EMDR and mindfulness. Eye movements and attentional breathing tax working memory and reduce vividness and emotionality of aversive ideation

Background and objectivesEye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) and Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) are effective in reducing the subjective impact of negative ideation. In both treatments, patients are encouraged to engage in a dual-task (eye movements (EM) in the case of EMDR and attentional breathing (AB) in the case of MBCT) while they experience negative thoughts or images. Working memory theory explains the effects of EM by suggesting that it taxes limited working memory resources, thus rendering the image less vivid and emotional. It was hypothesized that both AB and EM tax working memory and that both reduce vividness and emotionality of negative memories.MethodsWorking memory taxation by EM and AB was assessed in healthy volunteers by slowing down of reaction times. In a later session, participants retrieved negative memories during recall only, recall + EM and recall + AB (study 1). Under improved conditions the study was replicated (study 2).ResultsIn both studies and to the same degree, attentional breathing and eye movements taxed working memory. Both interventions reduced emotionality of memory in study 1 but not in study 2 and reduced vividness in study 2 but not in study 1.LimitationsEMDR is more than EM and MBCT is more than AB. Memory effects were assessed by self reports.ConclusionsEMDR and MBCT may (partly) derive their beneficial effects from taxing working memory during recall of negative ideation.

► Eye movements (EM) as used in EMDR tax working memory and reduce vividness/emotionality of memories.
► Like EM, attentional breathing (AB) as used in ”mindfulness” seems to reduce negative ideation.
► AB taxed working memory to the same degree as EM (studies 1 and 2).
► AB and EM reduced emotionality (study 1) and vividness (study 2) of negative memories.
► Taxing working memory during negative ideation may explain effects of both “mindfulness” and EMDR.