Have you ever noticed where your eyes tend to rest when you’re lost in thought?
This simple, unconscious behavior can reveal surprising connections to your emotions. To explore it for yourself, try this short exercise before reading further.
- Take a couple of deep breaths to center yourself.
- Think of a time where you felt peaceful, calm, or content. It doesn’t need to be a big event—just a quiet moment, like being in nature or relaxing at home.
- Notice where your eyes settle naturally as you recall this memory. Don’t force it––simply notice where your gaze rests.
- Once you’ve identified this spot, hold your gaze gently there for about 30 seconds. Pay attention to any sensations, emotions, or thoughts that arise.
- When you’re ready, slowly return to the present moment.
What did you notice? Maybe your eyes rested on a spot on the floor, a point on the wall, or drifted upward as you recalled that calm, peaceful moment. You might have felt the sense of calm deepen, or noticed other thoughts, emotions, or sensations arise?
The natural tendency to fix our gaze while processing emotions or memories is at the heart of Gazespotting, a simple yet effective technique within the broader Brainspotting approach.
By recognizing this innate behavior, therapists can help clients access and process deep-seated emotional experiences more manageably and effectively. Let’s explore how this instinctive focus of attention can support emotional healing…
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Gazespotting: An Overview
Gazespotting is one of three primary techniques used in Brainspotting. In Inside Window Brainspotting, the client identifies the eye position that feels most connected to their emotions, while in Outside Window, the therapist helps guide the client to that position.
Gazespotting, by contrast, relies on the natural tendency to fix one’s gaze when reflecting on emotions or memories, without needing to identify specific positions.
To use Gazespotting, clinicians observe where a client’s eyes naturally settle while talking about a challenge or issue.
This resting point—the Gazespot—is thought to align with brain activity connected to the topic, memory, or experience. Clients often find that holding their gaze on this spot makes emotions and memories easier to access.
With this focus, therapists can guide clients toward deeper emotional processing and resolution or release of trauma.
What makes Gazespotting effective is that it builds on something we already do without thinking. When we get lost in thought, our eyes often drift to a fixed spot—whether we’re staring into space while thinking or resting our gaze somewhere as we recall a memory.
Gazespotting simply becomes a way to access and process emotions, reflecting Brainspotting’s core principle: “Where you look affects how you feel.”
Using Gazespotting in Therapy Sessions
Gazespotting often emerges naturally as clients discuss their experiences during a therapy session. This technique emerged from EMDR work, when Dr. David Grand noticed that clients would focus their gaze on specific spots when talking about emotionally charged experiences—such as recalling a traumatic event, processing grief, or reflecting on deep feelings of shame.
Some clients locked into a single point, while others shifted their gaze between multiple spots throughout the session.
Dr. Grand’s observations laid the foundation for how clinicians can apply Gazespotting in their own work. The key is to observe where the client’s gaze lingers the longest, where they look most frequently, and where they show signs of emotional activation or distress.
These subtle cues and patterns can help the therapist identify unresolved trauma––underlying emotions or memories stored deep in the brain and body. By gently guiding the client to ‘stay with their gaze,’ the therapist can support emotional regulation and help provide a sense of relief.
When multiple Gazespots emerge, therapists can invite clients to focus on the spot that feels most relevant or powerful—clients often intuitively know which one holds the most meaning for them.
Since the act of fixing one’s gaze happens naturally and unconsciously, Gazespotting is often an ideal starting point for introducing new clients to Brainspotting.
Unlike other Brainspotting techniques––such as using a pointer to find a precise eye position––Gazespotting tends to feel more familiar and comfortable for most people.
Gazespotting typically elicits less intense emotional activation than Inside or Outside Window Brainspotting, making it a helpful option for clients who benefit from a gentler introduction to processing.
However, for clients who experience dissociation or become easily overwhelmed, a more therapist-guided approach—such as Outside Window or Resource Model Brainspotting—may be more appropriate, as these clients often need more grounding in the present moment to feel safe.
Applications and Benefits
Gazespotting, like other Brainspotting techniques, effectively addresses a variety of issues, including:
- Trauma processing
- Anxiety and panic disorders
- Depression and negative self-beliefs
- Performance anxiety (in sports, public speaking, etc.)
- Dissociation (and feeling disconnected emotionally or physically)
- Attachment disruptions and developmental trauma
- Chronic pain and physical tension tied to emotional stress
- Relational challenges and difficulties with emotional regulation
How Can Gazespotting Help Clients Access and Process Emotions?
Gazespotting’s versatility makes it a useful tool in many therapeutic contexts. Its gentle, naturally occurring process works well for clients who might find other forms of therapy too intense or overwhelming.
Therapists can also use Gazespotting as a bridge to deeper therapeutic work, encouraging clients to engage with their natural gaze patterns to access and process emotions more effectively during sessions.
Beyond helping clients process emotional material, Gazespotting plays an important role in strengthening the therapeutic alliance. When therapists attune to the client’s needs in the moment by observing and responding to their gaze patterns, it builds trust––especially with clients who may feel hesitant about more structured processes or therapist-directed interventions.
The client-led, collaborative nature of Gazespotting––where clients choose the eye position that feels most relevant, empowers them to take an active role in their healing, a key aspect of trauma-informed care.
Incorporating Gazespotting, therapists allows therapists to create an attuned, responsive, and client-centered therapeutic environment that deepens emotional processing and helps clients make real, lasting progress.
Conclusion
Gazespotting is a practical and accessible part of the overall Brainspotting approach. It works with our natural tendency to focus our gaze when processing emotions or memories, making it an easy way to begin deeper therapeutic work.
This technique invites therapists and clients to attune to the subtle wisdom of the body and mind, where emotional processing and healing often begin.
Whether used on its own or as part of the broader Brainspotting framework, Gazespotting gives therapists a valuable tool to guide clients through their healing journey.
Remember, as Brainspotting teaches, “where you look affects how you feel,” and the simple act of noticing subtle cues can transform lives and create lasting change.
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