You've tried other approaches.
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Maybe talk therapy. Maybe EMDR. Maybe both.
And still, something hasn't fully shifted. There is a place inside you that other modalities haven't been able to reach. A feeling that lives somewhere in your body that you can sense but can't quite name. A pattern that you understand intellectually but that still runs your nervous system from somewhere deeper.
This is the territory Brainspotting is designed for.
Brainspotting works by locating specific points in your visual field that correspond to where trauma is actually held in your body and brain.
At Hayfield Healing, Dr. Maria Niitepold offers Brainspotting therapy in Gulf Breeze, Florida and online throughout Florida and New York. Brainspotting was developed by Dr. David Grand in 2003 and has become one of the most powerful body-based trauma approaches available.
What Is Brainspotting Therapy?
Brainspotting is a body-based trauma therapy that uses fixed eye positions to access where unprocessed experiences are stored in the brain and body.
The core insight is simple but powerful: where you look affects how you feel. Specific eye positions correspond to specific neural networks where trauma, emotion, and somatic experience are held. By locating and holding a "brainspot," the brain is able to access and process material that talking, insight, or other approaches haven't been able to reach.
Brainspotting was developed by Dr. David Grand, who discovered the technique while working with a client using EMDR. He noticed that when her eyes paused at a particular spot, deep processing occurred spontaneously. From that observation, Brainspotting was born as a distinct modality.
The work is gentle but deep. You do not need to retell your story for Brainspotting to be effective.
What Actually Happens in Brainspotting Therapy?
Brainspotting begins with attunement. We identify what you want to work on, which can be a specific memory, a recurring feeling, a body sensation, or a pattern you can't quite name.
Together we locate your brainspot, the eye position that corresponds most strongly to what you are working with. Some clients feel an immediate sense of activation when their eyes land on the right spot. Others notice it more subtly, as a place that feels significant without knowing why.
Once we've found your brainspot, you simply hold your gaze there while staying connected to what you notice internally. Body sensations may shift. Emotions may surface. Memories may arise. Sometimes the experience is dramatic. More often it is quiet, with deep processing happening beneath the level of words.
You stay in control of the pace throughout. We pause whenever you need to. I am attuned to your nervous system the entire time, providing what Brainspotting calls "dual attunement," meaning attunement both to you and to the brainspot we are working with.
Sessions end when you are grounded and integrated, never raw.
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Who Brainspotting Helps Most
Brainspotting is particularly effective for trauma and patterns that other approaches haven't been able to reach. Dr. Niitepold sees strong results with:
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Clients who have done EMDR or talk therapy and feel something deeper is still unresolved
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Survivors of complex or developmental trauma including childhood abuse, neglect, and attachment disruption
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Veterans and military families processing combat trauma, moral injury, and operational stress
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High-achievers carrying body-held anxiety, perfectionism, or chronic activation
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Survivors of narcissistic abuse and relational trauma
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Anyone with trauma that feels "stuck" in the body including chronic tension, somatic symptoms, or a felt sense of something being unresolved
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Performance blocks, creative blocks, and athletic blocks where traditional approaches haven't worked
If you have intellectual understanding of your patterns but still feel them running in your body, Brainspotting works at that body-held level.
Veterans accessing care through VA Community Care can use Brainspotting with no out-of-pocket cost. Learn more about trauma therapy for veterans and military families.
How Is Brainspotting Different From EMDR?
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Brainspotting therapy and EMDR therapy are often compared because both use eye positions and both work with trauma at the body level. The two approaches share a common ancestor (EMDR) but diverge in important ways.
EMDR
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Uses bilateral stimulation (eye movements, taps, tones)
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Moves trauma through the system
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Highly structured 8-phase protocol
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Often produces faster shifts for single-incident trauma
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A processing model
Brainspotting
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Uses fixed eye positions
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Accesses where trauma is held in the body
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More fluid, attuned to what emerges
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Often reaches material EMDR didn't fully resolve
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A processing model with strong somatic emphasis
Many of Dr. Niitepold's clients have done EMDR with meaningful benefit and come to Brainspotting for what didn't fully shift. Others start with Brainspotting because the slower, more body-focused approach feels safer for their nervous system.
Neither modality is better. They work differently and serve different needs.
Do I Have to Talk About My Trauma in Detail?
a common concern
No. Brainspotting works at a body-based level that does not require detailed verbal narration. You can process the stuck energy of a memory or experience without describing what happened in detail.
For clients with preverbal trauma, unspeakable experiences, or memories that feel too overwhelming to articulate, this matters. The work can happen even when words can't reach what is being held.
What we do need is enough information to know what we are working with, which can be as simple as "the feeling that won't go away" or "what comes up when I think about that time." You stay in control of how much you share at every step.
Work With Dr. Maria Niitepold
Licensed Psychologist in Florida & New York
Choosing a trauma therapist is a deeply personal decision. You need someone trained in the modality, attuned to your nervous system, and capable of holding what comes up without flinching.
I am a doctoral-level psychologist trained in Brainspotting, EMDR, and the Comprehensive Resource Model. My approach is to tailor the work to your specific nervous system rather than apply a single modality to every client.
I am also a Marine veteran. That context shapes how I work, especially with other veterans and military families.
My approach is direct, evidence-based, and focused on real change. We don't meander. We identify what is driving the patterns and we work on it at the level where change is actually possible.
Hayfield Healing is based at 3000 Gulf Breeze Parkway, Gulf Breeze, Florida. I serve clients in-person locally and virtually throughout Florida and New York. Through PsyPact authorization, I can also provide virtual private-pay services to clients in approximately 43 participating states.
Frequently Asked Questions
About Brainspotting Therapy
Q: How long does Brainspotting take to work?
Timelines vary based on what you are working with. Some clients experience significant shifts within a few sessions for specific, contained issues. Complex or developmental trauma takes longer. The fit consultation is the place to discuss realistic expectations for your situation.
Q: How long is a Brainspotting session?
Standard sessions are 50 minutes. For deeper work, some clients prefer 90-minute extended sessions or full-day therapy intensives that allow more time for processing.
Q: Is Brainspotting evidence-based?
Brainspotting has a growing research base demonstrating effectiveness for trauma, PTSD, and a range of related conditions. While the research literature is younger than EMDR's, clinical outcomes and emerging studies support its effectiveness. Brainspotting has been particularly studied for performance enhancement, complex trauma, and conditions where standard approaches plateau.
Q: Can Brainspotting be done online?
Yes. Brainspotting translates well to telehealth. Eye positions can be located and held effectively through secure video. Many of Dr. Niitepold's clients do Brainspotting virtually with strong results.
Q: Is Brainspotting safe for dissociation or complex trauma?
Yes, when done by a trained therapist who paces the work appropriately and builds resources first. Dr. Niitepold is trained in both Brainspotting and the Comprehensive Resource Model, which gives her additional tools for clients with complex or developmental trauma. The two approaches integrate well.
Q: Can Brainspotting help with patterns that EMDR couldn't reach?
Often, yes. This is one of the most common reasons clients come to Brainspotting. EMDR is a powerful modality, but some material lives in places EMDR's bilateral stimulation doesn't fully access. Brainspotting's fixed eye positions can reach into those deeper layers. Many clients find that Brainspotting resolves what EMDR partially addressed.
Q: Can I do Brainspotting if I'm already seeing another therapist?
Yes. Brainspotting can be used as adjunctive therapy. Dr. Niitepold often works with clients who maintain a relationship with a regular talk therapist and come to her specifically for trauma processing. Coordination with your other provider is typical and can be arranged with your consent.
Q: Is Brainspotting covered by insurance?
Sessions using Brainspotting are billed the same as any other therapy session. Dr. Niitepold accepts Aetna and Florida Blue in Florida, Aetna in New York, and VA Community Care in Florida. Superbills are available for out-of-network reimbursement.
Q: Can Brainspotting help me recover from narcissistic abuse?
Yes. Narcissistic abuse creates relational trauma that lives in the nervous system as chronic hypervigilance, identity confusion, self-doubt, and an eroded sense of self. Brainspotting can access where those patterns are held in the body, allowing the nervous system to release what it has been carrying. For some clients, Brainspotting integrates well with CRM, which provides additional resourcing for the deep identity rebuilding that narcissistic abuse recovery requires.
Healing Doesn't Have to Be Hard. It Just Has to Start.
a final word
If you have tried other approaches and something deeper hasn't been reached, Brainspotting may be the approach that finally gets you there.
— Dr. Maria Niitepold, PsyD
Trauma & Somatic Therapist
Gulf Breeze, FL · Online in Florida and New York · PsyPact authorized