EMDR and IFS
What is EMDR?To quote the Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing International Association (EMDRIA), “EMDR is a structured therapy that encourages the patient to focus briefly on the trauma memory while simultaneously experiencing bilateral stimulation (typically eye movements), which is associated with a reduction in the vividness and emotion associated with the trauma memories. Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy is an extensively researched, effective psychotherapy method proven to help people recover from trauma and PTSD symptoms.”
EMDR can target a series of events or a single event and doesn’t require the traditional talk therapy approach to process. In fact, if there’s an event difficult to articulate, the Blind to Therapist protocol can be utilized. What does this mean? It means an upsetting experience can be reprocessed without having to be verbalized in session. EMDR can also help a client develop a resource for a future event such as a work presentation. 
My practice offers EMDR as a part of long-term treatment as well as adjunct treatment while long-term therapy is conducted with another provider. All treatment is conducted via HIPAA compliant telehealth platforms. Bilateral stimulation can be conducted via manual movement (my hand moving back and forth), programmed movement (a website such as bilateralstimulation.io), or audio stimulation.
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What is IFS?Internal Family Systems (IFS) is an empirically based modality that allows for exploration of distinct voices or “parts” within a client which can hold onto various emotional responses and feelings. The core of the modality is the “Self”, who you authentically are, which allows for the healing and unburdening of these parts. Working these parts from a place of curiosity and compassion (called a Self-led place) helps to understand their purpose, how and when they formed, and what is preventing the parts from letting go of their responsibilities.
Think of a visual of sitting at a long conference table with seats gradually filling with parts, eager to tell their story. This would be considered parts-mapping, a methodical process of forming a picture of your parts and how they interact with each other, others, and you. There can be 4 types of parts within the model:
As the founder of IFS, Dick Schwartz, notes: There is no such thing as a bad part. These parts can exist out of survival or adjustment to new circumstances.
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