Special Techniques We Use

(that go above and beyond traditional talk therapy)

EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) Therapy

This is a trauma technique Bridget is trained in.

EMDR is a technique that uses bilateral stimulation—a vibration in one hand and the the other, sound in one ear and then the other, or visual you can track with your eyes that crosses the midline of your body—which elicits brain wave patterns similar to the ones your brain naturally experiences during REM cycle of sleep. These brain wave patterns help determine what information did you take in during the day that needs to be kept in long-term storage, and what information is less important and can be gotten rid of.

However, when you go through something really upsetting that sends your body into a “fight, flight, freeze response,” your brain is too busy trying to protect you and is unable to process the information it’s taking in. You may have experienced feeling “re-triggered” by something that happened later on in life that reminds your body of that initial incident. That’s your brain and body telling you they haven’t had an adequate chance to process through the event.

EMDR works to mimic those brain waves that you would have during REM while you are in a safer environment (like a therapy office), so that your mind and body can process the experience without going into survival mode. These short bursts of EMDR stimulation while recalling events of the traumatic experience, punctuated with deep breathing and reconnecting with the present moment help to reduce the physiological responses in your body and the level of emotional distress you feel.

No worries, EMDR doesn’t wipe your memory! You’re still you, your past experiences are still part of your story. But they don’t have to hold you back!

Internal Family Systems

This is a technique Adam is pursuing training in.

Internal Family Systems is a method developed by Dr. Richard Schwartz, a psychologist who did a lot of work with families. He noticed during family sessions that there were habitual patterns each member fell into that in essence, perpetuated troublesome behavior in the family dynamic (a “problem child” who acts out, an alcoholic parent, an enabler who just wants to keep everyone happy, etc). As Dr. Schwartz spent time with the individual family members go get a better understanding of their perspective, he found that within all of us, we have “parts” that become activated and respond as if they were their own family dynamic.

Dr. Schwartz is famous for the phrase “it is the nature of the mind to be subdivided,” meaning it’s natural for your brain to compartmentalize experiences or have strong neural pathways that resulted during a distinct moment in your development.

He categorized these parts into three groups: the “managers” (the ‘never let them see you sweat’ parts that try to keep everything below the surface), the “firefighters” (the parts that overreact to distress, trying to quench the emotional fire with over-the-top or risky behavior), and the “exiles” (the parts of us that are so wounded that we try to exile or push them as far away from us as possible so we don’t have to experience their pain). Within these three basic categories are a variety of parts each of us carries.

Each of these parts has a “noble intent”—in other words, they’re trying to do something good for you, they just might go about it in a way that isn’t very helpful. Once you are more aware of these parts, understand why they get activated and what they’re trying to accomplish, you can more easily work with them.

The Gottman Method for Couples Counseling

This is a technique Bridget is trained in.

The Gottman Method was developed primarily by Dr. John and Julie Gottman—a married couple who spent decades researching partners and their interactions with each other. Through their observations, they determined that most couples bump into similar issues that keep them stuck or begin to erode their relationship.

The Gottman Method combines several different approaches to therapy, including emotion-focused and behavioral techniques that help couples have more productive dialogues about their differences and improve the quality of their relationship by understanding and cherishing their partner.

Ready to move from gridlock to great love? It might be time to explore how couples counseling can help!