Brainspotting
For when you feel stuck or don’t have words to talk about it…
Did you know that where we focus our attention affects how we feel?
Brainspotting is a gentle, yet powerful way of accessing traumatic brain blocks and clearing them out so they no longer negatively impact a person’s life.
Initially discovered in the context of a therapy session and further developed through much research and practice, scientists have found that through focusing one’s gaze on a relevant eye position the brain’s natural healing capacity can be activated.
Brainspotting practitioners help clients find the eye position that best correlates with a struggle/stressor and then keep watch with their client as the brain does it’s healing work. It is a process of focused mindfulness, in which client and therapist together remain open and non-judgmental, curious to see what happens. The client experiences a context of safety in which to explore feelings and memories that may have felt threatening before. Like how a doctor sets an arm in a cast to heal, the brain is “set” in a focused eye position and then processes through the unresolved trauma until it no longer carries the pain/distress.
Brainspotting can help with …
Trauma (spiritual, medical, relational, sports related, workplace,…)
Anxious feelings and thoughts
Burnout & Compassion Fatigue
Creativity blocks
Patterns of people pleasing
Relational issues
Basically, if you are feeling stuck, Brainspotting may be able to help. If you’re uncertain and would like to talk about it, I’d be happy to do so.
Brainspotting can help you get unstuck!
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Scientists are still actively researching what makes Brainspotting such an effective therapy.
What we do know is that when we experience something we cannot make sense of/process at the time (trauma), our brain sets aside these unresolved experiences for later processing, at a time when more resources become available. This means that experiences (or memories) stay “live” and can be triggered at any moment (whenever our brain perceives an event or feeling to be similar to the original).
The triggering of these unresolved memories is what causes a myriad of different symptoms (racing thoughts, feeling frozen, nightmares, flashbacks, lost sense of self,…to name a few). Our brains believe that we are still in danger (from the original experience) and will continue to act for our protection as long as the experience remains active/unprocessed.
Brainspotting allows our brains to process these former experiences in such a way that they can stop interfering with life today.
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Brainspotting is a creative and collaborative conversation between client and practitioner, in which we listen to a person’s unique nervous system and respond to what is needed, moment to moment, for healing and growth.
Just as we might watch the tide move in and out along the beach, not knowing exactly what will happen next, but just seeing it come and go and being content in the moment, Brainspotting has clients watching memories, sensations, and emotions coming and going as the brain heals. Healing sometimes feels like a perspective shift, a lightness, a distancing, or a feeling of letting go.
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Brainspotting is an amazing tool that can help you to feel more fully yourself. Brainspotting can be used to heal deep wounds as well as to expand personal possibilities, like creativity, confidence, openness and more.
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Changes and shifts begin from the first session, but full resolution can take multiple sessions, depending on the nature of the trauma or issue being addressed and the intensity of the work. Clients and Practitioners collaborate to find the just right pace for each individual.
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I often incorporate Brainspotting into my Re-story Retreats and Therapeutic Coaching packages, depending on client interest and goals. Re-story retreats can be offered online or in person and Therapeutic Coaching packages are offered online.
So much of what we experience doesn’t reach conscious awareness… but that doesn’t mean it isn’t there. That doesn’t mean it isn’t affecting us.
—David Grand (Founder of Brainspotting)
Why I love Brainspotting
As a quiet, introverted type, this is one of my favorite ways of helping people. I’ve always preferred listening to talking and with Brainspotting, my job is mainly to pay attention to my client’s nervous system; to listen for both what is being said with words and what is being said without words. And, the focus is not on me. I don’t have to come up with anything profound or clever to say. I just have to “be with” and witness the transformation.
In my experience, both professionally and personally, it is these unspoken stories, often trapped in our nervous systems, that get in the way of feeling whole and authentically oneself. As a Brainspotting practitioner, I make space for those unspoken stories to be resolved. And the client’s brain does the work.
What you’ll gain
Brainspotting can help you to:
Release old stories that are stuck in your nervous system and showing up as anxiety, depression, chronic fatigue, people pleasing, burnout, and many more.
Practice self compassion
Access your deeper brain and shift the sticking point so you can find your footing again.
Ignite creativity and confidence.
Experience a deep brain therapy that you may not have tried before. Who knows? Maybe you’ll discover you want to get trained in Brainspotting!
Feel lighter, freer, and more connected within yourself, in your relationship with God, and with other people.
What happens in a Brainspotting session?
Brainspotting is significantly different from traditional talk therapy.
In fact, one of the things that is so comforting for people who feel nervous about talking about what happened is that in Brainspotting, you don’t have to! You can share as much or as little as you prefer about what happened. Your brain knows what you need to heal and, once prompted, will do the work whether you share your story or not.
As a creative and flexible therapy, Brainspotting can look a bit different depending on each client and coach, but often follows these steps:
A coach may begin by suggesting that their client cue up their bilateral music and put on headphones. This enhances the healing process but is not necessary and is not always used.
The coach will help client to find an eye position that corresponds to whatever memory, issue, feeling or thought we want to work on.
Then, focused mindfulness—client focusing on the spot and noticing what feelings or thoughts come up. Client can talk about what they are noticing or not, as they prefer. Coach continues to track with what is happening, being present with the client in their experience.
And, that’s it. Once the memory “file” is unlocked, a person can process through whatever is keeping them stuck and re-file it as a “closed case”, significantly lessening its present day impact.
Clients often report feeling tired after Brainspotting and it is important to rest and recover just as one would with a physical work out.
And, the amazing thing is that healing continues, even after your session has ended. It’s kind of like the brain’s processing is jumpstarted in session and then continues towards greater resolution in the following hours.
For the Visual Learners…
Watch this brief video animation, created by Dr. Mark Grixti, to learn more about what is happening in the Brainspotting process.
Get in touch
If you would like to feel more calm, confident, and connected, please reach out. I’d love to help you get unstuck!
live your truest story
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live your truest story —