Brainspotting Therapy

Brainspotting Therapy in Atlanta, GA

Brainspotting therapy is a technique used to treat underlying trauma. In fact, this division of talk therapy uses fixed eye movements and positions to help clients work through past events. Furthermore, experts use it in the treatment of addiction as substance misuse often correlates with unresolved trauma. Thus, brainspotting therapy in Atlanta is a powerful addition to an individual’s continuum of care and can be instrumental in forging a successful recovery.

How Does Brainspotting Therapy Work?

A “brainspot” is an area of the mind that holds thoughts and emotions. Therefore, those with trauma have brainspots that hold negative, often painful feelings. To further add, brainspotting therapy works by targeting these brainspots through a set of eye positions. As a result, individuals access these emotions. This gives a person the ability to process the complex, often overwhelming feelings surrounding traumatic events.

Trauma is a strong underlying cause of drug and alcohol addiction. Fortunately, however, once a person has worked through this trauma, they can better manage the feelings associated with it. Since brainspotting targets addiction at its source, as a result, it promotes lasting sobriety.

What Does Brainspotting Therapy Treat?

Brainspotting treats a variety of conditions. Additionally, it is helpful for those with dual diagnoses. A dual diagnosis is a condition in which a person struggles with both addiction and co-occurring mental illness.

Examples of disorders treated by brainspotting therapy include:

What Happens in a Brain Spotting Therapy Session?

Brainspotting therapy takes place in a safe and secure environment. There, individuals can revisit overwhelming experiences with the support of a qualified therapist. As sessions progress, clients continue to learn more about how their mind and body relate to trauma. In the first session, clients discuss their recovery goals and speak briefly about their trauma. During this time, the therapist also explains the brainspotting therapy process in more depth.

The therapist plays an important role in creating awareness within the client. For the session to be constructive, for example, the client must feel comfortable sharing with the therapist when they are feeling most vulnerable. To accomplish this, the therapist centers sessions on dual attunement. As a result, this further allows the client to remain in-tune with their own mind and body as well as in-tune with the therapist.

The brainspotting protocol is as follows:

How Does Brainspotting for Anxiety Work?

Those who struggle with anxiety disorders, depression, and PTSD may have increased effects from Brainspotting Therapy. Because brainspotting reveals trauma, individuals are able to identify it and begin working through it. The eventual goal is for clients to be able to resolve their trauma, making anxiety much more manageable. Those who experience symptoms of these disorders may have had a traumatic experience in their history.

Therefore, to accomplish this goal, brainspotting for anxiety pairs with behavioral therapies such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. To add, this is because brainspotting helps to reveal trauma while CBT helps individuals to reduce the negative response associated with said trauma as well.

How Does Brainspotting for Addiction Work?

The success of brainspotting for addiction treatment is reliant on 3 factors—format, structure, and length. First, format refers to the treatment’s framework, which is psychotherapy. Specifically, format associates with how a therapist prepares a client for treatment and then guides them through the session. Secondly, structure is client-led. The concept refers to the client’s freedom to discuss the trauma causing them emotional issues. Third, is length, which depends on the severity of the individual’s addiction or mental health disorder. For example, some individuals only require 2 to 3 brainspotting sessions, while others are in need of further treatment.

Skills Learned in Brainspotting Therapy

Brainspotting therapy is an excellent way to reveal painful emotions that are difficult to process. Though brainspotting is most effective when coupled with other forms of trauma therapy, clients can still learn many helpful skills through sessions.

These include: