Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)

I am one of only 40 EMDR accredited consultants in England. EMDR is a proven and recommended treatment for post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) which can develop from childhood trauma, war trauma, road traffic accidents, and other adverse life events, allowing individuals to recover from these experiences and move forward with their lives.

EMDR is a powerful psychological treatment method that was developed by an American clinical psychologist, Dr Francine Shapiro, in the 1980s. As a Senior Research Fellow at the Mental Research Institute (in Palo Alto, USA), she published the first research data to support the benefits of the therapy in the 1989.

Since then a wealth of research has been conducted demonstrating its benefits in treating psychological trauma arising from experiences as diverse as war related experiences, childhood sexual and/or physical abuse or neglect, natural disaster, assault, surgical trauma, road traffic accidents and workplace accidents. Since its original development, EMDR is also increasingly used to help individuals with other issues and performance anxiety. EMDR has been found to be of benefit to children as well as adults.

EMDR is a complex and powerful therapy. Therapists always have a background in mental health before undertaking training in EMDR. You are strongly recommended to only consult legitimate clinicians who have undergone a bona-fide EMDR training.

Extracted from the EMDR Association UK and Ireland Web site