Why a Brainspotting Intensive is the Anxiety Treatment You’ve Been Looking For in Boulder, CO
If you’re struggling with anxiety, finding effective treatment options in Boulder, CO can feel like navigating a maze. Maybe you’ve been to therapy before, but you didn’t connect that well with the therapist. Or maybe you’ve never been to therapy and you don’t know where to start. Or perhaps you had a therapist you really enjoyed in the past, but they’ve since retired.
While traditional weekly therapy sessions are valuable, a Brainspotting Intensive can treat anxiety symptoms, often on a faster timeline. Instead of weekly therapy sessions that take up space on your calendar for months or years at a time, you work with a therapist for a few hours at a time to target your symptoms.
My name is Halle Thomas and I'm an anxiety therapist for millennial professionals in Boulder, Colorado. I’m also a Brainspotting practitioner who’s seen how transformative Brainspotting Intensives can be. In this post I’ll be covering what a Brainspotting Intensive is, why you might chose it as your anxiety treatment over weekly therapy, what you might expect after participating in a Brainspotting Intensive, and how to work with me if you live in Colorado.
What Is a Brainspotting Intensive?
A Brainspotting Intensive is essentially an extended therapy session. Unlike traditional weekly sessions, these intensives allow for deep, uninterrupted therapeutic processing.
Brainspotting itself is a method of processing that involves using eye positions to process feelings of anxiety, and the events that may have prompted them. These eye positions are referred to as "brainspots," and are connected to emotional and physical experiences of anxiety stored in the brain and body. For a more in-depth over view of Brainspotting, you can check out my page on Brainspotting or this blog post which covers the differences and similarities between Brainspotting and EMDR.
What to Expect During a Brainspotting Intensive
A Brainspotting Intensive has three parts:
1 intake session to identify what you’d like to work on
This is where you’ll have a chance to provide information about the problems you’ve been having and how they’ve been affecting different areas of your life. You’ll also do some planning for what you’d like your life to look like following your Brainspotting Intensive.
1 3-hour session of Brainspotting to target the issue you want relief from
This is where the work happens. You’ll likely do 2 rounds of Brainspotting during these 3 hours, with time in between for processing and any breaks that may be needed.
1 follow up session to check in on your progress and to receive recommendations to support ongoing healing
This is when you’ll have an opportunity to reflect on changes you’ve noticed following your intensive. You might also be provided with additional recommendations for how to continue supporting your progress after your intensive.
Who Would Benefit from a Brainspotting Intensive
People who benefit from Brainspotting Intensives tend to have a few things in common:
They’re frustrated by attending weekly therapy or their schedule doesn’t allow for weekly sessions
They feel stuck in traditional talk-therapy
They prefer to work in a highly focused and targeted way
It’s also worth noting that a Brainspotting Intensive can be particularly helpful for people who’ve experienced a recent trauma, such as a car accident, assault, or other highly activating event.
Why Choose an Intensive Format For Anxiety Treatment?
1. Momentum and Continuity
Unlike weekly sessions where progress can feel a bit slower, intensives maintain therapeutic momentum. Rather than spending time each week making small talk and reviewing how the previous week went, the laser focus of a Brainspotting Intensive allows for deeper processing and relief.
2. No More Feeling Rushed
A standard weekly therapy session is 45-50 minutes long. It’s common for people to feel like they’re just getting into what they want to work on right as the session is coming to an end. Rather than having this experience, a Brainspotting Intensive allows for you to stop checking the clock because you know you’ll have ample time.
3. Time and Cost Effective
Additionally, your schedule might not allow for weekly therapy sessions. This can be especially true for certain professionals. Being able to work intensively with a therapist over the course of an extended session can be a better use of both your money and time.
4. Rapid Progress
The concentrated format can bring about results a bit faster. Many clients report experiencing significant shifts in their anxiety symptoms shortly after participating in an intensive, compared to months or years of traditional therapy.
5. Neural Integration
Extended sessions allow the brain more time to process and integrate changes. This sustained focus can help create lasting neural pathways that support anxiety reduction and emotional regulation.
What Do People Notice After a Brainspotting Session?
While each person is different, I tend to receive similar feedback from people who’ve participated in Brainspotting. Below are some examples of experiences that have been reported to me over the years:
Feeling lighter, and less anxious overall
Feeling less muscle tension
Trusting their ability to navigate life following an anxiety-inducing event
Feeling that their brain has been “reset” and that they feel more flexible in their thinking
Noticing they spend less time, if any, imagining worst-case scenarios
Noticing they spend more time imagining creative solutions to their worries
While some of these shifts may be more subtle than others, they have been incredibly meaningful for people who have been suffering from anxiety on a prolonged basis.
Is a Brainspotting Intensive A One-Time Thing?
It can be. For some people, they may choose to participate in a Brainspotting Intensive for a singular issue. For others, they may choose to do a Brainspotting Intensive a couple times a year. The beauty of Brainspotting Intensives is that they are highly customizable and are designed to support your unique goals.
How to Book a Brainspotting Intensive in Colorado
If you live in Colorado, I currently offer Brainspotting Intensives in my practice. These take place virtually, which means I can work with you from wherever you may happen to live within the state. To get started, send me a message and I’ll give you access to my online calendar where you can select a time for a brief consultation call.
During our consultation call, we’ll discuss your goals for the Brainspotting Intensive and I’ll give you some dates to choose from if you decide you’d like to work together. Because of how I maintain my schedule, I’m usually able to get you in for your first session within a week of when you first have your consultation call with me.
Conclusion
A Brainspotting Intensive can be a powerful method of treating anxiety. By providing a concentrated, focused therapeutic experience, a Brainspotting Intensive offers the potential for rapid breakthroughs and lasting change. People who choose this path for anxiety treatment often find it to be a transformative experience in their healing journey.
If you don’t have the time for weekly therapy, or if you simply prefer to work in a more focused manner, a Brainspotting Intensive could be your first class ticket to the anxiety relief you’ve been looking for.
