Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing or EMDR therapy is a proven way to treat mental traumas and disorders like PTSD, personality disorders, grief, etc.
Fortunately, it can also help individuals deal with harmful negative beliefs and replace them with positive self-thoughts.
Let’s see how EMDR therapy can change negative beliefs. But before that, let’s take a look at what negative beliefs actually are.
What are Negative Beliefs or Cognitions?
Negative beliefs are the self-depreciative or unhealthy thoughts developed by individuals when they go through rough or traumatic experiences. This kind of unhealthy beliefs can show up in multiple forms, which include thoughts like:
- “I am powerless.”
- “I am unworthy.”
- “I do not deserve love.”
The negative beliefs usually reflect the defensive mental response of a person against the trauma. However, in most cases, these mental responses are overly generalized and downright irrational.
Even though these beliefs seem utterly irrational, they are deeply ingrained into the affected person’s mind. As a result, it deeply affects the individual’s emotions, mental health, and his/her day-to-day behavior.
Here is a list of a few common negative beliefs:
- “I am a bad person.”
- “I am never going to be good enough.”
- “I am worthless.”
- “I do not deserve good things.”
- “I do not deserve happiness.”
- “I am shameful.”
- “I am unworthy of receiving love.”
How Do Different Phases of EMDR Therapy Work to Change Negative Beliefs?
Step 1: Gathering Client’s Mental Health History and Treatment Planning
In this first step of EMDR therapy, the psychiatrists will collect the mental health and medical history of the patients to create a treatment plan.
The gathered data includes the traumatic experiences of the patients, their past treatment history, and other relevant issues.
The psychiatrists will also assess the major negative beliefs the patients are suffering from and finally, develop a solid treatment plan.
Step 2: Therapy Preparation
The patients must feel safe before the start of any mental health therapy. The EMDR therapy in Phoenix, AZ is not an exception.
In this step, the therapists will explain how EMDR works and teach them several self-soothing methods to help them manage their stress and anxiety.
Going through this process will help the patients be ready for the next steps of the therapy and increase its success rate.
Step 3: Assessment
In the third step, the psychiatrists will find out the exact negative beliefs of their patients and understand which traumatic memories they need to target.
The therapists will also figure out what kind of positive beliefs they would use to replace the patients’ negative thoughts.
For example, if you have a core negative belief, “I am powerless,” the therapists will try to replace this with a cognition that will help you have beliefs like “I am in control.”
Step 4: Desensitization
This is the step where the active treatment to replace the negative thoughts starts. The therapists will use several bilateral stimulations or BLS, such as taps, eye movements, or tones while targeting a relevant traumatic experience.
This process is called desensitization which decreases the emotional impacts or burdens of the targeted traumatic experiences. As a result, it will weaken the negative beliefs related to that specific experience.
Step 5: Installation of Positive Beliefs or Thoughts
During the installation process, the therapists will try to instill positive beliefs in the patients’ minds to replace their negative thoughts.
The doctors will perform BLS while instilling positive thoughts to make them deeply ingrained in their patients’ memories.
Step 6: Body Scan
Completing the installation process doesn’t mean the negative beliefs are completely wiped out.
So, the psychiatrists perform a body scan to see how the patients physically react to the traumatic memories and if the positive beliefs have been successfully ingrained in them.
The experts will also search for any residual distress in the patients during this process. And if they find any, they will try to integrate the positive beliefs once again.
Step 7: Closure
This step ensures that the mental state of the patients is stable. The experts often make the patients multiple self-soothing techniques and grounding exercises to review the treatment’s progress.
Step 8: Reevaluation
When the patients come back for their next treatment stages or final appointments, the psychiatrists will perform a thorough reevaluation. This step is necessary to check if the instilled positive beliefs are completely processed.
Final Thoughts
Changing core beliefs will have a lasting impact on any person. It will impact their mental health and overall well-being.
EMDR therapy has proven itself to be an effective tool to change harmful and stubborn negative beliefs and replace them with positive ones.
It will help people break free from their mental limitations and negative assumptions, and lead a positive, fulfilling, and healthy life.