Therapy approach
Brainspotting
A relatively new therapy that uses eye position to access and process places where trauma seems to be 'stuck' in the brain and body.
2003
year the approach was developed
Small
current evidence base relative to established therapies
1
typical eye position focused on per processing round
Emerging
overall research status
Understanding it
About Brainspotting
Brainspotting was developed by David Grand in 2003, initially observed while using EMDR with an athlete, and works on the premise that where you look can affect how you feel. A therapist helps you find a 'brainspot' — an eye position associated with activation of a difficult memory or feeling — and holds attention there while the nervous system processes the material, often with little need to talk it through in detail.
The underlying idea is that traumatic or emotionally overwhelming experiences can be held in subcortical parts of the brain in ways that aren't easily reached through talking alone. Brainspotting proposes that fixed eye positions correlate with this stored activation, and that sustained, focused attention on a spot can allow the brain to process and release it.
Sessions are often notably quiet compared with talking therapies. The therapist tracks subtle physical cues — a flinch, a change in breathing, welling eyes — to locate and stay with a brainspot, while you focus mostly inward on bodily sensation rather than narrating the story in detail. Because so little verbal processing is required, some clients find it possible to work with material they find too overwhelming or shameful to describe.
It shares some lineage with EMDR in treating trauma as something the body needs to process rather than purely reason through, but it uses a fixed gaze rather than bilateral eye movements, and typically involves less structured protocol and more open-ended following of what arises.
How it shows up
You might recognise some of this
Nobody has all of it. Most people recognise a handful — and that's enough to start.
Best suited to
- Trauma or distress that feels 'stuck' and hasn't shifted with talking therapy
- People who find it hard to verbalise or narrate what happened to them
- Performance-related anxiety or blocks, an area it was originally used for
- Somatic symptoms with an emotional or trauma-related component
What sessions involve
- Identifying a felt sense of distress in the body linked to the issue
- The therapist helping locate an eye position ('brainspot') linked to that activation
- Sustained, mostly quiet focus on that spot while sensations and emotions process
- Minimal requirement to describe the memory or event in detail
What changes
- A reduction in the emotional charge attached to a specific memory or trigger
- Less physical tension or activation associated with the issue
- Increased capacity to think about the difficult material without being overwhelmed
- For some, unexpected insights or shifts in perspective emerging without much talking
Signals
When this helps
- Trauma or distress that hasn't shifted with talking therapy
- Performance anxiety or blocks
- Difficulty verbalising traumatic experiences
- Physical tension linked to emotional distress
The work
How therapy helps here
Uses eye position and body awareness to access material that talking alone may not reach
Requires minimal verbal narration, which some find less overwhelming
Offers an alternative route when established trauma therapies haven't fully helped
The evidence
What the research actually says
Plain-English summaries of the guidance our therapists work from.
An emerging, still-developing evidence base
Brainspotting has a much smaller research base than established trauma therapies, consisting mostly of small studies, case series and practitioner-reported outcomes rather than large randomised controlled trials.
Plausible but not yet well-tested mechanism
The theory linking eye position to processing of subcortical trauma material is biologically plausible but has not been rigorously tested or independently confirmed in the way EMDR's mechanisms have been studied.
Best considered alongside, not instead of, established approaches
Given the limited evidence, it's reasonable to try brainspotting as an adjunct or alternative when established therapies like trauma-focused CBT or EMDR haven't helped, rather than as a first-line, well-proven treatment.
What to expect
How a course of therapy usually unfolds
A guide, not a script — your therapist shapes this around you.
- 1
Introduction and grounding
Your therapist explains the approach and ensures you have resources to stay regulated during the process.
- 2
Identifying the target
You bring to mind the issue or memory and notice where you feel it in your body.
- 3
Finding the brainspot
The therapist helps locate the eye position associated with the strongest activation.
- 4
Focused processing
You hold attention on the spot and the felt sense, largely in silence, while the therapist observes and supports.
- 5
Closing and integration
Sessions end with grounding and a brief check on what shifted, building over several sessions.
Worth saying
Common worries, honestly answered
“It's a form of hypnosis.”
You remain fully awake and aware throughout; it doesn't involve trance induction.
“It has the same evidence base as EMDR.”
It shares some conceptual roots but has considerably less research support at this stage.
“You have to describe the trauma in detail.”
Much of the value some clients find is that detailed verbal description usually isn't required.
Between sessions
Small things that genuinely help
None of these replace therapy — but they're a gentle place to begin today.
- Notice where in your body distress tends to concentrate
- Practise simple grounding techniques such as naming five things you can see
- Keep a record of what specifically triggers a strong reaction, for use in sessions
- Avoid processing intense material alone without support in place
- Ask a prospective therapist about their specific training and experience level
Related
Related support
FAQs
Frequently asked
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