Gargi Patel
LMFT #101986
Brainspotting in California.
A brain-body therapy that uses eye position to reach what talk alone can't.
WHAT IS BRAINSPOTTING?
Brainspotting is a brain-body psychotherapy developed by Dr. David Grand in 2003. The therapist helps the client locate an eye position, a "brainspot", that holds the emotional or somatic charge of what they're working on. Sustained focus on that spot allows the deeper, often non-verbal layers of the brain to process the experience.
How a session works.
In a Brainspotting session, after we've talked about what you want to work on, the process usually looks like this:
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You bring to mind the issue and notice where in your body it lives: a tightness in the chest, a knot in the stomach, a buzz in the hands.
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I slowly guide a pointer (or my finger, on video) across your visual field while you track it.
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At certain eye positions, the body activation will get louder or shift. That's a brainspot.
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You hold your gaze on that spot and let whatever comes up, sensations, images, memories, and emotions, move through.
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We stay with the spot for as long as it's productive, then check in.
The room is quieter than in a typical therapy session. We talk when it's useful and stay silent when silence is the work.
What it's used for.
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Trauma, including trauma that doesn't have a clear narrative
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Performance and creative blocks
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Anxiety with strong somatic components
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Grief and loss
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Material that's surfaced in other therapy but hasn't moved
Why eye position?
Vision and eye-position are deeply connected to subcortical brain structures involved in emotion and memory, which are the parts of the brain that don't speak in words. Where you look changes what your nervous system has access to. Brainspotting harnesses this: by holding focus on a particular position, the body's processing systems get the time and access they need to integrate what was previously stuck.
Brainspotting vs. EMDR.
Both work with the brain and body, both are used for trauma, and both move beyond pure talk. The main differences:
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EMDR is a more structured 8-phase protocol with active bilateral stimulation.
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Brainspotting is more open and process-led; the focus is on a fixed spot, and what arises is followed rather than guided.
Some clients prefer the structure of EMDR. Others find Brainspotting reaches places EMDR doesn't, particularly material that pre-dates language. I draw on both.
Does it work over Zoom?
Yes. Brainspotting was adapted for telehealth during the pandemic and is now well-established as effective over video. I use a moving pointer on screen and you indicate where the activation is loudest. Most clients are surprised by how well it translates.
