WHAT HAPPENS DURING A BRAINSPOTTING SESSION?
During a brainspotting session, the client will be guided to bring attention to a targeted subject matter as the starting focal point for the session. The starting point can be broad or specific - a memory, an emotion, a sensation or even a desired state of being. An eye position (known as the “brainspot”) and body sensations that are associated with the targeted theme will be explored. The “brainspot” provides a doorway into the neural-circuitry that holds the targeted theme or activation, as the eyes provide a direct doorway to the mid-brain. By staying with the felt somatic body sensations while the eyes are held on the designated location, the brain and body begins to reorganize, transforming and processing habituated modes of operating that are no longer of service to the expansion and healing of the client while providing a discharge of stagnant or locked up energy within the bodymind and spirit.
How does brainspotting vary from traditional talk therapy?
Brainspotting supports the brain in rewiring itself with a bottom up (body to mind approach), using focused awareness and embodied presence that support in reopening pathways for healing. Research and clinical evidence provide data on brainspottings effectiveness with trauma, anxiety, pain, and performance blocks, in part because it aligns with how the nervous system actually heals through regulation, attunement, and neuroplastic restructuring.
For people living with chronic illness, especially when symptoms are tied to nervous system dysregulation, pain cycles, medical trauma, or long-term stress, brainspotting can help calm overactivated neural pathways, support regulation, and reduce the somatic imprinting that can fuel flare-ups.
What is Brainspotting?
Brainspotting is a neuroplasticity and bodymind based therapeutic modality that is designed to assist in the processing of emotions, experiences, and beliefs. Brainspotting supports the formation of new neural pathways, transforming habitual patterns of thought and behavior, creating conditions for enduring healing and personal evolution. Evolving from EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) and Somatic Experiencing, it integrates principles of neuroplasticity, nervous system regulation, body awareness, and directional eye positioning to access the midbrain, the region where emotional and physiological responses are encoded. In essence, brainspotting is a targeted, body and neuroplasticity informed modality utilized to access self-healing mechanisms while reshape patterns that were once adaptive but are no longer of service.
One key element that distinguishes Brainspotting from other therapeutic approaches is its reliance on embodied awareness to locate and engage the somatic expressions of emotion within the body. Rather than depending on verbal disclosure, clients are invited to process internally, guided by the practitioner’s attuned presence. This allows for deep therapeutic processing without the necessity of recounting traumatic, complex or difficult to verbalize experiences.
Unlike traditional talk therapy, which primarily engages the prefrontal cortex (the center of cognition and reasoning), Brainspotting accesses the subcortical regions of the brain, where emotional memory is stored. By working directly with these deeper neural structures, Brainspotting activates and transforms the physiological roots of emotional and behavioral patterns. In doing so, it facilitates the release of stored affect and supports the emergence of transformed, integrated modes of being.