Anxiety: EMDR Can Help

Anxiety

Anxiety is a normal part of life and we all experience it to some degree. “However, people with anxiety disorders frequently have intense, excessive and persistent worry and fear about everyday situations. Often, anxiety disorders involve repeated episodes of sudden feelings of intense anxiety and fear or terror that reach a peak within minutes” (Mayo Clinic) which would be categorized as a panic attack. Anxiety can come in many forms: phobias, social anxiety, separation anxiety, generalized anxiety, panic disorders and more.

How EMDR Can Help

In a meta-analysis (fancy word for the compilations of many studies) which included 17 trials with 647 participants, EMDR therapy resulted in a significant reduction of anxiety, panic, phobia, and behavioural/somatic symptoms. What this means is EMDR is a promising therapy for anxiety.

EMDR can help by:

• Establishing and reinforcing resources and coping skills

• Reprocessing past events that were traumatic, stress-inducing and/or anxiety-provoking

• Working through present day anxiety triggers 

• Helping to alleviate future anxiety (i.e., fear associated with going into labor, anxiety about presenting at work/school, specific phobias, fear of getting a panic attack, etc.)

• Reducing negative self-talk and distress in the body