Brainspotting Therapy at The Fullbrook Center
Accessing the Deeper Layers of Trauma for Lasting Healing
At The Fullbrook Center, we understand that some wounds run so deep, they live beneath the surface of language. For many women, traditional methods like talk therapy have helped—but haven’t reached the root. That’s why we offer Brainspotting therapy, a focused treatment method designed to access the subcortical brain where trauma, pain, and emotional stress are often stored.
Through this innovative and powerful modality, women are able to heal in ways that feel both profound and embodied—unlocking emotional patterns and challenging symptoms that have resisted other approaches.
What is Brainspotting?
Brainspotting is a cutting-edge approach that uses eye positioning to locate what we call “brainspots”—areas in the visual field that correlate to where unprocessed trauma and emotion are held in the subcortical brain. These spots are like doorways to deep healing.
During a Brainspotting therapy session, a trained clinician helps clients identify specific gaze points that trigger distressing memories, emotional trauma, or physical symptoms. From there, the therapist offers a nurturing therapeutic presence, holding space while the brain and body do the work of releasing core neurophysiological sources of pain.
How Brainspotting Works in the Body
Unlike traditional talk therapy, Brainspotting doesn’t rely on verbal processing alone. It taps into the body’s central nervous system, allowing trauma stored below conscious awareness to finally be seen, felt, and released.
The process is gentle—but powerful. Many women report unexpected shifts, insight, and relief as they allow their nervous systems to settle and discharge emotional stress and traumatic memories that have long impacted their well-being.
Because Brainspotting works directly with the brain-body connection, it can also alleviate physical discomfort and other challenging symptoms that may not seem obviously linked to trauma but are deeply intertwined with it.
Why We Use Brainspotting at The Fullbrook Center
At The Fullbrook Center, we meet women in the fullness of their experience. We know that trauma often hides in the body, and that healing must be more than cognitive—it must be somatic, spiritual, and compassionate. A safe and trusting relationship between client and therapist is foundational to Brainspotting. This secure connection creates the emotional safety needed for clients to explore vulnerable or painful material without becoming overwhelmed.
Our mental health professionals are trained to offer Brainspotting in a way that complements our other therapeutic offerings, including Internal Family Systems, EMDR, and traditional talk therapy. Used within a safe and clinical healing relationship, Brainspotting becomes not just a technique—but a journey. A journey into the places you may have never dared to go. A way to reclaim parts of yourself that once felt lost. And a powerful invitation to become the woman you’ve always wanted to be.
What Can Brainspotting Help With?
At The Fullbrook Center, we use Brainspotting therapy to support women experiencing:
Complex trauma or emotional trauma
PTSD or long-standing traumatic memories
Anxiety, depression, or unexplainable physical symptoms
Persistent emotional blocks or self-sabotaging patterns
Physical discomfort tied to trauma
Healing that hasn’t responded fully to talk therapy or other modalities
If you’ve ever felt like you’re doing all the right things—but something is still stuck—Brainspotting may be the key to unlocking the next level of healing.
Begin Your Brainspotting Journey at The Fullbrook Center
You don’t have to explain everything. You don’t have to relive your trauma. You simply need to show up—and we’ll meet you there, with steady guidance, compassion, and clinical care.
Brainspotting is one of the most powerful tools we offer to help women step through the pain and into freedom. Contact The Fullbrook Center today to learn how Brainspotting therapy can help you release what no longer serves you and create space for peace, wholeness, and healing.
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FAQs About Brainspotting
Who developed Brainspotting therapy?
David Grand, Ph.D. developed Brainspotting as a therapeutic tool to access the brain’s deep processing systems. With a background in clinical psychology, David Grand integrated elements of eye movement desensitization and somatic attunement to create this powerful method of healing trauma.
Is Brainspotting considered an alternative therapy?
Yes, Brainspotting is often categorized as an alternative therapy, especially in relation to traditional talk therapy. However, it is increasingly being embraced within mainstream mental health treatment as one of several emerging trauma therapies supported by real-world clinical success.
How does Brainspotting help process trauma?
Brainspotting allows the brain and body to process trauma by accessing the subcortical brain through fixed eye positions and focused attention. This method activates the brain’s natural ability to locate and release unresolved pain and emotional blockages without re-traumatizing the client. Brainspotting is designed to treat trauma at its neurological roots. It helps clients release stored trauma that may not be accessible through talk therapy, particularly when trauma is embedded in the body or nervous system.
What role does the parasympathetic nervous system play in Brainspotting?
Brainspotting supports regulation of the parasympathetic nervous system, which governs rest, healing, and recovery. As trauma is released during sessions, the body often shifts from fight-or-flight into a calm, grounded state, promoting deep healing.
What happens during Brainspotting sessions?
During Brainspotting sessions, a trained therapist helps the client identify a “brainspot” by tracking subtle eye movements and body cues. The client then holds their gaze on this spot while processing emotions, sensations, or memories that arise, all within a safe and supportive environment.
How is Brainspotting different from EMDR or eye movement desensitization?
Brainspotting therapy works by helping clients access deep regions of the brain where trauma is stored. Using a fixed eye position known as a brain spot, the therapy activates unresolved emotions and physical sensations, allowing for release and healing in a safe and regulated way. While both Brainspotting and eye movement desensitization (EMDR) involve the visual field, Brainspotting uses fixed eye positions rather than bilateral stimulation. This creates a more client-led, body-based process that is especially effective for deeply stored trauma and emotional pain.
Is Brainspotting grounded in clinical psychology?
Yes, Brainspotting is rooted in clinical psychology and neuroscience. It draws on an understanding of how the brain, nervous system, and emotional memory interact—making it a valuable addition to any trauma-informed treatment plan.
What is a brain spot in Brainspotting therapy?
A brain spot is a specific point in the visual field that correlates with the storage of trauma or emotional experience in the brain. Focusing on this spot during a session helps bring subconscious material to the surface, supporting deep healing and integration.
Can Brainspotting help with healing sensorimotor memories?
Yes, Brainspotting can assist in healing sensorimotor memories, which are bodily-stored memories of trauma that may not be accessible through words. These memories often manifest as chronic pain or muscle tension, and Brainspotting helps process and release them gently.
What role do physical sensations play in Brainspotting?
Physical sensations guide the Brainspotting process, helping both the therapist and client locate areas of held trauma. Sensations like tightness, heat, or movement in the body offer valuable cues for processing and releasing emotional wounds.
Can Brainspotting address facial expressions linked to trauma?
Yes, subtle facial expressions can offer clues about emotional responses and stored trauma. Brainspotting therapists are trained to notice these expressions, which may help identify a brain spot and deepen emotional processing.
Is Brainspotting effective for chronic pain?
Absolutely. Many clients find relief from chronic pain through Brainspotting, especially when that pain is linked to unresolved trauma or emotional stress stored in the body.
Can Brainspotting help with depression symptoms?
Yes, Brainspotting may reduce depression symptoms by helping clients release the emotional burden held in the brain and body. As trauma and grief are processed, clients often experience greater emotional lightness and resilience.
How is Brainspotting related to body scan meditation?
While Brainspotting is a clinical therapy, it shares some similarities with body scan meditation, such as increasing awareness of internal experience. Both approaches encourage clients to gently notice and stay present with what arises in the body.
Why is Brainspotting considered helpful for the suffering human experience?
Brainspotting honors the suffering human experience by offering a way to release pain that words can’t reach. It acknowledges the deep wounds people carry and gives them a method to heal gently, from the inside out.
