EMDR for depression

Depression is common among people with mental health problems. If depression is not treated in time, it can deepen and the symptoms will get worse. There are various treatments available for treating depression. Which treatment is best for you, a practitioner can determine. This often depends on the cause of the depression. EMDR for depression can be effective, if the cause is an unprocessed trauma. EMDR experiences with depression are very positive in this respect.

What is depression?

Depression is a condition that has a great impact on the mood and feelings of the sufferer. The main characteristics of depression are feelings of dejection and gloomy thoughts. In severe depression, you will lose interest in certain things and people and you will no longer be able to enjoy anything in your surroundings. You no longer see any bright spots in your personal situation and not frequently, people with depression also suffer from suicidal thoughts. It is very important to recognise depression in time and to take action. After all, you can't just get rid of depression, you need professional help and sometimes EMDR is the best treatment.

What are the main symptoms of depression?

Depression and loss of interest are the main symptoms of depression. Many people with depression also feel overtired. This has to do with the fact that sleeping problems can also be one of the symptoms of depression. Because of depression symptoms you cannot see the nice things in life anymore, you cut yourself off and you become isolated. This is something that happens to many depression patients and it only makes the depression worse. That is why timely treatment is so important.

Cause of depression

It is not always easy to pinpoint a specific cause of depression. In many cases, it is a combination of biological, social and mental factors. Heredity is one of the most important biological factors. If you are predisposed, you are much more likely to be affected by depression. This is a mental factor. If your depression is caused by social factors, it may be that you have had a traumatic experience that you have not processed. In this case, EMDR can be of great benefit to you.

What is EMDR for depression?

EMDR is the abbreviation of Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing and is a form of therapy that was developed in 1989 by an American psychologist. Central to EMDR is the overloading of the working memory by means of distraction at the moment the patient thinks of a traumatic experience. This means that EMDR depression is especially suitable if the cause can clearly be traced back to an unprocessed trauma. The patient with depression has to load the trauma into the working memory and is distracted in the process. This will eventually lead to giving the trauma a place and looking back on the event with less emotion.

How does EMDR work in practice?

Did the depression arise as a result of a traumatic event? Then EMDR, as an officially recognised treatment, can be useful. During the treatment, the therapist asks you to remember the moment of your traumatic experience. This will not be easy, because not only the images of the trauma, but also the thoughts and feelings at the time will surface again. When you are confronted with your trauma, the therapist distracts you with a hand gesture or a sound. This will happen several times during the treatment. The working memory cannot both recall the trauma and occupy itself with a distraction and becomes overloaded. This is the intention, because it makes it easier to 'park' the trauma away and to recall it again. If you have given the trauma a place to stay, there is a good chance that you will no longer suffer from depressive symptoms.

How does Psylaris help with EMDR for depression?

Psylaris is an organisation that helps the GGZ to improve EMDR treatments, among other things. The founders of Psylaris come from the mental health care sector themselves and know how this therapy can be improved. Psylaris has introduced a number of innovative products to the market, which make life easier for both the therapist and the patient.

With EMDR-remote Psylaris makes remote EMDR treatment possible. This is a complete platform for the therapist, with which patients can be treated at home behind the PC or laptop. The platform is fully accessible online, so you don't have to download anything. As a therapist, you have many distraction tasks available with EMDR-remote. Psylaris also has the VR glasses for EMDR on the market. The patient can be treated with Virtual Reality glasses both in the treatment room and at home. In a virtual reality environment the distraction is much more intense and effective. Psylaris has released various modules for the VR-Bril, such as an EMDR module for anxiety or depression.

Exposure in virtual reality

The goal of Psylaris is to support therapists even better with sufficient EMDR techniques and tools. EMDR in virtual reality is the latest development. The Psylaris Care consists of virtual reality (VR) glasses that can be connected to various modules. Initially, the VR glasses are used in the treatment room and ensure that the patient enters a virtual environment. This ensures an intensive treatment, making a shorter course of treatment necessary. If the patient is ready, the glasses can be given to him or her for use at home, which means that treatment can also take place at home. There are various modules available for the VR glasses. Besides the EMDR module, there is also a module for the treatment of fear, phobia and stress. Psylaris continues to develop, so that more modules will be released in the near future for an even wider range of treatment.

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