Brainspotting
Brainspotting is a brain- based therapy that easily combines with talk therapy and often helps client's to achieve their desired outcome more quickly and completely than talk therapy alone. Brainspotting tends to yield a deep and long lasting change / recovery from the underlying causes that may be causing symptoms. In addition to symptom reduction, clients often report overall feeling more grounded, clear and connected to themselves.
How Brainspotting works:
Our eyes and brains are intricately woven together and signals sent from our eyes are deeply processed in the brain which then reflexively and intuitively redirects where we look. Trauma and stress can overwhelm the brain’s processing capacity, leaving behind pieces of the trauma, frozen in an unprocessed state. Brainspotting uses our field of vision to find where we are holding these traumas, seeking the specific internal spot where the trauma is stored. It then allows deep non-verbal processing to release and resolve the trauma. It is based on the premise that the brain is naturally self-healing and the role of the therapist is to set and hold a frame that promotes the client’s innate self-healing capacities.
What to Expect During a Brainspotting Session: During a session, your therapist will help you to access a brain spot that you will maintain for the majority of the session. It is good to approach it with curiosity and to stay curious during the process. You will be guided throughout the session by your therapist. You may use bi lateral music to aid in the processing. Clients have described Brainspotting sessions as timeless, and experiential journeys that result in greater wholeness and a sense of well-being. Physical sensations of numbness, temperature change, tingling, vivid visual memory, and memory flashes are some common sensations, as well as a full range of emotions such as peace, serenity, joy, anger, fear, and helplessness. The more unpleasant emotions are balanced with resourcing ( as described above). Calmness is most typically felt by sessions end.
Brainspotting is used to treat:
- Physical and Emotional trauma
- Attachment wounds
- Difficulty with connection
- Stress and trauma from physical injuries or medical issues
- Insomnia/ Sleep issues
- Anger and rage
-Depression
- Improving creativity/ removing creative blocks
- Treatment of concussions, sport relates injuries
- Performance anxiety
- Addiction/ Reducing cravings of substances
-Chronic pain
- Anxiety and stress
-Phobias
- Body Image issues
- Low self worth, feelings of shame and inadequacy
- Sexual concerns and performance issues
- Grief and loss
Katie and Natalya both offer brainspotting sessions. Please contact us to find out more about how this amazing therapy can support your healing.
For more on brainspotting, click here
Brainspotting Intensives
If you've found that weekly hour long therapy sessions have not provided the space you need to fully heal from or process an issue, a brainspotting intensive may be a good option to explore. Intensives provide dedicated intentional time to immerse yourself in your healing and fully process deep wounds or issues without the distraction of a time limit and other commitments that tend to be part of our day to day. Intensives may also be a good option for those who don't have time to dedicate to weekly therapy sessions, but want to heal, and can set aside a chunk of time at once.
An intensive is like a retreat, with the intention being time for you to heal and rediscover yourself, modify behaviors that impact how you live your life and come out feeling renewed.
Typically intensives are at least 2 hours in length, no more than 6 hours at a time with breaks built in.
If you are interested in exploring a brainspotting intensive as an option, please contact Katie for more information.