Tapping, Vibration & Eye Movements: How Bilateral Stimulation Can Help You Heal from Traumatic Memories
Do you find yourself struggling to cope with the weight of trauma?
Is reliving unpleasant memories and thoughts causing you physical and emotional distress?
Bilateral stimulation therapies used in EMDR (eye movement desensitization and reprocessing), like right-left eye movement, tapping, vibration, and audio tones have been studied for years as natural ways to process difficult trauma-related emotions. If you're curious about how it works—then read on!
Am I okay? I can’t seem to cope with what happened to me
We’re all well aware that life often comes with curveballs. But when those curveballs come in the form of traumatic memories, it can be tough to cope with them and move on. Sometimes, we don’t cope well—or at all.
If you've ever wondered how to ease anxiety, manage stress well, and enhance your emotional well-being, bilateral stimulation might be the powerful therapeutic resource you've been searching for. From what it is to how it works, we're breaking it down together in this blog. Let’s dive in and discover the power of bilateral stimulation in promoting a calmer and more balanced life.
What is Bilateral Stimulation?
Bilateral stimulation is a therapeutic technique that has gained popularity recently for its effectiveness in treating anxiety and trauma. This technique stimulates both sides of the body—through eye movement, tapping, vibrations/pulses, or auditory tones—to help the brain process and resolve emotional distress. Bilateral stimulation is the chief technique used in Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy, a type of psychotherapy that focuses on overriding the effects of trauma and other negative life experiences.
The idea behind bilateral stimulation is to activate both the left and right sides of the brain simultaneously, allowing for better communication and integration of thoughts and emotions. When both parts of the brain are working in tandem, we can move trauma from its stuck state, and reduce its power over your body and mind.
How does it work: Bilateral stimulation for anxiety and past trauma
Francine Shapiro developed EMDR and the bilateral stimulation technique in the late 1980s on the basis that trauma disrupts the way that memories are stored in the brain.
This explains the way lingering trauma can stick with people, causing intense distress at certain sounds or smells, a heightened sense of ongoing threat, and retraumatization during a traditional treatment process (I.e. forcing someone to talk about or re-live their trauma). Introducing bilateral stimulation into trauma treatment increases the ability of EMDR therapists and their clients to access past traumatic experiences without becoming retraumatized and reprocessing those traumatic memories properly.
Bilateral stimulation works by engaging both sides of the brain through rhythmic and repetitive sensory input, such as eye movements, tapping, or auditory tones. This process has been found to facilitate the processing of traumatic memories and emotions, reducing their emotional intensity and promoting healing in therapies like EMDR.
During a session with an EMDR therapist, utilizing bilateral stimulation while recalling a traumatic event may cause bodily sensations, thoughts, and emotions to arise. A person may feel dreamlike fantasies or old memories moving in and out of their consciousness. The key is to try and remain mindful of what you’re experiencing so that you can find closure from those memories, by understanding what happened and bringing your body into a place of felt safety.
By pairing bilateral stimulation with some cognitive reprocessing, your EMDR therapist can also help you disrupt negative thought patterns attached to those memories. The goal is to reprocess the memory enough times with a successful outcome (confidence in your ability to cope) so that it no longer has a negative impact on your life.
Bilateral stimulation techniques used in EMDR therapy
A few different types of bilateral stimulation techniques are used in EMDR therapy to help process painful and uncomfortable memories and experiences. The most common techniques are right-left eye movements, tapping, vibration, and sound healing.
Right-left Eye Movements (Visual)
The first kind of bilateral stimulation involved in EMDR therapy requires right-left eye movements such as following the movements of a light bar alongside the verbal processing of difficult memories as discussed above. It’s for this type of bilateral stimulation that EMDR gets its name.
Tapping/ Vibration (Tactile)
Tapping involves alternating taps on each side of the body to help create a more balanced brain state. This is one of the easiest techniques to use at home or in an online therapy session (available throughout Illinois, Texas, South Carolina, and Florida!), as you don’t need any extra equipment. In a seated position, you can place your hands on your thighs and tap in an alternating rhythm, or you can bring your hands to rest on opposite shoulders. The latter is called a butterfly tap. Buzzers and pulses can also be used for vibration when they’re held in both hands.
Sound Therapy (Auditory)
Using sound in EMDR therapy involves listening to specific tones or frequencies in alternating ears, often with headphones. When combined with other bilateral stimulation techniques, the effect is believed to be even more powerful.
EMDR therapy using bilateral stimulation in Bartlett, Illinois
Whether you're looking to manage anxiety symptoms, navigate old trauma, or integrate new ways of being in the world, bilateral stimulation approaches can be a powerful tool. Bilateral stimulation and EMDR therapy have become popular and accessible treatment options for those struggling with anxiety and processing past traumatic experiences. I’m also now offering EMDR intensives in Illinois, Texas, and Florida.
If you are suffering from anxiety or past trauma, EMDR therapy is a step towards better managing your wellness. Contact me at Reimage Her Therapy for professional help and advice in implementing bilateral stimulation techniques into your treatment plan.
