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Has anyone had negative experience with brainspotting?
I underwent 2 intense sessions of brainspotting 3 months ago and have experienced awful anxiety and depression since then. I am 61 years old and during my 20s and 30s had debilitating depression that was significantly helped by therapy for some neglect and abuse I experienced as a child. Since that time I have been on antidepressants with only minor episodes of short term depression and am generally a happy, outgoing person. My best friend is a therapist and offered me 2 free brainspotting sessions. Being friends since the age of 3, she knew about my history and thought it would benefit me. Since then life has been very difficult and debilitating. I have even had suicidal thoughts which is bizarre to me, although I would never do something like that to my family. I have never experienced extreme anxiety until this. I'm hoping to hear others' experience, however, it is rarely new and there isnt a great deal of information available. Thanks for taking the time to read this.
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I had to look it up. It seems to make sense as a mind/body healing system. In your case, it sounds as though the process opened up areas of buried trauma and did not address them or help to resolve them.
Maybe you should go back to your (qualified?)
brainspotter and get the process completed.
In any event, we are with you, hang in there, and good luck.
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What training do brainspotters receive? Who offers this training? Could I please have a list of legitimate institutions that offer brainspotting degrees? Are there scholarships available? Thanks.
There are courses for getting certified in brainspotting. You can find answers to your questions with a Google search.
I had one good experience and one negative experience with brainspotting. The first time, my counselor explained it, took me slowly into the process and continued to coach me along the way and then when coming out of it, used methods to do so as she was bringing me back to the present. The second time she did it, she was more rushed and when she should have taken me through the methods to take me out of the brainspotting, she ran out of time in the session and it was not as smooth a transition. I felt negative and weird all day. I share this, so that you can do a bit more research about what brainspotting is and best methods for using it. Discuss the effects with the friend/counselor. If she is a good therapist, she will do her homework and figure out how to best continue to help you or perhaps better yet, refer you to someone else to have a couple more sessions so that you have a better response(I would dislike if your friendship was ruined because of this). There is more research needed in this area and there are specific steps to take you into brainspotting and take you out again. Hang in there. You have the strength and power to get through this as you have done so in the past! I think it could possibly help you if done well.
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3 Reactions@angellreo Thanks.
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2 Reactions@vicdenlee thank you for such kind, encouraging words. I do want to pursue ot further. My friend lives 3 hours away so it's a little challenging to set up an ongoing regimen but I am trying to figure that out. I have been unable to locate a brainspotter in my area as I live in the country. Thank you again for sharing your experience. 🫶