More Than Just Eye Movements: Unlocking Healing with Bilateral Stimulation

Guest Blog by Gail Neves, LMHC
Picture this: You’ve just pulled into the driveway after a long day, or closed your laptop after back-to-back meetings. Before diving into dinner, emails, or caretaking mode, you pause. What if you could take 60 seconds to regulate your nervous system—so the next part of your day doesn’t carry the tension from the last?

In my practice, the journey of healing is rarely linear. It's layered, complex, and deeply personal. One of the most consistently effective tools I've integrated into that journey is bilateral stimulation (BLS).

At its core, BLS mimics what your brain naturally does during REM sleep, helping process information and regulate your nervous system.

You might know BLS from EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing), where it typically involves guided eye movements. But BLS can also be experienced through alternating sounds or tactile sensations from physical tapping or handheld devices (often called buzzers or tappers) like Dharma Dr. Tabs. Their sleek, wireless design is what makes all the difference—unlike some of the more traditional wired alternatives, Tabs can easily transition from therapy session to home life, allowing anyone to carry this support with them and access the grounding benefits of BLS anytime.

Here are some of the many ways I weave bilateral stimulation into my work to foster deeper healing:

 

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Finding Calm and Stability

Even before diving into deeper work, BLS is invaluable for establishing safety and grounding. I often use it to introduce mindfulness and resourcing skills—supporting clients in calming their nervous system and reconnecting with inner strengths.

One approach I frequently use is Resource Development and Installation (RDI), which helps strengthen positive internal resources like safety, confidence, or comfort. The tactile stimulation from the Tabs helps clients access these internal anchors more fully.

When someone arrives in session feeling scattered, anxious, or activated, we'll often begin with a few minutes of bilateral stimulation using Dharma Dr. Tabs. Along with focused breathing, this simple tactile rhythm can ease overwhelm and support regulation. Many of my clients go on to use them at home—before transitions, while journaling, or during stressful moments—empowering their own capacity for regulation.

Everyday relevance: Whether you're working with a therapist or exploring this on your own, this kind of foundational calming can become part of your daily toolkit.

 

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Working with Different Parts of Yourself

Many of us experience ourselves as having different "parts" or ego states – distinct facets of our personality that hold unique feelings, memories, and beliefs. Sometimes, a "part" can carry immense pain or overwhelming emotions from past experiences. Bilateral stimulation is incredibly helpful here. One of the techniques I often draw on here is the Two-Hand Interweave. It’s a simple but powerful practice where a client might hold different emotions or inner perspectives—one in each hand—while using BLS to support integration. The gentle tactile input of Dharma Dr. Tabs helps this process feel contained and embodied, allowing us to gently connect with and desensitize the intense emotions held by these parts of the self. By offering BLS while tuning into these inner experiences, we can help these parts release their burden, feel heard, and integrate more harmoniously into the whole self, promoting inner calm and cohesion.

Everyday relevance: If you've ever noticed your "inner critic" being particularly loud, or felt torn between what you "should" do versus what feels right, bilateral stimulation can help you tune into these different perspectives with more balance and less overwhelm.

 

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Revisiting What Feels Stuck

When it comes time to process painful or traumatic memories, BLS helps keep the experience contained and manageable. Rather than reliving the pain, clients can begin to observe and move through it.

For recent or acute stress, I sometimes use a protocol called RTEP (Recent Traumatic Event Protocol). It’s a way to process difficult experiences shortly after they happen—before they have a chance to settle into long-term distress. Dharma Dr. Tabs offer a steady, grounding rhythm during these sessions, helping clients feel safe and supported while revisiting intense material.

It’s not about forcing resolution—it’s about giving the brain and body what they need to begin letting go.

Everyday relevance: While deep trauma work should be guided by a trained therapist, the same gentle support BLS offers can help regulate your system when difficult memories or emotions surface in everyday life.

 

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Carrying the Work into Daily Life

The breakthroughs that happen in session are both profound and powerful, but creating lasting change means giving my clients ways to carry that healing with them into their daily lives. Bilateral stimulation is one of those powerful tools that can extend beyond the therapy room—and devices like the Dharma Dr. Tabs make it easy for clients to access this support on their own. Whether it's that 60-second pause in your driveway, preparing for a hard conversation, or decompressing after challenging news, having this kind of nervous system support readily available helps extend the impact of our work together.

Healing isn't always about doing more—it's about finding ways to return to yourself, again and again. For many of my clients, BLS offers a path back to that internal steadiness, both in and between sessions.

Beyond these everyday applications, I also incorporate BLS into more specialized work—including preparing clients for psychedelic therapy, enhancing imaginal resources, and supporting intensive healing experiences. By thoughtfully weaving bilateral stimulation into various stages and modalities of therapy, we’re not just treating symptoms; we’re helping the brain and body unlock their profound capacity for healing—transforming past burdens into future resilience.