In order to find out what to expect from EMDR therapy, it is important to know how it works. Therapists use this therapy to help patients with mental distress. It is commonly recommended for those who have PTSD. The therapy involves eye movement desensitization and reprocessing. A women’s treatment center for substance use and mental disorders like The Willows at Red Oak Recovery often will use this therapy.
At The Willows at Red Oak Recovery, we’re committed to helping the women in our care heal from addiction. With the help of EMDR therapy and other treatment options, our clients get the care they need to recover. Please don’t let addiction rule your life any longer. Contact The Willows at Red Oak today at 855.773.0614 to learn more about our services or to determine how an EMDR therapy program can support your recovery.
What Is EMDR Therapy?
EMDR therapy began in the late 1980s, thanks to an American psychologist named Francine Shapiro. It was originally used to treat those with memories of traumatic events. It’s now used to treat a wide range of disorders, including:
- Depression
- PTSD
- Anxiety
- Phobias
- Chronic pain
- Substance use disorders
The therapy involves directed eye movement as clients remember traumatic events in their past. The point of this is a distraction. Eye movement causes distraction, which makes it easier to think about upsetting events. As clients are consistently exposed to upsetting memories, the memories become easier to deal with.
In that way, EMDR has a similarity to cognitive behavioral therapy. When we use it at a mental health treatment center, it involves bringing up an upsetting event while attempting to alter the thought patterns around it.
Benefits and Side Effects
Benefits of EMDR typically include relief from accompanying symptoms to certain disorders. For instance, therapists use this therapy to treat clients suffering from substance abuse, ADHD, related eating disorders, panic attacks, and even psychotic symptoms. These conditions lead some people to become angry or distressed and engage in self-harm. EMDR tends to treat these symptoms and alleviate them. In addition, we usually employ it with other treatment options to get the best results.
Side effects are not usually problematic. Since it is not a medication, EMDR does not have obvious or predictable side effects. Some clients may feel heightened emotions or sensations. Lightheadedness, vivid dreams, and more distressing memories are a few other possible side effects.
The good news is that these symptoms tend to resolve as treatment goes on. You should always tell your therapist about any symptoms in order to work on new memories.
Knowing What to Expect From EMDR Therapy
An EMDR therapy session has eight phases. The first phase is discovering the client’s history and planning treatment. The second phase involves preparing treatment methods. Next, a traumatic memory assessment must take place. After that, desensitization to upsetting memories through eye movement is the fourth phase.
Installing positive thoughts that the client has previously identified represents the fifth phase. A client’s self-body scan and closure through self-control and stabilization are the sixth and seventh phases. Reevaluation is the eighth and final phase.
During the sessions, you may experience some unpleasant reactions to the surfacing of painful memories. Typical reactions include rapid heartbeat, sweating, or nausea. You can expect your therapist to try to minimize these reactions by directing your eye movement.
During the assessment phase, the therapist will ask you to choose a positive thought to replace negative images related to the traumatic memory.
Seek Treatment at The Willows at Red Oak Today
Finding quality EMDR treatment in North Carolina is easy when you consider The Willows at Red Oak Recovery. We offer gender-specific treatment for women in order to treat a wide variety of disorders related to substance abuse. Additionally, some of our therapy services include dual diagnosis treatment, animal-assisted therapy, motivational interviewing, trauma therapy, and disordered eating treatment.
We offer a safe environment where women get the attention they need to recover from substance abuse and related disorders. Furthermore, with a peaceful and home-like environment located near Asheville, North Carolina, The Willows at Red Oak Recovery provides a highly clinical approach. Clients get at least 25 hours of therapy sessions in both individual and group settings.
At The Willows at Red Oak Recovery women’s recovery treatment center, we can help you overcome substance abuse and mental health conditions. We offer a range of therapies, like EMDR, with a track record of success. Call855.773.0614 today to get on the path to regaining control of your life.
