EMDR, Brainspotting, & Hypnosis

Deeper trauma work is often no understood. We compare for the sake of understanding, not to prioritize anything. Liberation is self-trust, and when we lean into understanding we do trust ourselves better. Healing on purpose often requires deeper investments, here's a comparison of Hypnosis, EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing), and Brainspotting as approaches to resolving trauma related issues, when focusing on impact or elimination of issues.

Methodor	Hypnosis	EMDR	Brainspotting
Overview	Alters consciousness to access subconscious beliefs and memories	Uses bilateral stimulation (e.g., eye movements) to process traumatic memories	Uses fixed eye gaze to locate “brainspots” where trauma is stored in the body
Origin	Traditional psychodynamic and medical hypnosis	Developed by Francine Shapiro (1980s)	Developed by David Grand (2003, derived from EMDR)
Mechanism	Deep relaxation & suggestion bypass conscious defenses	Dual-attention stimulus reduces distress while reprocessing trauma	Eye position taps into neuro-emotional holding spots, often somatic
Trauma Focus	Can address trauma indirectly or symbolically	Directly targets traumatic memories for desensitization	Targets body-based trauma stuck in subcortical brain areas
Client Role	Passive/receiving suggestions	Active participation in recalling and reprocessing memories	Somatic attunement, internal tracking, minimal talking
Effectiveness	Helpful for anxiety, pain, and stress-related symptoms	Strong evidence base for PTSD, recommended by WHO, APA, VA	Promising outcomes for complex trauma, less studied than EMDR
Evidence Base	Moderate (anecdotal + some clinical trials)	Extensive (hundreds of studies, meta-analyses)	Emerging (case studies, small trials, practitioner reports)
Ideal Use	Phobia, habit change, stress, mild trauma	PTSD, single-event trauma, complex trauma	Chronic trauma, preverbal trauma, dissociation, somatic symptoms

Effectiveness Summary

• EMDR:

  • Most evidence-based of the three

  • Often shows symptom reduction in 6–12 sessions for PTSD

  • Recognized by World Health Organization as frontline trauma treatment

• Brainspotting:

  • Client reports and clinical research consistently demonstrate powerful impact, especially for complex habits or fears, including preverbal trauma

  • Effective in accessing deep emotional and somatic memories

  • Emerging evidence for reducing dissociation, somatic pain, anxiety

• Hypnosis:

  • Shown to reduce trauma-related issues such as anxiety, sleep disturbance, and perception of pain or somatic activation

  • Effectiveness linked to the CARE Partner’s skill and client's suggestibility

  • Often used as collaboration to other therapies

Which to Choose?

Healing on purpose is a Self Experiment.

Getting to know our own mind-body-spirit means we can't copy off some one else's paper, we have to do the work of brave exploration. According to most who try any of these deeper processing pathways, they work! But how they work, or impact each body, is very different. What worked wonders for your friend may feel off-putting to your body.

Here are some ways to see each approach in action:

• Try EMDR when you like structured, research-backed, clear process and progress.

• Try Brainspotting when you are confident that meditation develops embodiment.

• Try Hypnosis when emotional labor keeps you from the progress you deserve.

Here are some resources to support your research:

• Deeper Emotional Processing

• What is Brainspotting Therapy

Deeper emotional processing can have many benefits, and it often CARE Partnership. We encourage you to embrace the practices within the supportive relationship of a therapist, mentor, or holistic coach. These guides are trained to know what challenges deserve care and what provider of care to BRIDGE you to for support.