Brainspotting Therapy at Psychotherapy Partners
Brainspotting is an innovative approach to therapy that is based on the idea that where you look affects how you feel. By adjusting the visual patterns of clients, this brain-based therapy can provide help in harnessing the brain’s natural ability for self-scanning and healing. At Psychotherapy Partners, we offer brainspotting and many other therapies designed to help our clients overcome obstacles to happiness and productivity.
The Right Brainspotting Solutions for You
As a licensed psychologist and a member of the Psychotherapy Partners team, Denise Tromblay offers brainspotting therapies to patients who require this advanced somatic and body-focused method. By rewriting the brain in this way, it may possible to improve performance in competitive activities. It also reduces physical pain, and to help patients deal with chronic illness. Denise has helped many patients with brainspotting therapy sessions. He is committed to provide the most practical help and support for patients in dealing with trauma, stress, anxiety, and many other issues that affect the quality of life for these individuals.
The Basics of Brainspotting
First developed in 2003 by Dr. David Grand, brainspotting is a therapy based on the idea that traumatic memories live in specific areas of the brain and often have an impact on the overall function of the brain. By focusing attention on the parts of the visual field that correspond with the location in the brain where the traumatic or damaging memories stored, brainspotting provides a more direct form of access to the source of these issues. This integrative therapy is designed to assist patients in processing the source of trauma. As well as it also de-stresses the body to promote better health both physically and emotionally.
Dr. Grand based his approach on his previous experiences with somatic experiencing and eye-movement desensitization and reprocessing therapy (EMDR):
- Somatic experiencing is a therapeutic method that exposes patients gradually and gently to materials related to their specific trauma. This will allow them to develop a resistance to this material and to develop tools to manage exposure to traumatic triggers in their everyday lives.
- EMDR is a somatic body-focused therapy that is probably the direct precursor to brainspotting. It is designed to allow patients to access traumatic memories through eye movements and bilateral stimulation. These therapeutic tools are designed to help patients deal with and move on from traumatic events by offering more direct access to these memories and allowing them to be assimilated into the patient’s cognitive and emotional processes.
In simple terms, Dr. Grand found that where you look affects how you feel. Finding areas in the visual field that correspond to the places in which traumatic memories stored can allow therapists and patients to find a more direct route to these
Unprocessed Trauma Is Stored in the Body
The central premise of brainspotting therapy is the idea that traumas experienced but not fully processed can be stored in specific areas of the brain to reduce function and to limit your ability to deal with everyday activities. By accessing these areas of stored traumas and working through them in a safe and therapeutic environment, patients can often learn to desensitize these pain points and to promote healing for mind and body together.
How Brainspotting Therapy Works
During a brainspotting session, your therapist will use a pointer or pen-shaped to guide your eyes across all areas of your field of vision. When an area that contains a traumatic or important memory is triggered, it will cause reflexive and unconscious physical responses that can be identified by a trained psychotherapist. In some cases, patients will also contribute feedback on their own emotional responses to potential brainspotting sites. This is accomplished by indicating the level of distress you feel when you focus on various areas of your visual field on a 0 to 10 scale. The area in which the discomfort and distress are consistently greatest is designated as a brainspot and used in later therapy.
Once a brainspot has identified, your therapist will then encourage you to hold the eye position while thinking about a specific trauma. This integrative therapy approach can help in rewriting the brain, processing sources of trauma, and de-stressing the body by harnessing the brain’s natural ability for self-scanning. After repeated sessions of brainspotting, patients can reduce their sensitivity to the traumatic memories accessed in this way. This can allow you to work through and release the trauma stored in these areas of your brain.
Bilateral stimulation is often achieved by playing sounds through headphones during the therapeutic process. This can provide further assistance in processing the sources of trauma and de-stressing the body, which can improve performance and reduce issues with chronic illness and physical pain for many of the patients we serve at Psychotherapy Partners. By harnessing your brain’s natural ability for self-scanning and healing itself, you can reduce the impact of traumatic memories and experiences on your everyday life.
Is Brainspotting Right for You?
Brainspotting is most useful for patients who have unprocessed traumatic experiences and those suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). It has also used to good effect for patients with anxiety, anger management issues, chronic pain or fatigue, addiction, phobias, and performance problems at school or in sports competitions.
Brainspotting does require a willingness on the part of the patient to participate fully in the therapeutic process and to address trauma in the most positive way possible. This somatic body-focused therapy can often produce noticeable improvements in mood and emotional states for patients within just a few sessions. By investing time and energy in brainspotting therapy, patients can achieve greater control over their emotional states and reactions. Brainspotting works together with general mindfulness techniques to offer real help for our patients.
Denise Tromblay and the other therapists at Psychotherapy Partners offer proven and practical treatment options and therapies for patients in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and the surrounding areas. Are you looking for a holistic and integrative therapy approach? Give us a call today at 612-886-6112 to schedule an initial consultation. Our team is here to help you through the healing process. It also makes you live your best life now and in the future.