distress in one single go may show quick recovery like six to twelve sessions. Some notice changes even earlier. For more complex situations involving multiple traumatic events, the process takes longer. Progress still happens, but more gradually as each memory gets processed in turn.
Most people notice after their EMDR sessions that the traumatic memories feel less immediate. The emotional intensity reduces. Sleep often gets better. Situations that previously triggered intense reactions become easier to manage. These changes build gradually, but they are real, and they last.
Where Can I Find EMDR Therapy in the UK
When you get the solution for your problem, it is wise to apply it as soon as possible to start benefiting from it. But the NHS has long waiting queues for EMDR therapy in the UK. Sometimes this waiting time can prove more distressing.
This is where private therapy centres with certified professionals come to help. You can book a consultation at Pinnacle therapy with our BACP-accredited EMDR professional, who will be right at your service. You can also book online consultations and don’t need to wait for the right time to travel to your therapist.
FAQs
What is EMDR therapy?
This therapy helps you recover from a stuck memory in your brain that stops you from daily normal functioning. The therapist will reactivate the part of your brain and ask you to focus your eyes on the moving stimulus and recall the distressing memories, though not every detail of it. And this technique helps your brain feel distant from the bad memories of the incident, and you get rid of the stress.
How quickly does EMDR work?
It depends on what you are dealing with. For single trauma cases, many people feel significant relief within six to twelve sessions. For more complex histories, the process takes longer. Progress depends on the nature of the trauma and your readiness to engage with the process.
How does EMDR therapy help the brain process trauma?
Traumatic memories stay stuck in a raw, unprocessed state in the brain. EMDR uses bilateral stimulation to help the brain’s natural processing system complete what it could not do at the time of the trauma. The memory becomes less emotionally intense and stops triggering the same distress reactions it previously caused.
Where can I find EMDR therapy in the UK?
Pinnacle Therapy offers EMDR sessions online across the UK with BACP-accredited therapists trained specifically in EMDR. You can book an initial consultation on our website, and our team will assess your situation and point you in the right direction.
How does EMDR compare with other PTSD treatments in effectiveness?
Research shows EMDR produces results comparable to Trauma-Focused CBT for PTSD. The key difference is that EMDR does not require talking through the trauma in detail, which makes it more accessible for people who find that too difficult. Studies also consistently show EMDR produces results faster than some other approaches for single trauma cases.
Conclusion
Bad memories and sad incidents affect our lives and disturb our routine. We remain sad for a time and also feel overwhelmed when we hear about someone else going through the same. It’s completely okay to feel this way. But if this distress doesn’t allow us to return to normal, it becomes questionable. Because to live our lives, we need to return to normal or start performing our daily tasks and duties with an aching heart.
Not being able to do so becomes problematic because nobody can live their whole life through the distress or sad memories. At Pinnacle Therapy, we have certified professionals who help people with such situations and help them return to their normal lives.
If you or someone near you is suffering and needs help to manage PTSD, you can contact us at our website to seek professional guidance. We help you, not judge you.
