Trauma Modalities
Trauma lives in the body as much as the mind, and healing often requires more than talking alone. Our therapists offer several specialized, evidence-informed approaches designed to help you process difficult experiences at a pace that feels safe and manageable. Below, you’ll find an overview of Brainspotting, Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART), and Somatic Experiencing, along with what each approach involves and who it may help. If you’re unsure which fit is right for you, your therapist will work with you to choose an approach that suits your needs, history, and goals.
Somatic Experiencing
A Somatic Experiencing approach helps relieve many physical symptoms in the body that arise from traumatic experiences and high stress situations. This body-oriented method of healing is rooted in the idea that people “get stuck” in a fight, flight, or freeze response. As a result, Somatic Experiencing utilizes techniques that release these “stuck” responses and repair the body.
This type of therapy focuses on the body’s memory of traumatic events rather than the verbal knowledge. It can be especially helpful for people with a history of chronic pain, digestion problems, anxiety, chronic medical conditions, car accidents, physical body ailments, PTSD, sleep disturbances, and many other related trauma and stress symptoms. Somatic Experiencing provides a unique link between the mind and body which allows for the whole body to be healed.
Brainspotting
Brainspotting is a brain-body approach to processing trauma that uses eye position to locate and work with the places where distress is held. Your therapist helps you find a “brainspot,” a specific point in your visual field connected to a difficult experience, and invites you to focus on it while attending to your body’s internal responses. Rather than requiring you to narrate events in detail, the approach relies on the brain’s own capacity to process and release what has been stuck. Many clients find it gentle, flexible, and effective for experiences that are hard to put into words.
Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART)
Accelerated Resolution Therapy is a brief, structured approach that uses guided eye movements to help the brain reprocess distressing memories and images. During a session, your therapist guides you through recalling an upsetting experience while following a series of eye movements, then helps you replace the distressing imagery with calmer, more neutral or positive images. You do not need to share every detail of what happened, and many people notice meaningful relief in a small number of sessions. ART is often used for trauma, anxiety, and distressing memories that continue to affect daily life.