Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing is an evidenced based approach to treating trauma. But what do those words even mean and how does it work? EMDR uses movement of the eyes to lessen the brain and body’s response to a trigger and helps develop healthier thinking patterns. Sound too simple to really work? Like with many therapeutic approaches, there is more “behind the curtain,” to enable this process to have the powerful healing effects that it has, but there is no reason to keep it a secret. 
Our body’s natural response to injury is to heal. We are familiar with a cut that heals with time, and our brain is no different. However, just like a cut that is continually broken open, a wound that is reinjured, or wound with a foreign object still inside (like a splinter), if there is a block in the brain, the healing process is disrupted. Many trauma therapies are focused on helping to remove these blocks to allow the natural healing process to occur. If you have struggled with a mental health issue and found little to no healing in other therapeutic approaches, it is likely that the block is not being addressed. 
EMDR uses bi-lateral stimulation (most commonly eye movements, but can also be audio, and tactical sensations) to help to access what therapists refer to as the Trauma memory network. This is the place where information processing happens. This process allows the client to enhance the processing of information, creates new learning, and eliminates emotional distress, and develops new cognitive insights. 
As with any therapeutic approach, a thorough assessment and history taking should be completed prior to treatment to ensure risks are identified and addressed before beginning EMDR treatment.