Brainspotting

What is brainspotting?

Brainspotting is a powerful yet gentle way to heal trauma and work through difficult experiences. Many people who have been in talk therapy for years find remarkable improvement after only a few brainspotting sessions. The insights gained from brainspotting stay with the client throughout their life—there are no regressions. Discovered by Dr. David Grand, brainspotting draws from Somatic Experiencing and is often compared to Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR).

How does it work?

You will come to your therapy session with an issue in mind that you want to focus on. I will ask you a few questions about the issue to see how it is affecting you, how intensely you are responding to it, and whether your body is having any reactions as you share about it (such as a tight chest, fast heartbeat, sweaty palms, tense neck, teary eyes, or constricted throat). Then together we will locate a “brain spot” associated with that issue. A brain spot is simply a fixed eye position where you feel most connected to the issue you came to work on. Your eyes can be open or closed. The brain spot is not about what you see; it is purely about your eye position.

How will I know which brain spot to use?

We will find it together. When your eyes land on the brain spot that connects to your issue, you will know.

What happens next?

When you are ready, I will give you some time to maintain that fixed eye position. This allows your limbic brain to step in and work its magic. For some clients this may involve talking, crying, or other forms of processing; others process silently. Your body will know what you need. We will stay in this space for as long as we can while respecting your tolerance for the experience and our session end time. I will leave a few moments at the end for you to reflect and debrief on what you experienced during the brainspotting exercise.

Why the limbic brain?

The limbic brain is the part of the brain that deals with emotions. This is where healing from trauma takes place. If you are someone who tends to rationalize, you may notice that while you can tell yourself many stories to explain your experiences, the experiences never feel resolved. This may be because the storytelling is coming from the cerebral cortex—the rational part of the brain that deals with language and logic. This part of the brain is not able to heal emotional wounds on its own; it needs help from the limbic brain. Brainspotting gives us direct access to the limbic brain. We are simply creating space for the limbic brain to do its work.

It sounds woo-woo.

Yes! I agree. I cannot explain the mechanism of how it works. The field of neuroscience is still in its infant stages of explaining many phenomena about the brain. But my clients’ experiences speak for themselves.

What does it treat?

Many things. People use brainspotting to improve athletic or artistic performance, recover from trauma, gain clarity on boundaries, relieve anxiety and depression, process relationship challenges, and more.

Does it work for neurodivergence?

Yes! Many neurodivergent folks find brainspotting to be a wonderful tool. There may be some techniques that we would apply differently for you to make sure we are meeting your needs.

What if it is too intense?

Brainspotting can get intense, but your body knows exactly what it needs to heal itself and the level of intensity is driven entirely by you. There are also options for how we set up the brainspotting experience that allow your brain spot to connect to your inner strengths rather than triggers. This can make the level of intensity feel more manageable.

Will it work for me?

Let’s try it!