EMDR Therapists in 13440
Christine Pallas
Psychologist, PhD
Verified Verified
Rome, NY 13440 (Online Only)
Not accepting new clients
You have a story. It is full of experiences, some good and some not what you expected to face in your life. You may be struggling to make sense of it all and feel like no one could ever understand what you are feeling, what you think, or why you do things the way you do. You wish you had support but often feel that no one is there and no one hears you. I hear you. You are a survivor - a warrior - you can't be anything less than that getting as far as you have. You have hopes and dreams and what you may not realize is that you have the strength to overcome. Your best is yet to come!
You have a story. It is full of experiences, some good and some not what you expected to face in your life. You may be struggling to make sense of it all and feel like no one could ever understand what you are feeling, what you think, or why you do things the way you do. You wish you had support but often feel that no one is there and no one hears you. I hear you. You are a survivor - a warrior - you can't be anything less than that getting as far as you have. You have hopes and dreams and what you may not realize is that you have the strength to overcome. Your best is yet to come!
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EMDR Therapists
Who is EMDR for?
EMDR was initially developed as a treatment for individuals with Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), for whom memories of a deeply distressing experience can be inadvertently triggered by random everyday events. The procedure has since been applied in the treatment of many other conditions. For example, it is used by some therapists to treat anxiety disorders including panic and phobias, depression, dissociative disorders, eating disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorders, and some personality disorders. It is suitable for adolescents and adults.
Why do people need EMDR?
People need EMDR as a way to manage distressing memories that in some way hamper the ability to function in the present. The procedure is believed to target the way memories are stored in the brain. Evidence indicates that past disturbing experiences cause ongoing distress because they were not adequately processed, and when such memories are triggered in the present, they are accompanied by all the emotions, thoughts, and physical sensations as the initial experience.
What problems does EMDR treat?
First and foremost, EMDR is intended as a treatment for PTSD, to defuse distressing memories that intrude on and impair everyday functioning. It is also often used to help those who are subject to panic attacks, phobias, and other forms of anxiety. In addition, EMDR has been used to treat individuals with depression, eating disorders, and personality disorders.
What happens in EMDR therapy?
First the therapist takes an individual’s history, and then the therapist and client decide which distressing experience(s) will be the target(s) of the exercise, delivered via a side-to-side visual stimulus requiring lateral eye movements. The client will be asked to activate thoughts, feelings, and any body sensations related to the troubling experience. The eye movements are said to reduce the emotional charge of the memory, so that the experience can then be safely discussed with the therapist and digested, minimizing its ability to trigger anxiety.