You may have heard of EMDR before through friends, family, social media, or even Prince Harry! But what is it? Is it only for adults? Is it hypnosis? (The answer to both of those questions is no)
But what about children? Can your child benefit from the same type of therapy that has helped many adults who have experienced trauma? (The answer to that is YES!)
So what exactly is it? How does it help children? What can parents expect? I’m glad you asked! Continue reading for some basic information on EMDR and how it may benefit your family.
What is EMDR?
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is a psychotherapy treatment designed to alleviate the distress associated with traumatic memories. The mind can often heal itself naturally, in the same way as the body does. Much of this natural coping mechanism occurs during sleep, particularly during rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. Francine Shapiro developed EMDR in 1987, utilizing this natural process in order to successfully treat Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Since then, EMDR has been used to effectively treat a wide range of mental health problems such as anxiety, depression, phobias, sleep problems, and addiction.
How does EMDR help children?
EMDR can be helpful for children who may be uncomfortable exploring their strong emotions verbally. EMDR can give children space to process and heal from their distress without putting pressure on them to articulate exactly what they are feeling why they are feeling it. It can be combined with other therapeutic modalities such as Art therapy and Play therapy to find a best fit for each individual child.
What may seem like a non-traumatic event to an adult can feel very traumatic for a child who might be experiencing that extreme emotion for the first time. There is no trauma too big or too small for EMDR. EMDR can be beneficial to children experiencing anxiety, stress, guilt, anger, and depression. It can also be used to boost confidence and self-esteem.
What does the EMDR process look like?
EMDR is an 8-phase treatment.
PHASE ONE: History taking. In this phase, the therapist will work with the child and parent to identify any possible targets for reprocessing and determine the child’s readiness for treatment.
PHASE TWO: Preparation and Distress Management. During this phase, the therapist will ensure that the child has several different coping skills/resources they can use to manage any emotional distress they might experience throughout the process.
PHASE THREE-SIX: Target Identification & Processing. These phases consist of:
- Identifying a visual image that relates to the troubling memory. This image can be drawn, set up with toys, made with clay, etc.
- Identifying a negative belief that goes with the target memory, then identifying a more positive belief that they would like to feel instead. For example, negative belief- “I am bad” positive belief- “I do the best I can.”
- Identifying related emotions & body sensations
The processing comes through bilateral stimulation, which is often done with small pulsars or “tappers.” The processing helps to lower the validity of the negative belief, while increasing the validity of the positive belief.
PHASE SEVEN: Closure. The therapist may encourage the child to utilize resources learned during EMDR sessions throughout the week at home.
PHASE EIGHT: Reevaluation. The therapist, child, and parent will get together and examine how the process has worked.
For more information on EMDR for children, check out Ana Gomez’s website. She offers wonderful explanations of EMDR for both children and parents.