Brainspotting

Presentation

Brainspotting is a neurobiological psychotherapeutic approach developed in 2003 by David Grand, an American psychotherapist and EMDR trainer. During an EMDR session, Grand observed that a patient exhibited intense emotional and somatic reactions when his eyes fixed on a specific point in his visual field. This discovery led him to develop a method based on the idea that 'where you look affects how you feel.'

Brainspotting posits that eye position can be used to locate deep brain areas (particularly the midbrain and subcortical structures) where traumatic memories are stored in an unresolved manner. By maintaining the gaze on this 'brainspot' while observing internal experience, the brain can naturally reprocess traumatic material.

Founder: David Grand (born 1956), psychotherapist, New York

Core Principles

Brainspotting rests on the therapeutic uncertainty principle: the therapist does not direct the process but creates optimal conditions for the patient's brain to self-process. The framework is containing but non-directive.

The therapist identifies the brainspot in two ways: 'outside window' (observing the patient's involuntary eye reflexes) or 'inside window' (the patient indicates where activation is strongest). BioLateral Sound (bilateral music) often complements the process by stimulating both hemispheres.

Brainspotting places central importance on the therapeutic relationship as a safety framework (dual attunement frame): the therapist is simultaneously attentive to the patient's neurobiological process and the relational quality of their bond.

Main Indications

• Post-traumatic stress disorder
• Complex trauma
• Performance anxiety (athletes, musicians, speakers)
• Phobias and intense fears
• Chronic pain
• Addictions
• Pathological grief
• Creative blocks

Session Overview

A Brainspotting session lasts 50 to 90 minutes. The therapist first helps the patient identify the target experience and associated emotional and somatic activation (SUD and body location). Then, using a pointer or finger, they slowly explore the patient's visual field to locate the brainspot — the gaze point generating maximum activation or an involuntary reflex (blinking, eye movement, facial tremor).

The patient then maintains fixed gaze on this point while observing internal experiences with open attention. The therapist supports this process through attentive presence and may use bilateral music. Reprocessing occurs naturally and may manifest as waves of emotion, memories, insights or body discharge sensations.

Variations and Sub-techniques

• Outside window Brainspotting
• Inside window Brainspotting
• Gazespotting
• Resource Brainspotting
• Rolling Brainspotting (Z-Spot technique)
• Performance Brainspotting

Contraindications

• Acute psychotic episode
• Severe unstabilized structural dissociation
• Uncontrolled photosensitive epilepsy
• Severe ocular pathology preventing gaze fixation
• Acute intoxication