Re:EMDR and depression/mild social anxiety

The following are general comments only and may not apply in your case.

There is no research on the use of EMDR with depression or on social anxiety, but there is clinical experience on this subject, some of which may be reflected in this forum or its archives, for you to review.

My clinical experience with social anxiety is that it often has its origins not in a single Big T Trauma, but rather in many small but significant Little t traumas. These are often related to family dynamics, issues of intimidation, criticism, humiliation, or emotional neglect. These can sometimes be addressed with EMDR by targeting early relationships between the client and each parent, or other significant and formative relationships.

Depression is a big subject. In some cases it may be biologically based, in which I wouldn't expect EMDR to help much. In many cases there are, again, formative little t traumas in life that caused a person to learn pervasive negative expectancies about the self, the world, and others. EMDR can address those thing for many people.

Any of the cognitive behavioral or interpersonal relationship skills approaches to therapy that have been confirmed as efficacious by research would certainly be worth doing for anyone who seeks treatment for depression. There may be ways to add EMDR adjunctively to those approaches.

Finally, looping thoughts are often a sign that something has been disowned by the client, a perspective or part of the self that needs to be acknowledged, and allowed to "look through the eyes" during EMDR.

Talk to your therapist to see if any of these things may apply in your case, or if a medication adjunct may assist.

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