What is Brainspotting?
Brainspotting (BSP) is a powerful therapeutic tool used for processing emotional wounds and traumatic experiences to resolution and healing. It is also used to improve athletic performance and artistic or creative ability. It was discovered in 2003 by David Grand, Ph.D. It works by locating points in the client’s visual field that help to access unprocessed trauma in the subcortical (or subconscious) brain. Our brains and subconscious processes are extraordinary, and BSP harnesses the brain’s innate capacity to heal, transform, and recover from blocks and negative experiences. BSP can work whether the issue you want to work through happened a long time ago or if it is presently unfolding in your life.
Dr. Grand discovered that "Where you look affects how you feel." It is the brain activity, especially in the subcortical brain that organizes itself around that eye position. BSP makes use of this natural phenomenon through its use of relevant eye positions. This helps the BSP therapist locate, focus, process and release a wide range of emotionally and bodily-based conditions. BSP is also a brain-based tool to support the therapy relationship. We believe that BSP taps into and harnesses the body’s natural self-scanning, self-healing ability. When a Brainspot is stimulated, the deep brain appears to reflexively signal the therapist that the source of the problem has been found. BSP can also be used to find and strengthen our natural resources and resilience.
What is a brainspot?
A “Brainspot” is the eye position that is related to the energetic and emotional activation of an emotionally charged issue within the brain.
WHAT makes brainspotting so powerful?
BSP is powerful because of its dual attunement frame. The dual attunement frame consists of:
Neurobiological attunement
Relational attunement
While the BSP process is occurring, your therapist is intently engaged with you. We are attentively observing reflexive movements, facial muscles, shifts in posture, bodily movement, or other non-verbal processes. Your therapist stays present and connected mentally, emotionally, and energetically to you and your process. We will gently guide you to mindfully focus on your process without trying to direct or control it. You are in the driver’s seat of your process. We trust implicitly in the power of your embodied brain to heal and transform itself. We are present and with you. If you start to feel dysregulated, we can support you back into your window of tolerance so that you may continue to process. The presence of a trained, experienced, and compassionate therapist allows you feel safe and comfortable, which is key because it is the relational component that signals safety to your brain and body so that you can relax and focus on your healing. People get hurt in relationship, and people can heal in relationship. It is this dual attunement frame that makes BSP such a powerful tool for healing, recovery, and transformation.
“Brainspotting is a powerful focused treatment method that works by identifying, processing, and releasing core neurophysiological sources of emotional/body pain, trauma, dissociation and a variety of other challenging symptoms.””
My Observations with Brainspotting
My BSP sessions with clients reflects what BSP therapists around that world have found. BSP seems to works faster and deeper (in the brain) than traditional cognitively-based therapies and processes the underlying trauma and root causes of issues such as anxiety, depression, out-of-control behaviours, post-traumatic stress, anger, relational difficulties, stress, burn out, disorganization, dysphoria, work stress, chronic pain, fatigue, lack of motivation, emotional upsets, dissociation, and other commonly reported issues. Benefits are seen even after one session. Even if you don’t feel like talking about the details of a traumatic experience, BSP still works! BSP has often been described as “EMDR on steroids” and preliminary research shows significant and sustained positive gains even after therapy has ended.
For more information, please visit Brainspotting.com.
Watch this video to learn a little bit about what a Brainspot is…
This is a video of David Grand PhD, the therapist who discovered Brainspotting, explaining what Brainspotting is.
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