Key Takeaways
- Brainspotting therapy uses focused eye movements to help people process trauma and emotional distress.
- Some studies have found brainspotting can help reduce PTSD symptoms.
- Brainspotting may be worth considering if first-choice trauma treatments haven’t worked for you or if you prefer a less verbal therapy approach.
Brainspotting therapy is a relatively new treatment technique developed to help people process trauma and emotional distress. It emerged from a similar therapy, eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR), and similarly uses eye position and focus to access unresolved experiences.
While the research on brainspotting is still limited, early evidence suggests it may benefit some people — particularly those living with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). It may be worth considering if you’ve tried evidence-backed, first-choice treatment methods and haven’t found relief.
What happens in a brainspotting therapy session
Like EMDR, brainspotting uses eye movements to help you process trauma. The main difference is that brainspotting focuses on maintaining your gaze on a single point rather than moving your eyes back and forth.
According to its developer, the idea behind brainspotting is that “where you look affects how you feel.” Proponents believe that finding the right visual point can help your brain stay connected to the emotional or physical sensations linked to trauma.
In a typical brainspotting session, your therapist will help you find a “brainspot,” which is thought of as a position in your field of sight that seems tied to emotional distress or traumatic memories. Once you find the spot, you’ll stay focused on it while paying attention to the thoughts, feelings, or sensations that come up.
A typical brainspotting session usually involves steps like:
- Focusing on a particular problem you’re facing
- Rating your distress
- Tuning into body sensations
- Locating a “brainspot” through eye positioning (often with a pointer or therapist guidance)
- Maintaining focus on that spot while allowing thoughts, emotions, and sensations to surface
- Re-rating your distress levels after processing
Some versions of brainspotting also use extra techniques, like listening to bilateral sounds through headphones, wearing goggles that block vision in one eye, or letting you guide the therapist in finding the most triggering brainspot.
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Who brainspotting therapy might work for
Brainspotting has relatively little evidence supporting its effectiveness for any mental health condition — especially compared to EMDR. It’s not yet considered an evidence-based practice, and some experts have raised concerns about the lack of scientific rigor behind brainspotting and question whether it should be considered a valid clinical approach. So we don’t yet have a clear idea of who it could benefit most.
Brainspotting’s developer designed it for helping with PTSD. He claims that it can help people with conditions like anxiety, depression, chronic fatigue, fibromyalgia, and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) — but there’s currently no research to back up these claims.
A few studies have shown promising results that brainspotting could be helpful for people who are experiencing post-traumatic stress symptoms. For example, one study by the developer of brainspotting found that it significantly reduced symptoms of PTSD. Another found that brainspotting, EMDR, and body-scan meditation all helped healthy adults without PTSD process distressing memories.
Brainspotting may appeal to individuals who prefer less verbal therapy or who find talk therapy overwhelming. Instead of focusing on retelling traumatic memories, the process relies on finding a visual “brainspot” while attending to internal sensations, which some people find less triggering.
Even though evidence is still emerging, you might consider trying brainspotting if you have:
- Gone through trauma, and the first-choice treatments haven’t worked for you
- Curiosity about alternative approaches to healing
- Some upsetting memories you’d like to work through
- Felt overwhelmed by traditional talk therapy
Finding the right brainspotting therapist
If you’re interested in trying brainspotting therapy, it’s important to find a provider who’s trained in it. There are many places you can look for a registered brainspotting therapist, including on the official brainspotting directory. All brainspotting therapists must also have a license to practice mental health counseling although a therapist is not required to have a specific certification to incorporate brainspotting into their work.
Once you’ve found a brainspotting therapist and scheduled your first session, it can help to give some thought to what you want to focus on. Brainspotting will likely be most helpful if you’ve already identified specific traumatic or distressing memories that you want to process rather than larger overall patterns. For example, instead of wanting to work through “trust issues in relationships,” you might identify a memory where you first learned of a past partner’s infidelity.
Also, keep in mind that just because you aren’t talking much in these sessions doesn’t mean that the therapeutic rapport isn’t important. Your therapist may spend several sessions with you just building trust. It’s essential to feel emotionally safe in any therapeutic relationship.
Brainspotting might be especially helpful for people who have experienced trauma but find it difficult or overwhelming to engage in traditional talk therapy. It can be a good fit for those who want to process their emotions non-verbally or those who have not found relief from other trauma treatments like EMDR. It may also be useful for people who are dealing with body-based trauma or chronic conditions tied to emotional distress, as it focuses on the mind-body connection.
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Brainspotting therapy may offer a different path to healing, especially if traditional talk therapy hasn’t worked for you. Although more research is needed, it could be a supportive tool for processing distressing memories. Finding a therapist who understands your needs and goals can make a big difference in your journey to healing.
At Rula, we’re committed to delivering a comprehensive behavioral health experience that helps people feel seen and understood so they can get back to feeling their best.
Rula makes it easier to find a licensed therapist or psychiatric provider who accepts your insurance so you don’t have to choose between affordable care and excellent care. With a diverse network of more than 15,000 providers, 24/7 crisis support, and appointments available as soon as tomorrow, we’re here to help you make progress — wherever you are on your mental health journey.
About the author
Saya Des Marais
Saya graduated with her Master in Social Work (MSW) with a concentration in mental health from the University of Southern California in 2010. She formerly worked as a therapist and motivational interviewing trainer in community clinics, public schools, mental health startups, and more.
Her writing has been featured in FORTUNE, GoodRX, PsychCentral, and dozens of mental health apps and therapy websites. Through both her clinical work and her personal OCD diagnosis, she’s learned the importance of making empathetic and accurate mental health content available online.
She lives in Portland, Oregon but you can find her almost just as often in Mexico or in her birthplace, Tokyo.
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