Brainspotting is a type of therapy that was developed in 2003 by Dr. David Grand. It is based on the idea that “where you look affects how you feel.” The basic premise is that when your eyes are focused on a certain spot, it can activate parts of the brain that are connected to emotional and bodily experiences.
Brainspotting aims to identify and access these spots in order to process trauma, negative emotions, pain, and other issues. It is considered especially effective for treating trauma and PTSD.
Why You Need Brainspotting
There are several key reasons why brainspotting may be beneficial:
1. Release Trapped Trauma and Emotions
Brainspotting can help release trauma and difficult emotions that feel “stuck” or trapped in the body and nervous system. Even if you have done a lot of therapy, there may still be deeply rooted issues that brainspotting can access.
2. Gain Insight and Understanding
By identifying brainspots connected to specific issues, you can gain powerful insight and understanding into your own psyche, patterns, triggers, and sources of distress.
3. Improve Mental Health Issues
Research shows brainspotting can lead to significant reductions in symptoms of conditions like PTSD, anxiety, depression, anger issues, chronic pain, and more.
4. Enhance Performance
In addition to therapy, brainspotting has been used by athletes, musicians, actors, and other performers to enhance their abilities.
5. It’s Fast and Focused
Compared to talk therapy alone, brainspotting works much more quickly and directly by accessing the emotional parts of the brain.
Techniques Used in Brainspotting
Brainspotting employs several core techniques to identify and process emotional trauma. The therapist uses a pointer tool to guide the client’s eye movements, locating a “brainspot” that activates the issue being addressed.
The client focuses intently on this spot while also listening to bilateral audio tones, allowing for deep brain processing. The therapist tailors the experience based on the client’s feedback, adjusting the tones, eye position, and pacing to keep the process moving safely.
There are a few core techniques used:
Identifying the Brainspot
The therapist will use a pointer tool to guide your eye movements back and forth to find a “brainspot” – the eye position that activates the issue you want to work on. You may feel this as discomfort, tension, emotion, or other sensations.
Processing With Bilateral Stimulation
Once the spot is found, you will focus intently on it. The therapist will also use bilateral audio tones (alternating tones in each ear) to deepen the brainspotting process.
Tuning Into Body Sensations
A key part of brainspotting is tuning into subtle body sensations, feelings, and somatic cues as you hold your gaze on the brainspot. This helps deepen the processing occurring in the lower brain.
Tailoring the Experience
The therapist guides the experience based on your feedback, adjusting the bilateral tones, eye position, and pacing appropriately to keep the process moving safely.
How to Get Help with Brainspotting
If interested in trying brainspotting, the first step is finding a certified practitioner using the online therapist directory. Therapists have varying certification levels and specializations, so research credentials and areas of focus.
Ask current therapists if they offer brainspotting or can give referrals. Do an initial consultation to see if the therapist and techniques seem like a good fit, as brainspotting is adaptable to each client.
If you are interested in trying brainspotting, here is how to get started:
- Use the Brainspotting therapist directory to find a certified practitioner in your area. Therapists have different levels of certification and specialization.
- Search online for brainspotting therapists near you. Look for their credentials and areas of focus.
- Ask your current therapist if they offer brainspotting or can refer you to someone certified.
- Do an initial consultation to see if the therapist and techniques seem like a good fit. Brainspotting is very adaptable to each client.
Benefits of Brainspotting
Research and clinical experience show brainspotting can lead to reduced trauma, anxiety and depression symptoms, emotional regulation, insight into subconscious suffering, enhanced performance, decreased cravings, relief from chronic pain and muscle tension, and correcting trauma-rooted misperceptions. It is considered especially effective for processing and releasing deep-rooted and stubborn trauma.
Research and clinical experience show many possible benefits, including:
Reduced trauma/PTSD symptoms
Brainspotting therapy has been shown to significantly reduce symptoms of trauma and PTSD in as little as a few sessions. By identifying and releasing trapped traumatic memories and emotions from the nervous system, brainspotting can lead to a dramatic decrease in intrusive thoughts, flashbacks, hypervigilance, and other PTSD symptoms.
Research indicates that brainspotting may be even more effective for trauma processing than traditional therapies like CBT and EMDR. Many clients report feeling an immediate sense of relief after processing their trauma through brainspotting. The brain seems able to let go of the past traumatic experience more completely.
Relief from chronic anxiety or depression
Chronic anxiety and depression often have roots in early childhood trauma or adverse experiences that have lodged in the nervous system. Brainspotting can directly access and liberate these old emotional wounds that continue fueling anxiety and depression in the present.
Clients frequently describe feeling lighter, calmer, and more hopeful after releasing long-held pain through brainspotting. It appears to unlock neural pathways that were previously stuck, allowing emotions to flow more freely again. Brain chemistry recalibrates back to a more balanced state.
Brainspotting also empowers clients to better regulate their emotions and manage distress. Many report less anxiety and depression both during sessions and in daily life.
Improved ability to regulate emotions and tolerate distress
Brainspotting strengthens the brain’s capacity for emotion regulation by clearing out old traumas, wounds, and maladaptive neural patterns. As clients release and reprocess painful memories through brainspotting, it enhances their ability to handle strong emotions and sit with discomfort.
They become less reactive, more resilient, and better able to self-soothe. Brainspotting restores flexibility to the nervous system, creating a greater sense of safety within one’s own body. Clients learn they can experience even intense emotions without becoming destabilized. This allows them to engage more fully in life with less need for avoidance or dissociation.
Increased insight into subconscious sources of suffering
A major advantage of brainspotting over talk therapy is its ability to access subconscious sources of emotional and physical distress that lie beyond the client’s conscious awareness.
Brainspotting interfaces directly with the midbrain where many formative experiences are encoded. This allows clients to gain insight into the hidden roots of their suffering. They may uncover forgotten traumas, core wounds, limiting beliefs, or biological vulnerabilities that are driving anxiety, depression, chronic pain, etc.
With this understanding, clients can address causes rather than just symptoms. Brainspotting illuminates the shadow so it no longer controls a person from the dark.
Enhanced performance for athletes, musicians, actors, etc
Brainspotting can be very effective at removing inner obstacles to peak performance. By releasing performance anxiety, traumatic memories, and other blocks lodged in the nervous system, brainspotting helps athletes, musicians, actors and public speakers to actualize their potential.
It clears away fear, hesitation, and self-doubt. Clients report feeling more embodied, present, and able to flow intuitively. Brainspotting allows the body and brain to do what they know how to do naturally when unencumbered. It empowers people to show up fully and fearlessly.
Decreased substance cravings
Addictions and substance abuse often form as unhealthy coping mechanisms to deal with emotional pain, trauma, or biological urges. Brainspotting can help unravel these underlying causes of addictive behaviors. As core wounds and triggers are resolved through brainspotting, substance cravings, and addictive patterns subside.
Clients gain awareness and tools to meet their core needs in healthier ways. Brainspotting’s ability to regulate the autonomic nervous system while accessing the deep brain makes it uniquely effective for addressing addictions at its root.
Relief from chronic muscle tension or pain
Brainspotting therapy can be very effective at relieving somatic symptoms like chronic muscle tension, back pain, migraines, and fibromyalgia that are exacerbated by emotional stressors. Even when physical causes like injuries are present, emotional and traumatic factors often contribute to chronic pain.
Brainspotting reduces inflammation and recalibrates the nervous system for improved functioning. As emotional stressors are released, clients often feel a physical sense of relaxation as their body lets go of long-held tension. Pain levels subsequently decrease for many people.
Correcting misperceptions rooted in trauma
Brainspotting helps clients recognize where past trauma is distorting their perceptions in the present. When certain experiences, emotions, or situations get linked to trauma, it can generate fear and cognitive distortions that adversely impact life.
Brainspotting enables clients to separate the past from the present so triggers no longer activate the same fight-or-flight response. They gain clarity about how the past had colored their lens. Brainspotting empowers people to see themselves and the world more accurately, without the shadow of past trauma obscuring the present.
Things to Consider About Brainspotting
While generally safe, considerations include the potential to bring up intense emotions, so working with an experienced therapist is vital. Processing trauma takes time, rarely happening in one session. Some people feel fatigued after. Not a replacement for medication, so work with doctors. Does not work instantly or magically, but through gradual progress with persistence. Not usually covered by insurance yet so confirm costs.
While generally safe, here are some things to keep in mind:
- It can bring up intense emotions, so working with an experienced therapist is vital.
- Processing trauma takes time. It rarely happens in one session.
- Some people feel fatigued after sessions. Plan rest time.
- Not a replacement for medication. Work with your doctors.
- Does not work instantly or magically. Gradual progress over time.
- Not usually covered by insurance yet. Confirm costs.
Latest Research and Trends in Brainspotting
Here is a summary of the latest research and trends in Brainspotting therapy:
- Early research studies show Brainspotting can effectively reduce symptoms of PTSD, anxiety, depression, and chronic pain. More large-scale randomized controlled trials are still needed.
- There is increasing interest in using Brainspotting to enhance performance and creativity for athletes, musicians, actors, and other performers.
- Brainspotting is being combined with other therapies like CBT, EMDR, and somatic experiencing for added benefit. Integrative approaches are a growing trend.
- The neuroscience behind how eye positions access emotional brain areas is being further explored. The precise mechanisms are still not fully understood.
- Brainspotting is gaining recognition as an efficient trauma therapy that can lead to breakthroughs faster than talk therapy alone.
- The use of online/virtual Brainspotting grew during the pandemic and is likely to continue due to increased access and flexibility.
- There are now over 13,000 Brainspotting practitioners trained worldwide. The therapy continues to rapidly expand across countries and cultures.
- Research on Brainspotting is still limited but steadily increasing. More data on various applications and efficacy continues to emerge through practitioner clinical experience.
- Brainspotting is being used to address an expanding range of issues beyond PTSD, from chronic pain to substance abuse to performance enhancement.
- The therapy is tailored to each client’s needs and feedback, allowing for creative innovation in Brainspotting techniques by skilled practitioners.
Brainspotting shows early promise as an efficient trauma/performance therapy, but more research is needed. Trends point to integrative uses and wider applications with global growth.
10 FAQs About Brainspotting
1. How is brainspotting different from EMDR?
While the two have similarities and overlapping origins, brainspotting has a stronger focus on the subtle body-brain relationship and using eye positions to hone into specific brain locations storing emotional experiences.
2. Is there research showing brainspotting works?
Early research with small sample sizes shows reduction in symptoms of PTSD, anxiety, depression and chronic pain after brainspotting treatment. Larger scale studies are still needed.
3. Do I need a formal trauma diagnosis to benefit?
No, brainspotting is used to treat a wide range of problems beyond diagnosed trauma disorders. It can help anyone stuck emotionally or struggling with difficult life events.
4. How long do sessions last?
Sessions typically range from 60 to 90 minutes. The pacing is tailored to the client so no one is overwhelmed.
5. How many sessions until I see a difference?
It varies greatly, but some clients see changes in symptoms, thoughts, and behavior in as little as 3 to 5 sessions.
6. What should I do before my first session?
Rest, hydrate, avoid caffeine/alcohol/drugs. Have journal/notepad ready to record your experience.
7. Will I re-experience past trauma?
Brainspotting releases trauma without needing to intensely relive events. Some recollection occurs but in manageable doses.
8. Can brainspotting help performance anxiety or writers block?
Yes! Brainspotting is very effective for accessing and releasing mental blocks related to performance, creativity and productivity.
9. How is this different from hypnosis or guided visualization?
You are fully conscious during brainspotting. There is no trance state, suggestions or guided imagery involved.
10. Can I do brainspotting remotely or at home?
Doing brainspotting properly requires in-person guidance from a certified professional. Some offer remote sessions via video chat when needed.
Key Facts About Brainspotting
- Developed 2003 by Dr David Grand
- 13,000+ therapists trained internationally
- Focus is subcortical brain areas storing trauma
- Works by identifying eye positions tied to brain locations
- Uses bilateral audio tones for deeper processing
- Shown to be effective especially for trauma, PTSD, anxiety, depression and pain
- Sessions typically 60-90 minutes, 1-2 times per week
- Not covered by insurance yet but some include out of network
- Requires certification for therapists to properly guide process
- Enhances performance for athletes, musicians, actors
- Can improve creativity and productivity
- Research limited but promising for range of uses
Brainspotting is an innovative type of therapy that can lead to breakthroughs by identifying and processing emotional trauma trapped in the body and brain. By releasing this burden, clients report dramatic reductions in PTSD, anxiety, depression, chronic pain and a host of other problems.
It also holds great promise for improving performance, creativity and overall well-being. If you resonate with the approach, look into finding a certified brainspotting therapist to explore further.