EMDR

(Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing)
EMDR is a scientifically researched technique for processing trauma. This method is used for single incident traumas as well as for anxiety, phobias, stress, grief, addictions and for healing childhood pain.

It is thought that when a trauma occurs it gets locked in our nervous system with the original sensory stimuli.  When we get triggered or reminded of the trauma by hearing similar sounds, seeing similar images or having similar feelings, smells or thoughts, we can re-experience the trauma as if it were happening now, even though it is not.  The bilateral stimulation we use in EMDR to facilitate treatment seems to unlock the nervous system and allow the mind and body to process the experience.  We still have the memory but we can live with it differently, often without the same level of distress and from a more detached perspective.  Some aspects of EMDR are thought to be similar to what happens in REM or dream sleep: rapid eye movements associated with REM sleep may indicate the processing of unconscious material. It’s important to remember that it is your own brain that is doing the healing and that you will be the one in control.