Getting Past Your Past

A totally accessible user’s guide from the creator of a scientifically proven form of psychotherapy for healing ailments ranging from PTSD to minor anxiety and depression

Whether we’ve experienced small setbacks or major traumas, we are all influenced by memories and experiences we may not remember or don’t fully understand. When we are stuck, talk therapy often fails to produce the needed connections between the old emotional memory and a more grounded view of reality, and medications can have dire side effects and limited effectiveness.

In Getting Past Your Past, Francine Shapiro, who created EMDR (the “eye movement” therapy), opens the door to a scientifically proven mode of treatment used by thousands of clinicians worldwide. The book offers practical procedures that demystify the process and empower readers looking to break free from emotional roadblocks. Shapiro explains the brain science in layman’s terms and provides simple exercises that readers can do at home to achieve real change.

“I always came out of my EMDR therapist’s office reeling (in a good way); and the things I learned have stayed with me and enriched my conscious mind. It’s a powerful process. I recommend it.” —from The Noonday Demon by Andrew Solomon