How Does EMDR Help Treat Anxiety?

Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is one of the most prevalent and treatable forms of anxiety. People with GAD often find themselves worrying about everyday issues like work, health, or family, which can lead to symptoms like tension, irritability, and trouble sleeping. Luckily, eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) has emerged as a promising therapy for those struggling with anxiety. With an average of just 3-5 sessions, many individuals experience a notable reduction in symptoms, and significant improvement is often seen after 12 sessions.

If you've tried traditional therapies like cognitive-behavioral therapy or medication without much success, EMDR could be your breakthrough. This innovative therapy uses bilateral stimulation like guided eye movements, tapping, or specific sounds to help you process and diminish the emotional intensity of anxiety-inducing memories. Studies even suggest that EMDR not only reduces anxiety symptoms but also enhances overall quality of life.

Although EMDR is relatively new, the research supporting its effectiveness is expanding. Many individuals report significant improvements in their anxiety levels after undergoing EMDR sessions. There's a wealth of research spotlighting the efficacy of EMDR in treating anxiety disorders.

How Does EMDR Address Anxiety Symptoms?

EMDR helps you tackle anxiety by processing and releasing the emotions tied to disturbing memories. During a session, you're guided through eye movements while focusing on a distressing thought. This helps your brain process these memories differently, easing anxiety. Through EMDR, you learn to see traumatic events in a new light, reducing the intensity of negative beliefs and emotions. Instead of being haunted by past trauma, you begin to reshape your narrative.

A Dutch study found that 84% of EMDR participants reported decreased anxiety levels, compared to 50% in cognitive therapy. EMDR offers a promising path for those grappling with anxiety and PTSD.

Accessing the Memory with Bilateral Stimulation

A therapist helps you pinpoint specific memories, past events, or current triggers that fuel your anxiety. This could involve traumatic experiences or less obvious events that have contributed to the development of negative beliefs and feelings. You'll focus on a specific aspect of the identified issue (image, thought, feeling, or body sensation) while simultaneously engaging in bilateral stimulation. This usually involves following the therapist's finger movements from side to side with your eyes, but can also include tapping or auditory tones.

Reprocessing the Memory

EMDR helps your brain process difficult memories differently, in a less distressing manner. The idea is that it facilitates communication between the two hemispheres of your brain, allowing you to release the intense emotions associated with those memories. Through repeated sets of bilateral stimulation, while focusing on the memory, the strong negative emotions associated with it gradually decrease over time. You still remember the event, but it loses its power to trigger anxiety or other difficult feelings. This process is called desensitization.

Installing Positive Beliefs

As the distress fades, your therapist will work with you to reinforce positive beliefs about yourself and the situation. Together, you'll identify and replace any negative thought patterns that may be fueling your anxiety. For instance, instead of thinking "I'm helpless," you might reframe it as "I am capable of handling this." Your therapist will also guide you in noticing any lingering physical sensations related to the memory you've processed. At the end of each session, you'll practice grounding techniques to help you feel centered and stable before leaving.

EMDR helps the brain process anxiety-related memories in a healthier way, leading to reduced emotional intensity of triggers, a shift towards positive beliefs, and a greater sense of safety and control, often with quicker results than traditional talk therapy.

We offer a welcoming and transgender-safe space within a large team office. Our specialties include support for couples, individuals, anxiety, depression, trauma, ADHD, autism, perinatal, and reproductive mental health. We utilize modalities like Gottman and Emotionally Focused Therapy and also provide EMDR. Book a consultation today to see if EMDR or anxiety therapy is right for you.