We aimed to assess changes in the attachment internal working model and reflective function (RF) as mechanisms of change in eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) treatment for patients with traumatic memories. Twenty adult female patients with parenting and relational problems participated in the study. Attachment organization was assessed with the Adult Attachment Interview (AAI) and the RF coding scale pre- and posttreatment. We found that EMDR therapy increased patients' narrative coherence and RF. We noted a significant decrease in the number of participants classified as unresolved following the course of EMDR treatment in which loss and/or trauma were resolved. This article summarizes the changes after EMDR therapy regarding attachment status and its efficacy to reprocess early traumatic memories in a more adaptive way. Finally, our results also support the usefulness of the AAI as a tool for understanding the changing processes during a therapeutic treatment.

Bipolar disorder (BD) is associated with a lifelong episodic course of severe mood and behavioral disturbance. In last decades treatment improved with numerous pharmacological and psychosocial treatments; however, subsequent mood episode rates are still high and possible risk factors for subsequent mood episodes are not sufficiently addressed. Of note, childhood trauma and stressful life events represent significant, under-recognized, and often neglected environmental risk factors in the etiology and course of BD. Here, we summarize the evidence of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) therapy in BD with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or life traumatic events. So far, one case report study and one pilot randomized controlled trial (RCT) have been published suggesting positive effect of EMDR therapy in BD. Currently, two larger further RCTs are ongoing to increase scientific evidence of the use of EMDR therapy in this indication, especially with a focus on its effect on relapse prevention. In addition, a functional neuroimaging case report of a bipolar subject versus 30 healthy controls showed first evidence that EMDR might modulate the default mode network. These preliminary results suggest that EMDR could be a promising and safe psychotherapeutic approach for the add-on treatment of bipolar subjects, but confirmative large RCT are needed, with two currently being conducted.

This article evaluates eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) therapy for individuals with a diagnosis of obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD). Two randomized controlled trials (RCTs) have been conducted on 55 and 90 patients with OCD. One RCT showed that EMDR was superior to citalapram in reducing OCD symptoms, and the other found EMDR treatment and exposure and response prevention equally effective in decreasing symptoms, with results maintained at 6-month follow-up. In addition to examining these RCTs, this article looks at several case studies to discuss three types of EMDR treatment targets (past, present, and future), and the integration of EMDR therapy with cognitive behavioral strategies such as in vivo exposure. Future research is needed before any definitive conclusions can be made.

Depression, one of the most common mental disorders, is characterized by enormous social costs and limited rates of treatment success, even though psychotherapeutic and pharmacological treatments currently contribute to an increase in the remission rate. In light of recent studies that have shown that traumas and adverse life experiences may represent risk factors for the onset of depression, the therapeutic approach of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) therapy has been seen as potentially effective in the treatment of depression. The purpose of the present brief narrative review is to summarize the current literature on the efficacy of EMDR in patients with depression, in particular by referring to randomized controlled clinical trials (RCTs) that examined depression as a primary outcome. The data examined are updated to March 2019 and count seven RCT studies covering the years from 2001 to 2019. They are heterogeneous by type of intervention and demographic characteristics of the sample. Although the selected studies are few and with different methodological critical issues, the findings reported by the different authors suggest in a preliminary way that EMDR can be a useful treatment for depression.