I just finished my second round of Brainspotting training, and I am filled with renewed appreciation for Brainspotting’s effectiveness. It’s such a great tool for helping my clients process trauma, especially if they need a less confrontational approach than EMDR. Brainspotting allows for people to approach their trauma from a more resourced spot. It can restore calm almost instantly. While brainspotting still lacks the body of research that EMDR has, the dramatic results I witness are the proof of its effectiveness. I am now able to discriminate more successfully about what method is most appropriate for a given client. In general, Brainspotting feels less invasive. While EMDR, for example, uses the sound of buzzers throughout a session, Brainspotting utilizes soothing music.
As the founder of Brainspotting states, “Brainspotting is a “body to body” approach. The distress is activated and located in the body which then leads to the locating of the Brainspot based on eye position. As opposed to EMDR where the traumatic memory is the “target”, in Brainspotting the Brainspot is the target or ‘focus or activation point.’ Everything is aimed at activating, locating, and processing the Brainspot.”
This second round of training took me deeper into how to use Brainspotting specifically for anxiety. I learned about Z access, convergence, and the rolling Brainspot. Whereas my initial Brainspotting training was focused on locating the brainspot, this training taught me how to direct the gaze back and forth between spots as a way to calm the nervous system. The more exposure I have to this amazing methodology, the more confident I am in my ability to channel Brainspotting’s capacity to heal. I love having both Brainspotting and EMDR in my toolbox, and have a much better sense of their specific nuances.
I can talk on and on about the virtues of Brainspotting but truly it has to be experienced. If you try it, you’ll be amazed by how the way we see—not just what we see—can have a profound impact on our psyche.