EMDR Therapists for Anxiety in San Francisco, CA
EMDR Therapy for Anxiety
EMDR For Anxiety in San Francisco: How It Works
Most of us worry from time to time. We feel nervous on first dates, job interviews, and when taking a test. We worry about finances and feel uneasy at social gatherings. These passing feelings of anxiety are normal. However, sometimes life circumstances can make anxious feelings become constant or acute.
If you experience anxiety that is derailing, debilitating, and overwhelming, you are not alone. There are far too many possible reasons why you feel this way. There is good news: You are not doomed to feel this anxious forever. There is help.
Most anxiety disorders get better with therapy. Among effective treatments for anxiety is EMDR, which stands for Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing. Before we explain how EMDR therapy helps anxiety, let’s get to some facts.
What is anxiety?
Feeling anxious is a very common human experience. In fact, it’s normal and necessary to feel anxious at times. Anxiety is the body’s response to a stressful situation.
It can give us the boost of energy we need to nail a job performance and at times it can even save our lives. If you see a bear in the woods, the intense fear and adrenaline you feel will cause you to act quickly and seek safety. Anxiety is meant to protect and help us.
However, highly stressful events can exacerbate anxiety and make it stick around for longer than we need it to. When anxiety becomes a chronic experience, it is no longer helping us. Instead, it is making us feel quite miserable. When this happens, our anxiety needs extra attention.
Types of anxiety disorders
When anxiety feels overwhelming and becomes a part of daily life, a person may have an anxiety disorder. These are a few of the most common anxiety disorders:
Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
Panic Disorder
Social Anxiety
Phobias
While each anxiety disorder manifests differently, the common denominator is a strong feeling of worry and fear. An anxiety disorder can make a person respond to certain things and situations (often normal, daily activities) with fear and dread.
A person experiencing anxiety may meet the criteria for more than one anxiety disorder. The lines are somewhat fluid since there is some overlap between disorders. For example, a person’s anxiety may manifest as generalized anxiety with some OCD tendencies. Another person may have social anxiety along with a phobia related to crowded places.
Within each disorder, there is a wide range of severity.
What are the signs of anxiety?
Increased or chronic anxiety tends to interfere with daily life, and these are a few ways it can manifest:
Intrusive thoughts (thoughts of terrible things happening).
Difficulty setting aside worry or fears.
Having a sense of impending danger, panic or doom.
Feeling on edge often or easily startled.
Inability to relax.
Trouble concentrating because your mind is racing.
Our bodies are excellent communicators. Although anxiety is a psychological issue at its core, it often manifests in physical symptoms too. A few physical signs of anxiety are:
Trouble sleeping.
Increased heart rate or blood pressure.
Fast breathing or hyperventilating.
Indigestion.
Headaches.
Dizziness or nausea.
Weakness or tiredness.
What causes an anxiety disorder?
Usually, excessive anxiety stems from one or multiple disturbing events in a person’s past. This can be a big event or a buildup of smaller stressful life situations. For example, a death in the family, losing a job, being hospitalized, going through a divorce or break-up, a physical injury, or living through the uncertainty of a global pandemic.
What causes anxiety and how it manifests can vary greatly from person to person.
How EMDR treats anxiety
Ah, the hopeful turn.
EMDR was developed by Francine Chapiro in 1987. One day during a walk outdoors, Chapiro was experiencing intrusive thoughts and anxiety. She noticed that her feelings of anxiety decreased after her eyes followed a branch that moved from side to side. This is how EMDR was accidentally discovered. Today, a large amount of research and studies serve as evidence of the effectiveness of EMDR in treating mental disorders.
During the initial phases of EMDR, which you can learn about here, the therapist will ask the client about the stressful events or experiences in their lives that are causing anxiety. Most people who seek out EMDR have a good idea of what is making them anxious and it is likely they can pinpoint specific memories or events that contribute to that anxiety.
Once the therapist has identified the specific event or memory that is triggering the person’s anxiety the most, they will move on to using EMDR techniques, which are built on the discovery that the brain can experience changes through bilateral movement and stimulation.
During the EMDR session, the person will focus on the event that is causing fear and worry. At the same time, the person’s eyes will follow the therapist’s hand in rapid side-to-side movements. This technique shifts the way the person processes the feeling of anxiety related to this specific event.
Through the therapist’s verbal guidance and a series of lateral eye movements, tapping, or sound, problematic belief systems around the event are disarmed. The therapist may lead the person through a more positive thinking process. This method helps rapidly reduce the intensity of the anxiety and quiets the disturbing thoughts and images stuck in the person’s mind.
EMDR is effective at treating many different types of anxiety disorders. A person with phagophobia (fear of swallowing) can experience relief and freedom after reprocessing a choking incident. A person with PTSD can have the same experience after reprocessing a specific traumatic event.
While EMDR is an effective treatment for anxiety, the course of treatment depends on multiple factors including the type of anxiety disorder. Sometimes EMDR treatment is most effective when paired with medications, talk therapy, or a combination of both.
Are you interested in getting EMDR therapy to help get freedom from your anxiety? Reach out to one of our trained EMDR therapists by clicking below!
