Yes, it does. EMDR works. It is an evidence-based practice cited in the clinical guidelines of many international organizations. Over 20 randomized controlled clinical studies now show that EMDR is effective as a trauma treatment. International teams of healthcare providers now use EMDR to aid victims of torture, war, and natural disasters through the EMDR Humanitarian Assistance Program (EMDR-HAP.) Over 100,000 EMDR therapists worldwide, supported by 32 worldwide professional organizations, are bringing new hope to people of all ages. With EMDR, clients experience remarkable relief from a wide variety of symptoms that other therapies fail to help.
A Timeline of Acceptance in the Scientific Community
1980
The American Psychiatric Association adds Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Clinical Practice Guidelines to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSMIII). Prior to this time, PTSD was not considered a disorder and there were no practice guidelines for treatment.
1987
Francine Shapiro discovers that, through an unknown mechanism, alternating bilateral (left/right) eye movements change disturbing thoughts and memories. She believes it similar to the reprocessing that occurs during normal sleep and REM (rapid eye movement) states.
1989
A randomized controlled study by Francine Shapiro is published in the Journal of Traumatic Stress. In the same year, the first controlled studies of other treatments of PTSD (prolonged exposure therapy, psychodynamic therapy, and hypnosis) are published.
1991
Shapiro changes her paradigm from a behavioral formulation of desensitization of anxiety to a more integrative and comprehensive information processing model. Eye Movement Desensitization (EMD) is renamed Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) to reflect the insights and cognitive changes observed in treatment.
1995
Shapiro further develops the AIP (Accelerated Information Processing) model as the theoretical framework that guides EMDR treatment. She publishes her first textbook on EMDR therapy.
1998
Drawing on a growing body of research comparing EMDR to other treatment methods, a taskforce of the Clinical Division of the American Psychological Association names EMDR one of three methods empirically supported for the treatment of PTSD.
2001
Shapiro’s text is revised, and the AIP model is now the Adaptive Information Processing model, suggesting that the processing observed in EMDR treatment is not simply accelerated, but also moves information to more adaptive health. Shapiro theorizes that the EMDR procedures harness an innate information processing system that is geared toward adaptive health.
2002
EMDR is cited as one of three methods recommended for treating terror victims by the Israel National Council for Mental Health.
2003
The Dutch Institute for HealthCare designates EMDR as a treatment of choice for PTSD. The findings are published in the Multidisciplinary Guideline Anxiety Disorders.
2004
The American Psychiatric Association includes EMDR in its Practice Guideline for the Treatment of Patients with Acute Stress Disorder and Post-traumatic Stress Disorder. The Department of Veterans Affairs and Department of Defense VA/DoD Clinical Practice Guideline for the Management of Post-Traumatic Stress places EMDR in “A” category as “strongly recommended” for the treatment of trauma. This recommendation is repeated in the 2010 edition.
2005
The National Institute for Clinical Evidence finds EMDR therapy effective for adults and children with post traumatic stress. A research study with police officers suffering from PTSD reveals significant physical changes in the brain after EMDR therapy. The study, using SPECT imaging, is published in The Journal of Neuropsychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences.
2007
The Australian Centre for Posttraumatic Mental Health finds EMDR is effective for acute stress disorder and PTSD.
2009
Written by Edna Foa and colleagues, the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies practice guidelines categorize EMDR as an evidence-based level A treatment for PTSD in adults.
2010
The California Evidence-Based Clearinghouse for Child Welfare finds EMDR to be an effective trauma treatment for children.
2011
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s (SAMHSA) National Registry of Evidence-based Programs and Practices cites EMDR as evidence-based practice for symptoms of PTSD, anxiety and depression.
2013
“A meta-analysis of the contribution of eye movements in processing emotional memories” is published in the Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry. Researchers Christopher Lee and Pim Cuijpers conclude that eye movements have a significant effect on the processing of emotional memories after reviewing 15 clinical research studies and 11 laboratory experiments. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends EMDR therapy for children, adolescents and adults with PTSD. The recommendation is published in Problems and Disorders Specifically Related to Stress (SPE-Stress): Interventions Recommended by WHO. WHO mhGAP Guidelines
