Pre- intra- and post-treatment EEG imaging of EMDR Methodology and preliminary results from a single case

Electroencephalography due to its peculiar time and spatial resolution was used for the first time to fully monitor neuronal activation during a whole EMDR session including the autobiographical script. The present case report describes the dominant cortical activations (Z-score>1.5) during the first EMDR session and during the last one after the client processed the index trauma. During the first EMDR session prefrontal limbic cortex was essentially activated during script listening and during lateral eye movements in the desensitization phase of EMDR. During the last EMDR session the prevalent electrical activity was recorded in temporal, parietal and occipital cortical regions with a clear leftward lateralisation. These findings suggest a cognitive processing of the traumatic event following successful EMDR therapy and support evidence of distinct neurobiological patterns of brain activations during lateral eye movements in the desensitization phase of EMDR.