EMDR Therapy Chicago:
Top Rated Chicago EMDR Therapists
Takeaway: Trauma and other painful life events can leave you feeling stuck, isolated, and anxious. Thankfully, it is possible to heal. EMDR therapy is a cutting-edge treatment that can significantly improve your quality of life. Connect with our certified EMDR therapist in Chicago to experience healing today.
What is EMDR therapy?
Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing therapy, otherwise known as EMDR, is a specialized mental health treatment. It was first developed in the 1980s to treat post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Since then, it's been highly studied and even used to treat other mental health issues.
EMDR works by changing how you respond to disturbing memories. Using a technique called bilateral stimulation, which often involves side-to-side eye movements or tapping alternating sides of your body, your brain reprocesses the traumatic event so it no longer causes as much emotional distress.
Sydney Gideon, LCSW & Founder of SGTG is a top-rated, EMDRIA certified, EMDR Therapist in Chicago. Click below to read more about Sydney!
Understanding the EMDR therapy process
EMDR is a structured approach to therapy. While we're EMDR-certified and follow the protocol to give you the best results, we also take care to customize your treatment plan to your unique needs and goals.
Here's a broad overview of what to expect from the EMDR therapy process.
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Your therapist will gather information about what brings you into therapy and collaborate with you to create a treatment plan.
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During this phase, you and your therapist will work on building your rapport. You'll also learn more about what to expect from the process and learn coping skills to prepare you for the work ahead.
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You'll identify negative beliefs associated with the traumatic memory. You'll also choose a positive statement that you want to believe instead.
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In this phase, your therapist will walk you through bilateral stimulation exercises to help you reduce distress around your memory of the traumatic event.
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You and your therapist will work on replacing the negative belief you identified with the positive belief you selected in step 3.
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With the help of your therapist, you'll bring the traumatic event to mind again and tune into your body sensations to see what comes up. If you still experience negative thoughts or feelings, you'll repeat the process.
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You and your therapist will find a degree of closure at the end of each EMDR session to ensure that you feel grounded enough to re-enter your daily life.
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You'll start each new session by checking in on your feelings and your progress toward your goals.
Keep in mind that this is a high-level overview of the process. Your therapist will be there to walk you through your EMDR sessions every step of the way.
How EMDR therapy can help you
Each person has a unique experience with EMDR therapy. At the same time, we've seen firsthand how beneficial it can be with the clients we've helped in our private practice. Here are some examples of how EMDR may be able to help you.
Reduce trauma symptoms. As we've discussed, EMDR is a state-of-the-art trauma treatment. Research shows how effective it can be in reducing the symptoms of PTSD, even when delivered virtually.
Heal from disturbing experiences. You don't necessarily need a formal diagnosis of PTSD to benefit from EMDR. It can help you recover from difficult past experiences of any kind, even if you don't meet the criteria for a PTSD diagnosis.
Treat other mental health issues. In fact, EMDR therapy can treat a number of other mental health issues as well. Studies show that it can be effective in treating anxiety, depression, OCD, chronic pain, and more.
Boost low self-esteem. A key component of EMDR is installing new, positive beliefs to replace negative thoughts. As a result, your self-esteem can improve.
Get fast results. Traditional trauma counseling methods can take several sessions (sometimes even years) to be effective. However, many people see quicker results with EMDR therapy. Speed isn't the goal, but it's a nice side effect!
If you're still not sure whether EMDR therapy is right for you, we encourage you to contact us for a complimentary consultation.
FAQs about working with an EMDR therapist in Chicago
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Individual therapy, including EMDR, is often covered by insurance. However, it's important to contact your insurance company directly to get a clear understanding of what your benefits are. While insurance companies are required to cover mental health care, there can be limitations based on frequency and duration of sessions as well as "medical necessity."
If you prefer not to use your insurance benefits directly, we can also provide a statement that you can submit to your insurance company for out-of-network reimbursement. You can also use your FSA or HSA account to pay for EMDR sessions.
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EMDR therapy was first developed by Francine Shapiro as a treatment for trauma. While it's still commonly used to treat PTSD and help people heal from negative life events, it can also be used to treat:
• Anxiety disorders
• Mood disorders
• Depression
• Eating disorders
• OCD
Please contact us to discuss your situation and whether EMDR might be appropriate for you.
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Unlike other forms of therapy, EMDR does not require that you divulge every detail of your trauma. Your therapist will need some context in order to effectively help you, but there is much less discussion of your experience in EMDR than in traditional talk therapy.
EMDR also uses specialized techniques, such as bilateral stimulation, to help you heal from trauma or other difficult life events. It's based on changing how memories are stored in your brain rather than discussing emotions or identifying deeply ingrained behavior patterns.
Why choose SG Therapy Group for EMDR in Chicago
It's important to find the best EMDR therapist in Chicago for your needs. Here are a few reasons to consider working with SG Therapy Group.
We're an intimate, boutique-style therapy group.
Big agencies or nationwide online therapy platforms can't give you the individualized attention that you deserve. We're a small, intentional therapy group practice that's dedicated to creating a supportive environment for clients and therapists alike.
We take a personalized approach to mental health care.
As a boutique therapy group, we're able to form strong, trusting therapeutic connections with each client we see. This allows us to tailor your EMDR treatment to your specific needs, strengths, and goals. We're not a therapy "factory" that throws one-size-fits-all solutions at you. Our person-centered approach means we focus on you.
We stay up-to-date on the latest research and methods.
Our clinicians are committed to pursuing further education and specialized training in order to best serve you. Learn more about our therapists' training and research here.
Find healing with Chicago EMDR therapy
If you're ready to heal from past experiences and find more peace in your day-to-day life, we'd be honored to support you. We invite you to reach out for a complimentary consultation to see whether we're the right fit for your needs. We look forward to connecting!