Brainspotting
What Is Brainspotting?
When David Grand, Ph.D. worked with elite athletes in 2003 to help them overcome performance anxiety, he stumbled upon a fascinating discovery: “Where you look affects how you feel.” [1] Whenever we recall a memory, we tend to look in a certain direction. Our eye position is a mirror of where that memory is stored, providing insight into how to “access unprocessed trauma in the subcortical brain.” [2]
By identifying “brainspots”—the eye positions related to the emotional activation of a disturbing memory or thought stored in the brain—we can process the source of our distress. Once a brainspot is identified, clients gain access to the deep brain and nervous system. This allows them to unlock traumatic or painful experiences held in the brain so that they can be processed and healed.
How Brainspotting Therapy Sessions Are Conducted
Once we determine that Brainspotting would be a helpful treatment, I will ensure the client is sitting comfortably and have them listen to music through headphones. The bilateral music played throughout the session will sound similar to ambient music but with one main difference. Because the music alternates back and forth from one earphone to the other, it generates bilateral stimulation. This connects the left and right hemispheres of the brain which aids in processing trauma.
After the client decides on a memory to recall, I ask them to follow a telescopic pointer I am holding with their eyes. With each eye position they settle on, I will ask them to identify where they are experiencing sensations in their body and to rate that sensation on a scale of 0-10. Through this inquiry process, we effectively identify the most emotionally-charged brainspot. While keeping their eyes trained on this position, a client will recall memories of the event, either to themselves or out loud. If the sensations they experience become too intense, they have the option to move their eyes away and take a break whenever they need it. However, affixing their eyes to the brainspot allows them to process the memory so that it no longer carries the intensity it once had.
At the end of Brainspotting sessions, I often incorporate mindfulness and grounding exercises to ensure clients feel calm and relaxed. I will also offer additional coping skills, journaling exercises, or talk therapy if needed. Typically, Brainspotting requires one to three sessions. However, depending on a client’s history, they may need additional sessions to process all of their trauma.
Who Can Benefit From Brainspotting Therapy?
In addition to talk therapy, I utilize Brainspotting and Eye Motion Desensitization Therapy (EMDR) for clients with a history of unresolved trauma or PTSD. Brainspotting can be effective for both a single-event trauma—such as a car accident—as well as recurring trauma, namely ongoing childhood abuse and neglect. By addressing a client’s underlying trauma, Brainspotting can alleviate the resulting anxiety and depression often associated with it.
Brainspotting is an effective therapy for anyone who often gets stuck in fight-or-flight mode. One study concluded that clients who underwent treatment with a Brainspotting therapist experienced a greater than 50 percent reduction in the intensity of their traumatic disturbance after three sessions. [3]
Whereas traditional talk therapy takes a cognitive-based “top-down” approach that appeals to intellect and logic, it can sometimes be limited in its capacity to neutralize stress and trauma that resides within the body. Brainspotting is a bottom-up approach that can help reach primitive parts of the brain that are not easily accessed by talk therapy. By calming the nervous system so it’s no longer triggered into the fight-or-flight response, Brainspotting treatment can help us heal past wounds we have carried throughout life.
Why I Include Brainspotting Into Therapy
Even though Brainspotting treatment is relatively brief, the results can last a lifetime. By incorporating the Brainspotting technique into therapy, clients who have struggled for years to cope with the symptoms of trauma, PTSD, anxiety, and depression can improve their quality of life.
Brainspotting typically works faster than talk therapy, allowing clients to find relief in a shorter amount of time. Once you understand how the sensations in your body are connected to memories and experiences you’ve had in your past, a new way of healing opens up to you.
Since training in Brainspotting with Lisa Larson at Pacific Trauma Center, I have used Brainspotting with many clients who, in turn, have experienced tremendous relief from trauma and PTSD. Because everyone is different, I’m a therapist who likes to offer a variety of modalities—including Brainspotting—to my clients. In conjunction with talk therapy or EMDR, Brainspotting is another great alternative to heal and resolve trauma. With different options available, we can determine which modality works best for you.
Find Out How Brainspotting Can Help You
To find out more about how brainspotting can help you, please visit my contact page or call (970) 305-5860 to schedule a free 20-minute consultation with me.
[1] https://brainspotting.com/
[2] https://brainspotting.com/about-bsp/what-is-brainspotting/
[3] https://brainspotting.com/about-bsp/research-and-case-studies/
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