Brainspotting: What the heck is it and how does it work?

Brainspotting: What the heck is it and how does it work?

by | Brainspotting

Neuroscience has opened the door for increased understanding of how the brain processes adverse experiences often termed trauma. Brain-body based therapies can address immediately issues that often take years to heal just talking or writing.

Relationship has always been the core healing factor between therapists and clients. Brainspotting takes into consideration that the relationship is not just soul to soul, but brain to brain as well.

“The relationship is not meant to serve the Brainspotting; the Brainspotting is meant to serve the relationship.” Dr. David Grand, Brainspotting: The Revolutionary New Therapy for Rapid and Effective Change.

What is Brainspotting?

The eye is the window to the soul. Connection often occurs when eye contact is made. Our eyes are intricately connected within the brain to orient to our environment using sense of sight, sound, touch, smell and taste. Brainspotting uses a fixed eye position to engage the brain and body’s natural ability to heal itself. The theory of Brainspotting, which was discovered out of EMDR, identifies the issue as activation within the body that is connected to a visual Brainspot.

What is a Brainspot?

Have you ever found yourself looking up, down, right or left to remember information to answer a question? A Brainspot is a focused eye position that triggers positive or negative emotions along with memories and body sensations. Our brains and bodies store emotions, memories and sensations experienced during adverse and positive experiences. Brainspotting uses a mindful approach to connect the brain and body sensations allowing us to locate the Brainspot. Trained therapists are creative and actively attune to the client’s internal perspective of where the Brainspot is as well as looking for eye movement and nonverbal responses during a session. For more information, visit Dr. Grand’s video: What is a Brainspot?

Who developed Brainspotting?

Internationally recognized trauma expert, Dr. David Grand developed Brainspotting in 2003 while working with trauma survivors. He discovered that by finding a Brainspot activated around the presenting issue it resulted in both physical and mental improvement rapidly. Learn more at https://brainspotting.com

What will happen during my Brainspotting session?

We begin with discussing the presenting issue that you are facing. Often the auditory response produces activation in the body as you hear yourself tell your story. I attune from a brain-based approach and listen with no assumptions and follow your story. Brainspotting acknowledges the client is the “head of the comet” and the therapist is the “tail of the comet.” We will collaborative in relationship to discover the activation spot, resource spot or performance/growth spot using a pointer or natural gaze spot. We will discuss what type of activation you are experiencing on a scale of 0-10. Once the activation spot is found, we will look for a body resource and correlating resource spot where you feel grounded and connected. The process begins by noticing what is happening, thoughts that are coming up and emotions sensed or felt. You guide the session and I follow your process. You can remain silent, talk about what you notice or a combination of both. When you believe you’ve finished processing, we will check the scale and see what changed and how you feel in your body.

Does Brainspotting hurt?

Brainspotting is not a physically invasive therapy and you will remain in control throughout the process.

How will I feel after my Brainspotting session?

You may feel a variety of emotions and sensations. Most people report feeling calm, light, heavy, tired or clear headed. Often the brain and body will continue to process after you have left your session. I encourage people to keep a log of things they  may wish to discuss or their shifts in feelings.

Who benefits from Brainspotting?

Brainspotting (BSP) can help people with emotional and physical symptoms resulting from Stress, Anxiety, Dysregulation and Trauma. It is effective with Anxiety Disorders, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Separation Issues, Insomnia, PTSD, Physical and Emotional Trauma, Injury Recover and Performance Issues in children, adolescents and adults. For more information see Dr. Grand’s videos: Who does Brainspotting work with? and As a Client, Why Choose Brainspotting?

Brainspotting is an integrative therapy that works in conjunction with other therapy interventions. I integrative Brainspotting with Strategic Trauma and Abuse Recovery (STAR) and Sand Play Therapy. If you would like to discuss if Brainspotting can work for you, please give me a call at 404-906-9831.

 

 

What is sand tray therapy?

What is sand tray therapy?

by | Sand Tray Therapy

What is sand play therapy?

Margaret Lowenfeld, a British pediatrician, is often thought of as the first person to use sandtray as a therapeutic technique. She developed a way to create three-dimensional scenes combining small toys, paper, metal and colorful trinkets. Her approach was called the World Technique and served as a means of communication between a scene builder and an observer. The scene builder provided insight to the observer through building an inner world view in the sand tray. Dora Kalff trained under Lowenfeld and soon combined the World Technique with Easter philosophy, NEuman’s system model, and Carl Jung’s theory of individuation and named it sandplay therapy to distinguish it from Lowenfeld’s World Technique. What’s the difference between Sand Tray and Sandplay Therapy? While both approaches use a sand tray in a threat-free environment, sand tray therapy may incorporate various theoretical orientations, while sandplay is grounded in Jungian psychology. Sand tray provides a momentary experience that is directive or non-directive in nature that deal with current issues and facilitate growth. This form of therapy relies heavily on the relationship between the therapist and client. Sandplay therapy focuses on the unconscious mind and provides an open and protected space for clients to communicate non-verbally, while avoiding interpreting what the client is experiencing. What is your approach to Sand Tray? I enjoy the freedom clients experience when they work in the sand tray. Adolescents often find this an easier form of communicating in pictures to see how they their world, their relationships and the challenges they face affect their current developmental stage. For adults, it is a way to picture how they see relationships, problems or even events that were outside their control and talk or work through them using dramatization. My basic approach is “show me how you see it” which keeps the focus on the client instead of trying to interpret what the client means. Many adult clients will use the tray as a way to decompress by playing in the sand with their hands or using a rake, which creates a sense of calm and brings high sensory motor anxiety to a more regulated level as they share their experiences or issues. I use the Sand Tray by integrating Brainspotting to provide a more complete process toward emotional regulation. For example, a car accident can be dramatized in the sand tray for visual understanding of how the client saw it occur. I will then use the picture in the sand as a Brainspot, noting the activation level 0-10, and invite the client to use the tray as the activation spot. I often find a body resource and resource Brainspot as needed to aid in processing.
Increasing Bravery in Your Life

Increasing Bravery in Your Life

by | Trauma and Abuse Recovery

This is a practice post

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