Trauma Therapy

(EMDR, CPT and IFS)

EMDR

EMDR, or Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing therapy, is a form of psychotherapy that has been shown to be effective in treating trauma, anxiety, depression, grief and loss, and PTSD. This therapy involves a structured approach where the therapist guides the client through sets of bilateral stimulation, such as side-to-side eye movements, hand tapping, or auditory tones, while the client recalls distressing memories or experiences.

The bilateral stimulation is believed to mimic the rapid eye movement (REM) sleep phase, during which the brain processes information and emotions. By engaging in this bilateral stimulation while focusing on the traumatic memory or distressing experience, EMDR aims to help the brain reprocess these memories in a way that reduces their emotional intensity and allows them to be stored in long-term memory.

Imagine our minds as a library filled with countless books representing our memories and experiences. When we go through difficult or traumatic events, it's as if those books get scattered on the floor, the pages jumbled and chaotic. EMDR therapy steps in as the librarian, guiding us through the process of sorting through those scattered pages. With the therapist's help, we can identify the chapters of our lives that hold the most pain or distress. Then, through the bilateral stimulation and focused attention, it's like carefully organizing those pages back into coherent chapters. As we work through this process, it becomes easier to close those chapters and place the books neatly back on the shelf. The memories are still there, but they no longer dominate our thoughts or emotions in the same overwhelming way. We can revisit them if needed, but they no longer hold the same power over us.

Another analogy is to imagine our minds as well-traveled trails through the woods. Along these trails, there are both clear paths (positive beliefs and resources) and overgrown areas (negative beliefs and obstacles). EMDR therapy helps us navigate these trails more effectively. When we encounter challenging terrain or obstacles on the trail, it's like facing difficult experiences or negative beliefs in our lives. EMDR serves as a guide, helping us identify these obstacles and find alternative paths around them. Moreover, just as well-traveled trails become more defined and easier to navigate with each passing hiker, EMDR strengthens the neural pathways associated with positive beliefs and resources. By revisiting and reinforcing these positive experiences and beliefs while engaging in bilateral stimulation, EMDR helps carve out clearer, more resilient pathways in our minds.

Over time, these well-traveled trails become our go-to routes, guiding us towards greater self-assurance, resilience, and well-being. We learn to navigate life's challenges with confidence, knowing that we have well-established paths to guide us through even the roughest terrain. Picture these trails as winding through diverse landscapes, each offering new perspectives and insights. Just as the scenery changes along a trail, EMDR therapy helps us view our experiences through different lenses of understanding.

Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT)

Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) is a compassionate and effective approach to healing after trauma. It helps individuals understand how trauma can impact their thoughts and beliefs, often creating "stuck points" that make it hard to move forward. By gently exploring these thoughts and working to shift unhelpful patterns, CPT empowers people to see their experiences in a new light. This process fosters emotional healing, helping individuals feel more in control and less burdened by guilt, shame, or fear.

What makes CPT unique is its focus on how trauma shapes the way we see ourselves, others, and the world. Through guided conversations and practical tools, clients learn to navigate these changes and reduce distress. It's especially helpful for those dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), offering a safe space to break free from feelings of self-blame or avoidance and rediscover a sense of safety, connection, and strength.

Internal Family Systems (IFS)

Internal Family Systems (IFS) is a powerful approach to therapy based on the understanding that each of us is made up of many different "parts"—aspects of our personality that have developed to help us navigate life and protect us. At our core, each person has a “truest self” that is calm, compassionate, curious, creative, and capable.

But as we experience life, especially painful or overwhelming moments, we develop protective parts to help us cope. Some parts may push us to achieve, while others may numb or distract us from emotional pain. IFS holds the belief that all parts have good intentions. If their roles no longer serve us well, they’ve been trying to help in the best way they know how.

For example, someone might have a people-pleasing part that learned early on to stay connected to a parent by being agreeable and selfless. As an adult, that same part may now try to keep peace in a marriage but at the cost of silencing her own needs. Through IFS, she can begin to understand and unburden this part, creating more room to live authentically.

In IFS therapy, we get to know these parts with curiosity and compassion. As we begin to heal the wounds they protect, they can relax—and we can move through life from a place of greater peace, clarity, and connection. We can also walk away from old or destructive ways of being or thinking that no longer serve us. It can be deeply freeing to live in a new way.