EMDR

When we sleep, we experience Rapid Eye Movement (REM), which is when our natural coping mechanisms occur, and we process events into memory. EMDR therapy mimics this REM stage of sleep from the outside. While the patient talks through their traumatic experience, the therapist moves their finger, or a light, across the patient’s visual field, replicating the REM process. Patient’s may also be asked to tap their body in a technique called butterfly self-tapping. By triggering these repeated eye movements to mimic the REM process, the patient can lessen the intensity of a traumatic memory of the past, turning that memory into a neutral feeling.