At Nodelman Counseling & Psychotherapy, EMDR has been shown to help those suffering from the burden of trauma, self-esteem issues, depression, phobias and stressful life events.

It has also been shown to be highly effective as a way of helping clients looking to shift out of negative beliefs and negative self-evaluation that are holding them back from living a fulfilling life.

Jordan also works with many professionals, leaders and other helpers utilizing this evidenced-based method, creating lasting, positive changes.

Most clients report being at peace with the issue they came into therapy with, gaining insights about what happened to them and are able to move on from therapy feeling more free and less burdened by the issue that brought them here.

EMDR works because it assists the brain in retrieving distressing memories during therapy and gaining new insights on them. In the process, your brain and body stores the memories tied to stressful life events and negative core beliefs in a way that becomes more adaptive and less stressful than it was prior to therapy. The result is you will feel less triggered and think more adaptively about the events and similar events moving forward. The Adaptive Information Processing and Working Memory Theories both support EMDR’s effectiveness, showing that in the presence of an attuned psychotherapist, with the application of EMDR your brain will more adaptively process trauma memories. The working memory theory posits that because we are “taxing” your memories through the EMDR process, they are stored less vividly; hence, less distress remains moving forward.

EMDR 2.0 is an upgrade from basic EMDR. In some cases, the client requires the therapist’s assistance beyond basic EMDR. This may be in a case where a client already tried EMDR with another therapist and saw no benefits; or, the memory is so distressing that moving beyond basic protocols is necessary.

This approach involves the therapist creating complex and inventive ways of taxing the client’s working memory. EMDR 2.0 goes beyond the traditional eye-movements or bi-lateral stimulation. EMDR 2.0 tends to be more rapid than traditional EMDR.

Quickly gain insight and reduce anxiety and depression tied to:

• Self-doubt
• Betrayal traumas
• Feeling stuck
• Negative beliefs
• Negative self-evaluation

Also used with clients to:

• Unleash untapped potential
• Access untapped creativity (great for artists and creative clients)
• Gently access trauma memories for relief of symptoms of PTSD
• Gain catharsis

Brainspotting therapy and Brainspotting for PTSD is a focused approach to resolving clients’ presenting issues that goes beyond talk therapy. It goes directly to levels of the sub cortex brain where our cognition, social functioning and affect are controlled.

When given the opportunity, our bodies have the capacity to heal.

Brainspotting taps into this system by identifying the exact spot (or spots) in your brain where the “issue” that you have is stuck.

Through intense focused mindfulness on this “brain spot” and the deep attunement of the therapist, it is hypothesized you may be able to more quickly work through the memory with deeper insights, all while discharging the trauma memories stored in your nervous system. It is a mind-body therapy that allows for significant insights and resolution to presenting issues.

Jordan says, “I have seen profound changes in just one session of Brainspotting with many clients! I have witnessed clients finally be able to make significant, life decisions after Brainspotting with ease and confidence.”

Brainspotting was discovered by a former EMDR psychotherapist, Dr. David Grand, in 2003. Based in the body’s innate ability to heal itself when given the opportunity, Brainspotting has helped past clients achieve profound change.

At Nodelman Counseling & Psychotherapy, we can either do focused Brainspotting-only sessions or integrate this modality into your work as needed to help you gain quicker insights, experience quick release of painful memories and gain new understanding. Jordan has also found the therapy to be particularly useful with early trauma with Brainspotting for PTSD, where you may not have words to explain the pain you endured or currently experience.

The Flash Technique and 4-blinks increases clients tolerance for trauma therapy or can be used as a stand-alone intervention for trauma, fears, phobias, or with distressing thoughts and in crisis situations. It even allows for processing “slices” of trauma memories.

The Flash Technique and 4-Blinks are therapeutic interventions used to quickly (sometimes in under 10 minutes) reduce the distress a client is experiencing around a memory or situation–and the relief is often sustained.

Have you ever worked through a traumatic memory while listening to your favorite music? Then you haven’t been to a therapist who understands that sometimes the most direct way to healing isn’t through talking over and over about it!

The Flash technique is a gentler approach to healing from traumatic memories that focuses on more hopeful moments, all while processing through your distressing thoughts at the same time.

Flash is being widely researched and now regarded as a stand alone trauma therapy, including a great tool for crisis center therapists, healthcare workers, and reducing distress for those seeking longer term trauma therapy, making processing the most painful memories more possible.

Jordan Nodelman, LCSW (FL/VA), LICSW (DC) has been trained as a Flash Technique therapist and integrates this amazing tool into his trauma therapy process, allowing for trauma therapy, processing distressing memories, and makes future-fear/phobia work more possible for many clients.

Jordan is constantly seeking ways to make addressing your most painful trauma memories more possible and Flash Technique is another tool to make your painful memories more distant.

Integrating Ego-State Work into Healing

You are not one-dimensional

Treatment that acknowledges multi-dimensionality

Integrating ego-state work into your healing journey acknowledges and offers space to the idea that the human psyche is not one-dimensional. We all have parts of self that show up in different ways and for different reasons. Ego-state work can be woven into EMDR work.

Some clients tell me they can show up and operate in one circumstance with ease and confidence and all of a sudden something triggers them and they find unwelcome behaviors intrude. Some clients have shared that these behaviors or emotions are reminiscent of other times in their lives, perhaps childhood. This is complex, but just know that every human is a culmination of states.

In many people, states are fluid and the walls between these states allow us to flow through states to get through life. What seems unhelpful now may have served a purpose at one point in life. In those living with severe dissociation or those who have witnessed or lived through many traumatic events (especially in developmental years), states can develop as very distinct identities or with more rigid boundaries. This can be terrifying if one doesn’t understand what is going on and can even lead to misdiagnosis.

In sum, with ego state work, we celebrate the fact that all of us are made up of parts. We can inject ego state work lightly or even dive in and invite all parts to a table (an intervention originally put forward by George Fraser and later Sandra Paulsen, PhD; since refined by other ego-state practitioners).

This work can help ground, it can help you understand yourself more fully, and it can assist in ultimately moving towards reprocessing of trauma or unhelpful memories with EDMR Psychotherapy.

Some client will benefit from traditional, Case Management Style Social Work. Jordan provides existing clients* this service through short-term, goal-oriented, problem-solving services. This is sometimes referred to as Task-Centered Care. This is uniquely available from Social Workers and not common in other forms of mental health care settings. In addition to his Social Work background, Jordan’s past operations management career uniquely positions him to offer this service. He is resourceful by nature.

Task-centered social work looks at the stressors that are impacting mental health care by also addressing the client’s environmental factors. It empowers clients, through clear goal setting and community resources. In turn, this helps stabilize mental health to more optimal functioning.

*Please note that if this service is offered as part of routine care, it is covered by insurance; however, any task management provided outside of the “therapy hour” is billed at an hourly rate (see informed consent).

Other tools and interventions utilized by Jordan include:

Acceptance & Commitment Therapy (ACT)

Developmental Needs Meeting Strategy (DNMS)

Mindfulness-Based Psychotherapy

Relaxation & Breathing Techniques

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

Clinical Hypnosis (Jordan refers out for those seeking hypnosis only): He utilizes hypnosis tools and integrates with EMDR.

Financial Social Work: Assisting clients in concrete planning related to financial stressors