BRAINSPOTTING
Over the years, I have dedicated myself to the practice of holistic psychology. This way of being and working honors the reality that the mind affects the body and the emotions and the body affects the emotions and the mind. This focus led me to stumble on an effective set of tools called Brainspotting (BSP). Brainspotting can be defined as a powerful approach to healing and wellness that meaningfully combines what we know about the mind/brain into therapy, particularly in resolving old wounds or traumas.
As we journey through life, it is inevitable that we experience trauma, whether a national crisis, chronic illness or pain, the loss of a loved one, or a physical, sexual or emotional attack. When we experience trauma, the brain protects us by encapsulating the event in the areas of the brain where language is not (in the mid-brain or back of the brain). This allows us to take the immediate steps needed to respond or protect ourselves as best as possible, while protecting us from the longer term emotional, physical and social pain caused by the trauma. As time goes by, people do all sorts of things with this, denying the impact of the event, avoiding triggers that remind us of the trauma, or forgetting about the event. But nonetheless, the trauma remains encapsulated in our brain. As we continue moving through life, inevitably another trauma occurs, causing the first trauma to reopen or erupt and creating a significant nervous system reaction to the second trauma.
Over many years in practice, I have witnessed this painful cycle over and over again. I also have witnessed brave individuals “doing their work” to heal past traumas. Here is what I have learned to be true; many people move forward, heal and lead successful, peaceful, and fulfilling lives. Trauma informed interventions are helpful for many individuals and I continue to use those approaches in my work everyday. BUT, there is always a piece of the trauma that cannot be accessed and healed through language or body-based work completely separated from the brain; there is a piece where language fails….always. This is where Brainpostting comes in, allowing the psychologist to work gently and collaboratively with the client to access, reorganize and heal the trauma encapsulated in the brain.
You may be wondering “What does this mean and how does this Brainspotting work?” Well, I moved beyond reading, video watching and podcast listening to experiencing Phase 1 and 2 Brainspotting training for myself. One of the first concepts I learned was a process in which a psychologist focuses on the interpersonal, therapeutic relationship between professional and client, while simultaneously attending to the person’s brain-body response to the area of focus. To me, this was a critical first step toward “buy in,” as effective therapeutic intervention hinges both on the quality of the relationship between the therapist and those with whom they work, as well as on the quality and meaningfulness of training in integrating approaches.
As training went on, I came to understand that Brainspotting accesses the brain-body’s innate self-scanning and self-healing capacities. In Brainspotting, a person’s brain-body activation around a trauma, which can include blinking, staring, facial twitches, racing heart, tightening in the chest, or fluttering in the stomach, is paired with a relevant eye orienting position, called a Brainspot. What this really means is that working through difficult areas in life involves more than language, but incorporates opening “memory files” that allow the brain-body to regulate and reorient in a positive or adaptive way. When this happens the prior activation, felt possibly as anxiety, depression, inattention, lessens and the person feels and functions better.
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