Brainspotting Theory: David Grand’s Neuroexperiential Model (NEM)

The Neuroexperiential Model (NEM) of healing and expansion is the psychotherapy theory (or macro-frame) created by David Grand that serves as the foundation for brainspotting therapy practice. Psychotherapy theories guide therapists in how they work with themselves and others in the therapy room; theory helps to frame therapeutic issues, therapy goals, and therapist interventions (Kazdin, 2000). David Grand’s NEM builds on existing integrative and "bottom up" psychotherapy theories, and the NEM provides a ground for the practice of brainspotting therapy. The NEM can currently be grouped into 4 overarching principles including: 1) Neuro-experience, 2) Dual Attunement Frame, 3) Uncertainty Principle, and 4) Liberatory Practice (Grand, 2021).

Click here to read David Grand’s original paper on the NEM

Neuro-experience

Most traditional talk therapies work from the “top down,” meaning that the therapist engages the neocortical brain using language, reasoning, and cognition – eventually this can result in changes to the subcortical brain functions like emotional experiences and traumatic reactions. The NEM and several other trauma-based therapy theories use a “bottom up” model that aims to work first with the deeper subcortical parts of our brain using interoception and mindfulness (Grabbe & Miller-Karas, 2018). In the NEM, the “what” of the deeper brain (information, experience, sensations, etc.) is more important in healing than the “why” of the neocortical brain (ration, logic, language, etc.).

Grand explains that the “neuro” of the NEM refers to “the nervous system, the neurobiology, the brain and the body which are primarily unconscious” (Grand, 2001, pg. 3). And the “experience” part of neuro-experience refers to the activity of using our 6 senses (feeling, smell, sound, vision, taste, and thought) along with body and eye position in order to notice what is happening in our bodies. Neuro-experiencing is the activity of bringing awareness to the internal sensations of our body and brain (e.g. memories, feelings, thoughts, images, etc.) without judgement. Some brainspotting skills and therapeutic qualities related to neuro-experience include: interoception, focused mindfulness, eye position, observations of body reflexes, and seeking implicit/explicit feedback.

Dual Attunement Frame

Most therapy models highlight the importance of compassion, connection, and empathy in the therapeutic process. In fact, it is widely agreed that the therapeutic relationship is one of the most important factors in therapy treatment regardless of the modality (Stubbe, 2018). The NEM expands the idea of the classical therapeutic alliance with the concept of the dual attunement frame. The dual attunement frame highlights the importance of noticing and responding to both the 1) therapist-client relationship (trust, rapport, nonjudgment, accurate empathy, etc.), and 2) the client’s brain and body experience (reflexes, body language, eye movement, etc.). Relational attunement is the foundation for creating the safety and community needed for healing; neuro attunement allows access to deeper less-conscious parts of our brains and bodies. Some brainspotting skills and therapeutic qualities related to dual attunement include: compassionate presence, co-developing the frame, patience (WAIT – why am I talking?), following the comet (trusting the client and lower brain to guide), and noticing reflexes and eye movements.

Uncertainty Principle

Change and uncertainty are undeniably part of our human experience. David Grand often cites the Greek philosopher Heraclitus, “No man steps in the same river twice, for it’s not the same river and he’s not the same man.” The Human brain is also in a constant state of change with 100 trillion to 20 quadrillion synapses per second (Bryant, 2013). Our bodies, environments, and internal experiences are always in a state of flux. With the complexity and changes occurring in our bodies, consciousness, and environment, uncertainty helps us to stay connected with reality. By embracing the uncertainty of the healing process, we can be better connected with what arises. We can drop our expertise and rigidity in favor of flexibility, creativity, and openness. Grand often states that true attunement is impossible without embracing uncertainty. Brainspotting skills and therapeutic qualities associated with the uncertainty principle include: humility, flexibility and rejection of protocols, following the comet, mindful acceptance, and compassionate inquiry.

Liberatory Practice

Liberation psychotherapy incorporates social, historical, and cultural context into the therapy process. It aims to promote social justice and emancipatory approaches in the therapy through consciousness building, advocacy, intervention, and other means (Comas-Díaz, 2020). Likewise, the NEM includes factors such as socially engineered trauma, intergenerational trauma, and the mental health impacts of social exclusion and oppression. The NEM rejects the supremacy of the western medical model that has traditionally focused on compliance and pathologizing human suffering. Instead, the NEM aims to de-pathologize and broaden perspectives of human experiences, and it seeks to incorporate a diversity of worldviews, wisdom traditions, and healing practices. The NEM posits that healing is inextricably tied to culture, identity, and the social context of power structures. It rejects compliance-based models of therapy, instead the NEM seeks to promote liberation from the internalized and somatic impacts of oppression and social exclusion. Some skills and therapeutic qualities related to the liberation principle include: cultural humility, self-disclosure, using language and worldview of the client, self-reflection, incorporation of spirituality, intuition, and identity into the healing process.

Works Cited

Bryant, A. (2013). Ask a Neuroscientist! - What is the synaptic firing rate of the human brain? NeuWrite, Neuroblog. Retrieved from: https://www.neuwritewest.org/blog/4541

Comas-Díaz, L. (2020). Liberation psychotherapy. In L. Comas-Díaz & E. Torres Rivera (Eds.), Liberation psychology: Theory, method, practice, and social justice (pp. 169–185). American Psychological Association. https://doi.org/10.1037/0000198-010

Grabbe, L., & Miller-Karas, E. (2018). The trauma resiliency model: a “bottom-up” intervention for trauma psychotherapy. Journal of the American Psychiatric Nurses Association, 24(1), 76-84.

Grand, D. (2021). Brainspotting as a Neuroexperiential Process for Healing and Expansion (Keynote Transcript), 2021 International Brainspotting Conference. Retrieved from: https://rockymountainbrainspottinginstitute.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/David-Grands-Key-Note-Brainspotting-as-a-Neuroexperiential-Process-for-Healing-and-Expansion.pdf

Heller, D.P. (2024). What is Brainspotting and How Does it Work? Trauma Solutions. Retrieved from: https://traumasolutions.com/what-is-brainspotting-and-how-does-it-work/#anchor-01

Kazdin, A. E. (2000). Encyclopedia of psychology. American Psychological Association.

Stubbe D,E (2018). The Therapeutic Alliance: The Fundamental Element of Psychotherapy. Focus, Am Psychiatr Publ, 16(4), 402-403.