Neuroscientific Therapies: A Revolution In Psychotherapy
When I had finished teaching my class at the Faculty of Psychology, some students approached me to ask me about a type of therapies that I had mentioned in my presentation: Neuroscientific Therapies
I told them that it is a form of therapy that takes advantage of the latest research in neurosciences. Next, I added that they are therapeutic options that help overcome phobias, anxiety disorders, post-traumatic stress disorders and states of sadness, among others, in a quick, deep, effective and permanent way over time.
Their faces, a mixture of surprise and disbelief, said it all:
“And why haven’t we heard of them?”
To this question I answered that They are therapies that are currently expanding and that are becoming more and more known Neuroscientific therapies began in the 1980s with “EMDR” (Desensitization and Reprocessing by Eye Movement) and it was recently, in the first decade of the 21st century, that they have become popular.
From that point on, the students’ questions followed one after the other.
In EMDR, for example, works by emulating rapid eye movements Every night when we sleep we enter a deep sleep phase (the REM phase) in which we move our eyes at high speed while we dream. This mechanism is completely natural and is a way for the brain to reprocess, or reduce and even eliminate the stress experienced throughout the day or at other times in our lives. Hence one of the benefits of being able to sleep correctly.
Based on this knowledge, the EMDR therapist applies a series of sets or horizontal movements with the fingers, while the patient follows them with their gaze. When thinking about a disturbing or stressful event while moving your eyes at high speed, the amygdala is activated in a way that produces a reduction in stress which can cause the negative emotion to transform into a positive one, such as tranquility or acceptance.
But is all this scientific?
This question, asked by one of the students, led me to explain that, for example, EMDR is one of the most widespread and studied neuroscientific therapies in the world It is also true that it is one of the first that appeared. In our country there are hospitals that have it integrated into their action protocols. For example, at the Hospital Clínic of Barcelona, in the sexual assault unit, it is the therapy that is most used to help people overcome their traumas and all the stress they have suffered.
As I told them more about these therapies, their faces began to indicate greater understanding and receptivity.
Are there more Neuroscientific Therapies?
Yes. There are currently four main therapies, and new ones are being created all the time. For example, there is the Wingwave Coaching, which is a therapy that allows us to go to the origin of the trauma or disturbance. With a kinesiological testcalled O-Ring Test, we can discover the beginning of the problem. The vast majority of blocks, traumas, phobias and limiting beliefs are found in the imprinting stage, from birth to 6 or 7 years. When we work on the root of the problem we are releasing great tension and allowing a lot of negative emotional charge to be unblocked.
Also included within Neuroscientific Therapies is the so-called brainspotting which allows detecting the Brainspots either eye points of access to experience. When someone has suffered a trauma and begins to relate it, their eyes are placed on a point in space. This gaze position is not random, but rather it is a window to access the memory. From Brainspots, The person can reconnect with that experience but feeling like a spectator, which allows you to be calm while you think about the event. This makes it easier for the situation to lose intensity and even incorporate positive resources into the event.
The TIC (Brain Integration Therapies), are based on the idea that each of our hemispheres processes information in a different way. The right hemisphere is more emotional and the left hemisphere is more rational. When we experience a traumatic situation, such as the sudden death of a family member and we suffer complicated or pathological grief, it could be that one of our hemispheres is overwhelmed Through bilateral stimulation, covering one eye and the other alternately, we facilitate the two hemispheres to connect. When this happens, levels of tension and anxiety are reduced and we are able to think about that event with peace and serenity.
So, can you make someone not be afraid of anything?
It would be possible to help a person overcome their phobias and blocks, but We must not lose sight of the fact that not being afraid of anything is not very adaptive
My professional ethics would prevent me from reprocessing the fear of doing something that would put your life at risk. What these therapies do allow is to help people who, for example, have had a phobia such as getting into a car, a plane or an elevator for a long time, can do what they fear in a range of 1 to 4 sessions. In these cases it can be adaptive to eliminate the focus of fear, since the person really needs to perform such actions in order to lead a normal life.
Completely. The changes are maintained over time because we work from the origin and passing through each of the feeding memories (other traumatic events that have added negative emotions), in such a way that the person has reprocessed or transformed all the negative emotions into positive emotions.
At this point, the students told me that these therapies had not been taught to them in college, but that they were eager to learn more about them.
In the end, knowledge advances just as society does, and neuroscience is increasingly present in all areas of our lives. It’s not magic, it’s science
