Brainspotting is a brain-body therapy that uses fixed eye positions to help you access, process, and release trauma, emotional pain, and stress stored deep in your brain. Developed by Dr. David Grand in 2003, brainspotting works on the principle that where you look affects how you feel — and that specific eye positions, called "brainspots," connect directly to the parts of your brain where unresolved experiences are held.
At Compassionate Minds Therapy in Omaha, our trained brainspotting therapists help children, adolescents, and adults heal from trauma, anxiety, depression, and chronic pain — often in fewer sessions than traditional talk therapy alone. If you've tried counseling before and felt like you weren't getting to the root of the issue, brainspotting therapy may be the approach that finally helps you break through.
How Does Brainspotting Therapy Work?
When you experience something traumatic or deeply stressful, the memory of that event doesn't always get fully processed by your brain. Instead, it can get "stuck" in your subcortical brain — the deeper regions responsible for emotions, survival instincts, and physical sensations. This is why you might feel anxious, reactive, or physically tense without fully understanding why.
Brainspotting accesses these deeper brain regions by using your visual field as a pathway. During a session, your therapist will:
Begin with a conversation about the issue you'd like to work on and identify where you feel it in your body (tightness in your chest, tension in your shoulders, a knot in your stomach).
Use a pointer to slowly guide your gaze across your visual field. When your eyes land on a position that increases the emotional or physical activation you're feeling, that's your "brainspot."
Hold your gaze on that spot while you focus on the internal experience — thoughts, memories, body sensations, and emotions as they arise. You don't need to narrate or explain what's happening; your brain does the processing work.
Remain present with you throughout using a technique called "dual attunement" — simultaneously tuning into the therapeutic relationship and your brain-body responses to help you feel safe as you process difficult material.
Check in periodically as images, memories, emotions, and physical sensations shift and release. Many clients describe feeling a noticeable sense of relief, clarity, or lightness by the end of a single session.
Many brainspotting sessions also incorporate bilateral sound — calming music or tones that alternate between your left and right ears through headphones. This bilateral stimulation helps enhance processing and keeps your nervous system regulated during the session.
What Does Brainspotting Therapy Treat?
Brainspotting was originally developed as a trauma therapy and is widely used to treat PTSD. However, because it works at the level of the nervous system rather than just conscious thought, it has proven effective for a wide range of emotional and physical conditions.
Our Omaha brainspotting therapists use this approach to help clients with:
Trauma and PTSD — including childhood trauma, accident trauma, and complex PTSD
Anxiety and panic attacks — reducing the nervous system activation that fuels anxious responses
Depression — especially depression rooted in unresolved grief, loss, or trauma
Grief and loss — processing complicated or prolonged grief that talk therapy hasn't resolved
Chronic pain and physical tension — releasing the body's stored stress response
Emotional dysregulation — difficulty controlling emotional reactions or feeling overwhelmed easily
Substance use and addiction recovery — addressing the trauma that often underlies addictive behaviors
Performance anxiety — athletes, musicians, and professionals who want to overcome mental blocks
Attachment and relationship issues — healing patterns rooted in early relational experiences
Brainspotting vs. EMDR: What's the Difference?
If you've heard of EMDR therapy, you may wonder how brainspotting compares. Both are brain-body therapies that use eye positioning to process trauma, and Compassionate Minds Therapy offers both approaches. The key differences come down to how each method works:
Brainspotting | EMDR | |
|---|---|---|
Eye Movement | Fixed gaze on one spot | Rapid side-to-side eye movements |
Approach | Flexible, client-led, intuitive | Structured 8-phase protocol |
Verbal Requirement | Minimal — you don't need to describe the trauma in detail | Moderate — guided recall of the traumatic memory |
Brain Region | Accesses subcortical/midbrain where trauma is stored | Engages cortical processing for memory reprocessing |
Sessions Needed | Some clients see results in as few as 3 sessions | Typically 8–12 sessions for trauma processing |
Best For | Clients who feel "stuck" or can't verbalize their trauma | Clients who benefit from a step-by-step structured approach |
Research Base | Growing — promising early studies, newer therapy | Extensive — decades of peer-reviewed research |
The right choice depends on your individual needs and comfort level. Many clients at Compassionate Minds Therapy have experienced both and find that brainspotting feels gentler because you don't have to verbally recount the details of your trauma. Our therapists can help you determine which approach — or combination of approaches — is the best fit for your healing journey.
What to Expect During a Brainspotting Session in Omaha
If you've never tried brainspotting therapy before, it's natural to feel curious — or even a little nervous — about what a session looks like. Here's a step-by-step overview of what to expect at Compassionate Minds Therapy:
Before Your Session
Your therapist will start by getting to know you and understanding what you'd like to work on. This might be a specific traumatic event, a pattern of anxiety, a relationship issue, or a physical symptom you suspect is connected to emotional stress. There's no pressure to share more than you're comfortable with.
During the Session
You'll sit comfortably while your therapist uses a pointer to help locate your brainspot — the specific eye position connected to the issue you're processing. Once found, you'll hold your gaze there while you notice what comes up internally: body sensations, emotions, images, or memories. Your therapist stays attuned to you throughout, checking in periodically while you process. Sessions typically last 50 to 60 minutes.
Many clients are surprised by how different brainspotting feels compared to traditional talk therapy. You may experience deep emotional releases, sudden insights, or a physical unwinding of tension you didn't even realize you were carrying.
After Your Session
It's common to feel tired, emotionally lighter, or a bit foggy after a brainspotting session — similar to how you might feel after an intense workout. The processing continues in the hours and days that follow. Many clients notice new insights, shifted perspectives, or reduced reactivity to triggers between sessions.
Your therapist will discuss how many sessions may be helpful based on your specific situation. Some clients experience significant relief in just a few sessions, while others with more complex histories may benefit from ongoing work.