What does the research show about the neurobiological aspects of EMDR?
Given the infancy of the field of neurobiology, the physiological foundations of all psychotherapies are currently unknown, and therefore, all neurobiological models of psychotherapy are speculative. Testing of hypotheses about EMDRs neurological mechanisms awaits the development of advanced brain imaging techniques. Hypotheses concerning EMDRs neurobiological mechanisms are, at this time, purely speculative.Rauch, van der Kolk, and colleagues (1996) conducted positron emission studies of patients with PTSD in which they were exposed to vivid, detailed narratives which they had written about their own traumatic experiences. Patients showed heightened activity only in the right hemisphere, in the areas most involved in emotional arousal, and heightened activity on the right visual cortex, reflecting the flashbacks reported by these patients. Perhaps most significantly, Brocas area – the part of the left hemisphere responsible for translating personal experiences into communicable langua
