How Effective Is EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization And Reprocessing) Therapy For Kids And Teenagers?

Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing therapy is a non-traditional approach to PTSD and other mental disorders. Many adults have found relief from suffering and achieved healing after attending EMDR, but is this therapy also safe and effective for children and teenagers?

What is EMDR?

EMMR is a psychotherapy, but it isn't as conversation-based as many others. Usually taking place weekly or twice a week, people participating in EMDR typically attend six to 12 sessions — making it a short-term therapy. The sessions may last anywhere from an hour to 90 minutes.

Both the American Psychological Association and US Veterans Affairs endorse EMDR for post-traumatic stress disorder; the APA conditionally, and the VA strongly, calling in one of the most effective treatments for PTSD.

The therapy,  which aims to allow trauma victims to process their memories to help them heal, is frankly difficult to understand — since it diverges so greatly from more traditional approaches to psychotherapy.

After a preparatory phase, clients are asked to focus on specific memories while closely following a movement — very often the therapist's finger — with their eyes. Alternatively, EMDR clients may concentrate on a sound. They will then offer feedback to the therapist, and the treatment will continue for each specific memory until any distress around it subsides.

While it is not entirely clear how eye movement desensitization and reprocessing works and the therapy remains controversial especially in the treatment of conditions other than PTSD, it is clear that EMDR can indeed help many people reach remission from post-traumatic stress disorder.

What happens during EMDR therapy?

Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing consists of eight distinct phases, which clients work through as they progress in therapy:

• Intake. Clients briefly explain why they are pursuing EMDR and what they are hoping to achieve. This can include current problems, information about the nature of the trauma suffered (in the case of PTSD), sharing current triggers (for PTSD, addictions, anxiety, and eating disorders), and hopes for the future.
• Preparation. Clients will learn more about eye movement desensitization and reprocessing, are taught new coping skills such as breathing exercises, and practice following the movements or sounds that will be used in future sessions.
• Assessment. Client and therapist will examine a memory and discuss what kind of distress it causes, and how severely. 
• Desensitization. While focusing on all aspects of a memory, clients follow the movements or sounds the therapist uses. They then tell the therapist what they are feeling and what other memories may have been triggered. This can offer material for future sessions.
• Installation. If the memory is no longer distressing, therapist and client work on consolidating the new mental framework.
• Body scan. Clients examine their mental and emotional state in reaction to memories.
• Closure. At the end of a treatment session, clients work to come out of the intense focusing of the session and to feel relaxed and safe. 
• Evaluation. Client and therapist dive into the nature of the mental and physical changes that have taken place and determine how to best move forward next time.

Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing sounds — we'll say it — slightly abstract and even bizarre on paper. Should you still not have any idea as to what might happen in a session, we would encourage you to look for videos that show EMDR in action. While you still won't understand why EMDR can work, you will have a much better idea about what to expect from sessions. 

Is eye movement desensitization and reprocessing a suitable therapy for children and teenagers?

Many research studies that have investigated how effective eye movement desensitization and reprocessing is for children and teenagers have had small sample sizes. Like studies looking at the overall efficacy of EMDR, most have looked at post-traumatic stress disorder. Not all studies on the topic of EMDR in children and adolescent have been of very good quality. 

Nonetheless, available research suggests that eye movement desensitization and reprocessing can benefit children and teens with post-traumatic stress disorder — both after one traumatic experience and after prolonged trauma. EMDR has also been shown to help children reduce their levels of anxiety and depression, while improving their sleep quality — sometimes even more effectively than traditional talk therapy. 

Some things parents may want to know if they are considering whether EMDR could be a good fit for their child or teenager include:

• Unlike more traditional talk therapy approaches, such as cognitive behavioral therapy or prolonged exposure therapy, EMDR does not require talking about the trauma very much. Rather, it is important for the client to think about the memories they are processing in therapy. For people who do not feel comfortable discussing deeply traumatic events with a therapist in great detail, this can make EMDR a choice that feels safe. 
• Because EMDR does require thinking about distressing memories, the sessions can cause some distress. Because coping mechanisms are taught in the therapy as well, Veterans Affairs holds that the advantages outweigh the risks this temporary discomfort may bring.
• Even if EMDR is not efffective for a specific person, it has not been found to have any negative long-term side effects.

A final word

EMDR has been most successful in the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder, but may benefit children and adolescents with other conditions, ranging from anxiety to eating disorders, as well. This non-traditional approach has some scientific backing as well as endorsements from several professional organizations, but make sure to weight its potential benefits against those of treatments such as cognitive behavioral therapy, as well.