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Brainspotting · Phase 1 Frame Set-Up 1 of 4

Outside Window Frame Set-Up

The therapist locates the brainspot by watching for reflexive responses as the client's eyes track slowly across their visual field.

1
The beginning: choose the issue
Ask the client what they would like to work on today.
2
Check on activation
Invite the client to talk about the issue until they feel activated by it.
3
SUDs level (0 to 10)
Subjective Units of Distress: 0 is neutral, 10 is the worst it could feel.
4
Location of activation in the body
"Where do you feel that in your body?"
5
Slow horizontal eye tracking
Track slowly across the visual field to locate reflex spots observed in the eyes, face and body: blinks, twitches, swallows, shifts.
6
Focused mindfulness (processing)
The client observes whatever arises, without judgment, while holding the spot.
7
Go back to the beginning to assess change
Return to the original issue and re-check the SUDs level.
8
Squeeze the lemon
Try to reactivate the issue, then process any remaining activation until it stays at 0.
Brainspotting Phase 1 · Frame set-up guides · August 2026 edition1 / 4
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Inside Window Frame Set-Up

The client locates the brainspot from their felt sense, reporting where activation is highest as the therapist tracks across both axes.

1
The beginning: choose the issue
Ask the client what they would like to work on today.
2
Check on activation
Invite the client to talk about the issue until they feel activated by it.
3
SUDs level (0 to 10)
Subjective Units of Distress: 0 is neutral, 10 is the worst it could feel.
4
Location of activation in the body
"Where do you feel that in your body?"
5
Find highest activation on the X axis
Track horizontally at eye level; the client reports where activation feels strongest.
6
Then find it on the Y axis
Track above, at, and below eye level for the highest activation to locate the brainspot.
7
Focused mindfulness (processing)
The client observes whatever arises, without judgment, while holding the spot.
8
Go back to the beginning to assess change
Return to the original issue and re-check the SUDs level.
9
Squeeze the lemon
Try to reactivate the issue, then process any remaining activation until it stays at 0.
Brainspotting Phase 1 · Frame set-up guides · August 2026 edition2 / 4
Brainspotting · Phase 1 Frame Set-Up 3 of 4

Gazespotting Frame Set-Up

The brainspot is found where the client's gaze already goes: the spot they look to naturally when talking about an activated issue.

1
Notice the unconscious gaze
Watch for the client looking (gazing) unconsciously at a fixed point while talking about a relevant, activated issue.
2
Point out the gazespot
Name what you observed, then ask for a SUDs level and the location of activation in the body.
3
Hold the gazespot for one minute
Encourage the client to keep looking at the gazespot while speaking, to initiate processing.
4
Extend the processing
Continue client processing on the gazespot for progressively longer periods of time.
Carrying through to full resolution

This initiates using the gazespot for full processing of the issue. Carry processing through until the issue fully resolves, go back to the beginning and reassess the SUDs level. When activation reaches 0, squeeze the lemon: try to reactivate the issue and process anything that remains.

Brainspotting Phase 1 · Frame set-up guides · August 2026 edition3 / 4
Brainspotting · Phase 1 Frame Set-Up 4 of 4

Resource Model Frame Set-Up (Inside Window)

For fragile or highly activated clients: the brainspot is located from where the body feels calm, grounded or strong (the resource) rather than the activation.

1
The beginning: choose the issue
Ask the client what they would like to work on today.
2
Check on activation
Invite the client to talk about the issue until they feel activated by it.
3
SUDs level (0 to 10)
Subjective Units of Distress: 0 is neutral, 10 is the worst it could feel.
4
Location of the resource in the body
"Where in your body do you feel calm, grounded or strong?"
5
Find the resource location on the X axis
Track horizontally at eye level; the client reports where the resource feels strongest.
6
Then find it on the Y axis
Track above, at, and below eye level for the resource location to determine the brainspot.
7
Focused mindfulness (processing)
The client observes whatever arises, without judgment, while holding the spot.
8
Go back to the beginning to assess change
Return to the original issue and re-check the SUDs level.
9
Squeeze the lemon
Try to reactivate the issue, then process any remaining activation until it stays at 0.
Brainspotting Phase 1 · Frame set-up guides · August 2026 edition4 / 4
Brainspotting · Phase 2 Frame Set-Up 1 of 6

One-Eye Inside Window Frame Set-Up

Each eye is worked separately. Processing begins on the eye carrying the higher activation, then moves to the resource eye.

1
Choose the issue
2
Determine activation
3
Take SUDs level : intensity of activation (0 to 10)
4
Identify location of activation in the body
5
Determine which eye carries higher activation
Cover one eye at a time and compare the felt activation.
6
Start with the activation eye: find the spot on the X axis
Find the highest activation tracking horizontally at eye level.
7
Then the Y axis
Track above, at, and below eye level for the highest activation to locate the brainspot.
8
Process on the primary activation eye until SUDs is 0
9
Squeeze the lemon until there is no activation
10
Switch to the opposite eye
Explore the X and Y axes to find the brainspot on the resource eye.
11
Process to 0 SUDs, then squeeze the lemon until there is no activation
12
Finish the process with both eyes open
Brainspotting Phase 2 · Frame set-up guides · August 2026 edition1 / 6
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Z Axis Frame Set-Up

Adds depth to the brainspot: the client works between a near point (the pointer tip) and a far point along the same line of sight.

1
Determine the brainspot with Inside Window
2
Start by gazing at the tip of the pointer
3
Look straight through the pointer to the furthest point
Guide the client's gaze through the pointer to the furthest place in the room, usually the far wall.
4
Determine where activation is highest: close or far
The client compares the felt activation at each distance.
5
Start with the lower-activation distance
Usually far. After about 5 minutes, shift to the opposite distance.
6
Progressively reduce time at each distance
3 minutes, then 2, then 1.
7
Build to a rapid back-and-forth (vergence)
Eventually the shift is rapid, about 3 to 10 seconds at each distance.
Brainspotting Phase 2 · Frame set-up guides · August 2026 edition2 / 6
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Vergence Therapy Frame Set-Up

A continuous near-to-far flow of the gaze along the Z axis, sustained while the client processes.

1
Determine the brainspot
Usually done on Inside Window.
2
Start by gazing at the tip of the pointer
3
Look straight through the pointer to the furthest point
Guide the client's gaze through the pointer to the furthest place in the room, usually the far wall.
4
Flow back and forth between the pointer and the far spot
Every 3 to 10 seconds, while you observe the client's processing.
If nausea or dizziness appears

These are occasional side effects of vergence work. Slow the back-and-forth down until the client is comfortable again.

Brainspotting Phase 2 · Frame set-up guides · August 2026 edition3 / 6
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Outside-Inside Window Frame Set-Up

The therapist's observation and the client's felt sense work together: you scan for reflexive responses; the client chooses the spot.

1
Have the client choose the issue
2
Ask for activation
3
Take a SUDs (0 to 10)
4
Ask for the body location of activation
5
Explain the scan (Outside Window)
Tell the client you will scan their field of vision at eye level (X axis) and will stop when a reflexive response is observed.
6
Ask for feedback on each spot
Inform the client you will ask what they are experiencing on each spot of reflexive response.
7
The client chooses the spot to process on
Invite them to make a mindful, intuitive choice of the spot that seems most helpful for them.
Brainspotting Phase 2 · Frame set-up guides · August 2026 edition4 / 6
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Rolling Brainspotting Frame Set-Up

Rather than holding one spot, the eyes roll slowly across the visual field, pausing on each Outside Window brainspot along the way.

The basic form

Rolling Brainspotting (RB) entails slow eye tracking, stopping briefly on each Outside Window brainspot and holding on it, either momentarily (a second or two) or for a more extended period (one to two minutes).

A second alternative

Ask the client on each rolling brainspot what they are experiencing. Where more intense activation is present, stay longer on that brainspot.

When a spot is very powerful

Shift over to full Outside Window and stay on the spot until it is released.

Brainspotting Phase 2 · Frame set-up guides · August 2026 edition5 / 6
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Advanced Resource Frame Combined One-Eye & Z Axis Frame Set-Up

Stacks every resource dimension (eye, spot, distance and body) for the most contained, resourced frame available.

1
Determine the issue, activation, SUDs level, and identify the Body Resource
2
Find the eye with the lower SUDs
The eye that matches the Body Resource. This is the Resource Eye.
3
Find the Resource Spot on the Resource Eye
First on the X axis (right-left), then on the Y axis (up-down).
4
Find the Resource Distance on the Z axis
Far or close.
5
Process on the full resource frame
The Resource Eye, the Resource Spot, the Resource Distance, and the Body Resource together.
Brainspotting Phase 2 · Frame set-up guides · August 2026 edition6 / 6
Brainspotting · Phase 3 Frame Set-Up 1 of 4

Induced (Advanced) Gazespotting

The gaze is induced rather than caught: the therapist observes where the eyes spontaneously go for both the activation and the resource.

1
Activate around the issue
Guide the client to activate around an issue, take the SUDs, then locate the body activation.
2
Shift attention to the issue, eyes open
Guide the client, with eyes open, to shift their attention to the issue and body activation.
3
Note the Activation Gazespot
Observe where the client's eyes spontaneously shift with this process.
4
Shift attention to the positive
Guide the client to note a positive aspect of the issue, a potential positive outcome or resolution, or the Body Resource.
5
Note the Resource Gazespot
Again, observe where the client's eyes spontaneously shift.
6
Process from either spot, or pendulate
Guide the client to process off the Activation Gazespot, the Resource Gazespot, or pendulate between the two.
Brainspotting Phase 3 · Frame set-up guides · August 2026 edition1 / 4
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DoubleSpotting

Two Inside Window spots work in tandem: an Activation Spot that is bookmarked, and a Resource Spot where most of the processing happens.

1
Find the Inside Window spot
This is then called the IW Activation Spot.
2
Bookmark the spot
The client remembers it for a later return.
3
Find the Body Resource
Guide the client to the calm, grounded area of their body.
4
Find the Resource Spot
The Inside Window spot that matches the Body Resource.
5
Retake the SUDs level on the Resource Spot
6
Process on the Resource Spot and Body Resource
Continue until it reaches a Squeezed Lemon Zero.
7
Return to the Activation Spot and retake the SUDs
If SUDs is above 3, return to the Resource Spot for more processing. If SUDs is 0-3, finish the processing on the Activation Spot to a Squeezed Lemon Zero.
Brainspotting Phase 3 · Frame set-up guides · August 2026 edition2 / 4
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Advanced Z Axis BrainSweeps & Proximity

Two ways of working the depth dimension with the pointer once a brainspot is established.

BrainSweeps

Repeated, slow backward movements of the pointer on the angle of the brainspot.

Proximity work

The pointer moves gradually closer to the client's eyes on the brainspot. As this happens, the SUDs usually increases temporarily.

Handing over the pointer

When the spot becomes close enough, the pointer is handed to the client, who holds it and moves it closer themselves.

Brainspotting Phase 3 · Frame set-up guides · August 2026 edition3 / 4
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PartSpotting

Brainspotting applied to parts work: the gazespot is wherever the client locates the part in the room.

1
Invite the part to present itself
Guide the client to ask a part (ego state) to come out or present itself.
2
Locate the part in the room
Ask where the part is, and guide the client to look/gaze at it.
3
Process on the PartSpot
That eye position becomes the PartSpot, looked at while processing the part.
Before you begin

Please remember to get permission from the part to work.

Brainspotting Phase 3 · Frame set-up guides · August 2026 edition4 / 4
BIPOC Brainspotting · Phase 4 August 6 to 8, 2026 · Bloomington, MN and Zoom

Training Schedule

With David Grand, PhD and Linnea Swanson · 9:00am to 6:00pm CDT each day, with a 75 minute lunch. Registration opens 8:30am on Day One.

Each morning brings a video microanalysis of a Brainspotting session. Each afternoon teaches one advanced frame set-up through lecture, live demonstration and practicum.

1
Day One Thursday, August 6
Morning
Intro lecture · Video microanalysis 1
Afternoon
Projected Image Spotting group exercise · Dreamspotting demonstration and practicum
2
Day Two Friday, August 7
Morning
Intro lecture on therapist exposure and limbic countertransference · Video microanalysis 2
Afternoon
The Expansion Model: demonstration and practicum
3
Day Three Saturday, August 8
Morning
Intro lecture on emotional memory and flashback · Video microanalysis 3
Afternoon
Bodyspotting: demonstration and practicum
This training is designed to be highly interactive
Start times, breaks and lunch are set by your trainer. Each afternoon's practicum is where the frame set-ups on the following pages get used.
Brainspotting Phase 4 · Frame set-up guides · August 2026 editionSchedule
Brainspotting · Phase 4 Frame Set-Up 1 of 4

Projected Image Spotting Frame Set-Up

Memories, fixed images, and flashbacks are projected onto the wall behind the therapist. Where the image lands positionally is itself a Brainspot.

1
Ask whether the client is visualizing the image
A memory, a fixed image, or a flashback. Confirm they are actually seeing it, not only thinking about it.
2
"Where do you see the image on the wall behind me?"
The image projects spontaneously to a position, which creates a simultaneous eye position: the Brainspot.
3
Guide the client to gaze at that spot and process
Follow the processing wherever it goes. Stay out of the way.
4
Periodically guide them back to the image
"What does it look like now, and what does it feel like?" The image may have faded, gone away, or been replaced by something else.
5
Let the ending be organically determined
There is no fixed endpoint. The process closes when it closes.
Why it works
The client places the image somewhere specific in space. That placement is not arbitrary: it is the brain locating the material, and the gaze position that finds it is the Brainspot.
Brainspotting Phase 4 · Frame set-up guides · August 2026 edition1 / 4
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Dreamspotting Frame Set-Up

Projected Image Spotting applied to dreamwork. The whole brain is active during dreams, from the brainstem to the neocortex.

1
The client presents a dream for processing
Either brought in deliberately, or arising spontaneously during a session or during processing.
2
Ask first whether they are visualizing the dream
This step comes before anything else. No image, no Dreamspot.
3
"Where do you see the dream on the wall behind me?"
That position is the Dreamspot.
4
Guide the client to gaze at the Dreamspot and follow the processing
Wherever it goes, including away from the dream itself.
5
Periodically return to the dream
"What does it look like now? What does it feel like?" It may have faded or gone away, and something else may have arisen in its place.
6
Let the end of the process be organically determined
No interpretation is required. The dream does its own work.
Brainspotting Phase 4 · Frame set-up guides · August 2026 edition2 / 4
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Expansion Model Frame Set-Up

SUDs goes from ten to zero. Expansion goes from zero to infinity. Used when the client reaches a squeezed lemon zero, or as work in its own right.

1
Guide awareness back to the site of the original body vulnerability
Now that it has been cleared, it becomes a site of body possibility.
2
Explore the experience of expansion in the client's body
Take time. The felt sense needs to be alive before you look for a spot.
3
Guide the client to locate the expansion spot
Multispotting is common in Expansion work: more than one spot may hold the state.
4
Hold the Expansion Frame together and follow where the process leads
Therapist and client hold it openly. Processing can be brief or extended.
When to use it
After clearing, at a squeezed lemon zero. Or as the whole reason for the session: performance, creativity, personal growth, spirituality, raised consciousness. Sports Performance and Creativity Enhancement are both applications of this model.
Brainspotting Phase 4 · Frame set-up guides · August 2026 edition3 / 4
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Bodyspotting Frame Set-Up

The client uses a pointer to touch and press a spot on their own body. A gazespot locks in at the same moment. Highly experimental, and effective with a variety of clients.

1
Hand the pointer to the client for selfspotting with proximity
The client holds and directs the pointer themselves throughout.
2
Invite them to touch and press a spot on their body with the pointer
The bodyspot is found solely intuitively, not by any map or protocol.
3
Notice where the eyes lock as the pointer presses
The gazespot appears spontaneously and is matched to the bodyspot.
4
Process from the paired bodyspot and gazespot
Expect deep somatic processing. Follow it mindfully.
5
Use two or more pointers on different bodyspots if it fits
Continue the approach across sessions as it proves useful.
Not acupressure, not tapping
Bodyspots are found intuitively and matched with spontaneous eye positions. Beyond eye position, there are many sensory avenues for accessing the neurobiology and releasing trauma.
Brainspotting Phase 4 · Frame set-up guides · August 2026 edition4 / 4
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The Frame

Facing the uncertainty of the client's 1 to 4 quadrillion synaptic connections, we set and hold a frame around the somatic and affective activation of their experience.

Questions the training opens with
What is the frame in Brainspotting?
Why do we use a frame?
What is the shape of a frame?
Is the Brainspotting therapist outside the frame, inside the frame, or in the frame?
1
Its shape is not fixed
Perhaps the frame is like an amoeba, constantly altering its shape based on circumstance.
2
Its purpose is focus
The frame provides neural and experiential focus for the client.
3
Focus becomes change
The frame activates and potentiates focused mindfulness, which leads to systemic change.
Hold it, don't tighten it
Every Phase 4 frame set-up is a way of setting and holding a frame: an image on the wall, a dream, an expansion in the body, a pressed bodyspot. The frame is what makes the uncertainty workable.
Brainspotting Phase 4 · Frame set-up guides · August 2026 editionBackground
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Emotional Memory and Flashback

Much attention is given to body memory, while less attention is given to emotional memory. Day 3 begins here, and ends in Bodyspotting.

1
Emotional and body memories can be felt together or separately
Neither one is the whole picture of what is held.
2
Emotions felt in adulthood may actually be memories
Powerful emotions may be unrecognized manifestations of flashback.
3
Especially sadness, grief, anxiety and panic
These are the states most often mistaken for present-day feeling alone.
4
Panic attacks and phobias may be unrecognized flashbacks
Perhaps of traumatic experience from preverbal development.
5
Frame the emotional state itself
Brainspotting can be used to frame powerful, abiding emotional states and gain access to early traumatic experiences.
In the room
When a client arrives inside a large emotion with no story attached, treat the emotion as the frame rather than hunting for a narrative. Bodyspotting gives that frame a second sensory anchor.
Brainspotting Phase 4 · Frame set-up guides · August 2026 editionBackground
Brainspotting · Phase 5 Frame Set-Up 1 of 8

Advanced Gazespotting for Existential Trauma

The pivotal moment between everything is ok and everything is desperately not ok. Asking the client to return there almost always induces an instantaneous eye, head, and neck orientation: a powerful Gazespot and a direct neuro-portal into the experience.

1
The client presents a mass or individual traumatic experience
Natural or human-caused. They may have been present at the exact moment and location, or found out about it afterward.
2
Ask for the exact moment when everything went from ok to desperately not ok
SUDs and location of body activation are optional here.
3
Observe the immediate eye, head, and neck orientation
Usually left or right, occasionally up or down.
4
Encourage the client to maintain gaze on the orientation spot
Then observe the focused mindfulness processing that follows.
5
Check in periodically, mindful of the sequential nature of the processing
Note both flashbacks and dissociative gaps. The sequence usually unfolds across the minutes, hours, and days that followed.
6
Periodically guide the client back to the original pivotal moment
Perhaps when processing slows. Check its nature and quality (SUDs and body activation can be checked). Sensory intensity shifts as the brain heals.
7
Process until a squeezed lemon zero or until the close of the session
8
Stay mindful of the client's developmental history throughout
Especially regarding attachment trauma.
Brainspotting Phase 5 · Frame set-up guides · August 2026 edition1 / 8
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Following Where Your Eyes Want to Go Eye position through head and neck orienting

A fourth way of locating relevant eye positions, alongside Outside Window, Inside Window, and Gazespotting. Particularly user-friendly when working virtually, and it works in person too.

1
Set up the activation as usual
Issue, activation, SUDs, and location of body activation.
2
Ask, "Where do your eyes want to go?"
Or, "Where do your eyes feel magnetized to go?" No pointer needed.
3
Watch whether they orient with the eyes alone or follow with the head
Head and neck swivel appears to complete the eye movement that initiates the orienting response. It does not interfere with locating activation or resource.
4
Let the client hold that position and process
Focused mindfulness, following the tail of the comet.
5
Allow the position to shift if the eyes want to move again
This is an organic shift away from Inside Window pointerspotting. Follow the client.
How this differs from Gazespotting
Gazespotting is spontaneous and usually outside the client's awareness. Here the client consciously finds their own eye position when asked, without outside prompting or a pointer.
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Advanced Partspotting, Part 1 Locating the part through a memory

In Phase 3, Partspotting calls the part into the room. Here we locate the part through a memory or flashback instead: a direct and powerful way to engage parts.

1
The client selects a memory, or one emerges during processing
Pervasive, long-lasting childhood memories are seen as holding parts that can be accessed directly. Processing childhood pictures can enhance this.
2
"Can you see yourself in the memory?"
Observe the Gazespot that ensues.
3
Ask the orienting questions
"How old are you in that memory? How do you look in that memory? How do you feel seeing yourself in that memory?"
4
Determine the eye position for the memory part
Several ways work. With eyes open, the client will often Gazespot as they look at the memory part. For some it helps to ask where they see the memory or part in the room. If the client closes their eyes, they are orienting to the memory part inside, which is fine.
5
Keep it an open process
The emphasis is on the client seeing and connecting with their memory part, not on technique.
6
Process, then close by bringing the part closer to the self
The memory may change and the part may evolve. Finishing this way keeps the part from feeling abandoned again.
Parts hold neuroexperience that may not be readily available to Brainspotting's focused access to the subcortex. The NEM hypothesizes that when a person is in flashback, at least one part is in flashback.
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Working With a Part in Flashback Advanced Partspotting, Part 1 continued

For attendees experienced in working with high levels of dissociation with complex developmental trauma. If the client is powerfully in flashback, finding and working with the part may not be possible until more stabilization is accomplished.
1
Assess the level of the flashback
The level determines how you engage the client in finding the part. With mild to moderate flashback activation, guide the client to find the part in flashback.
2
First question: "Can you see the part?"
3
Second question: "What's happening with this part?"
4
Third question: "Where is the part now?"
5
If the part is in danger, extract it
The adult goes in to rescue and recover the part, bringing them to the here and now. This usually has to be repeated multiple times.
6
Process, then bring the part closer to the self to finish
Processing can go in any direction, but we aim to find our way into the tail of the client's comet. The flashback may change and the part may evolve.
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Double Pointer With Memory Loss From Head Trauma

Two pointers, with the space between them representing the period of memory loss. Also usable with memory loss from trauma-based dissociation.

1
Ask the client the last thing they remember before the memory loss
2
Locate the Inside Window spot where they feel the most access to that memory
This is the "before" spot. Leave the first pointer there.
3
Ask the client the first thing they remember after the memory loss
4
Using a second pointer, locate the Inside Window spot for that after memory
Both pointers now stay in place. The gap between them holds the lost period.
5
Return to the before spot and begin focused mindfulness processing
SUDs and body activation optional.
6
After an attuned period of time, guide the client to the after spot
Continue focused mindfulness processing there.
7
Move gradually and gently between the after and before spots
No rush. Let each side settle before crossing.
8
Finish by very slowly moving the pointer from the before spot to the after spot
Pause whenever any memory retrieval between the two spots is accomplished.
Memory loss from brain injury has long been assumed mostly irretrievable. That belief discounts the role dissociation from the traumatic event played in the loss, and ignores the healing benefits of processing dissociated trauma memories.
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Attachment Eye Contact Spot

A focused Resource Model for clients who are highly vulnerable to dissociating, destabilizing, and flooding. Eye contact can promote repair of attachment wounds, stimulate oxytocin release, help regulate vagal tone, and reduce hypervigilance.

1
Assess whether eye contact is right for this client right now
Use it judiciously with clients in flashback who see the perpetrator's eyes in the therapist's eyes.
2
Establish the eye contact spot: the therapist's eyes
This becomes the Brainspot for the session.
3
Put the duration entirely in the client's choice and control
Some clients need small doses initially, extending as comfort expands. Some choose extended periods that can be challenging for the therapist to maintain.
4
Ask for SUDs and body activation or resource, but only if it feels organic
Skip it if it would break the connection.
5
Hold the frame and process
Eye contact provides a unique frame whose focused mindfulness processing mirrors its sense of connection.
6
Combine with Dosing if the client needs extra grounding and containment
See the Dosing frame set-up on the next page.
A profound breakthrough can occur when the client begins to see the therapist's eyes and face for the first time.
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Dosing

A resource approach for clients easily overwhelmed by looking at a Brainspot. The spot is looked at only for brief periods before the client is guided to look away. Usually used with Inside Window and Gazespotting.

1
Locate the spot, then decide together how long the client will look at it
The decision is shared, not the therapist's alone.
2
Start from a baseline of 5 seconds
Less can be chosen at the client's request.
3
The client looks at the spot while the therapist counts to 5
Count simultaneously with your fingers, visible to the client.
4
At the count, guide the client to look away from the spot
5
Encourage them not to look back until activation comes down to baseline
The pause is as much a part of the work as the looking.
6
Before returning to the spot, decide together how long to look this time
Increase incrementally, for example 5 seconds to 7. Caution is encouraged and ambition should be discouraged.
7
Track the processing throughout
Processing occurs during all aspects of this approach, including the look-away periods.
SUDs can be a limited instrument with these clients: hypoarousal often presents low (2 or 3) and can then spike during processing.
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Advanced Partspotting, Part 2 Locating parts with Gazespotting, Inside Window, and Outside Window

Three routes to an eye position that matches the part's presence, plus ancestral and intrauterine parts.

1
Gazespotting: observe where the client gazes as the part emerges
Gazespotting is ever-present, especially when the client is activated around an issue. If a part emerges on its own, note the simultaneous gaze. If you ask a part to come out, watch the eyes dart to a Gazespot.
2
Inside Window: ask where the client feels the presence of the part
First on the x axis, then on the y axis.
3
Outside Window: scan slowly across the visual field for prominent reflexes
Used when the client feels the presence of a part. The therapist can choose the reflex partspot alone, or engage the client using Outside-Inside Window from Phase 2.
4
Guide the client to hold their gaze on the spot with awareness of the part
Then observe the processing that ensues.
5
When attuned and appropriate, ask an ancestor or ancestral part to emerge
This aligns with many cultures that are aware of the presence of their ancestors, or that honor them.
6
For profound early developmental and attachment trauma, call out an intrauterine part
This can access the time before early traumas began, or address prebirth traumas directly.
Compare with Phase 3
In Phase 3, Partspotting calls the part into the room and observes its location there. The part in its position becomes the partspot. Here, the eye position is found by the same three legs used for any Brainspot.
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Therapist Frame Set-Up Before Expansion Brainspotting

The pre-session interview: bring the desired state alive in the client's body before finding any brainspot.

1
Get the client talking about their desired state
"What do you want the most out of all of this?" Or the miracle question: "If you could wave a magic wand, what do you wish could happen as a result of this session?"
2
Define how they will know they have expanded enough
"How will we know if you have expanded into this desired goal enough to feel you have achieved what you want?" Get specific.
3
Find the internal resource
"What do you have inside of you that will give you the highest possibility of connecting to this state?" (use their words). Was it experienced strongly in the past, or witnessed in someone? "What do you want to be known for at the end of your life?"
4
Get the core feeling words
"What are the core words that describe the emotions you feel in that state of being you want to live in more frequently?" Always get the core feeling state (confident, peaceful, hopeful, joyful, relaxed). Bring out feelings more than the picture (more subcortical).
5
Ask the what, when, and how questions
"What is a memory when you have felt this most strongly? When else have you felt those feelings? When did you stop living in this state of being? What do you feel, smell, taste, hear and see? How do you think we should set this up to give you the highest possibility of success?"
6
Locate the expansion in the body
"Where do you feel the positive expansion possibility strongest in your body?" If it is weak, get them talking more about it with the questions above.
7
Check in and find the Expansion Brainspot
"Right now, how strongly do you feel ________ (client's words), 0 to Infinity?" Then find the Expansion Brainspot or Brainspots.
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How to Find Expansion Spots

The short form: from desired goal to expansion spot in six moves.

1
What is the most important thing you would like to expand into?
A better performance, a different feeling state, courage to go for your deepest dreams, feeling self-confident.
2
What do you have inside of you that gives you the highest possibility of achieving your desire or goal?
3
Take time to really feel that part strongly
Let the client sit with the highest possibility until it is vivid.
4
Where in your body do you feel that?
5
How strong is it?
Expansion is measured 0 to Infinity, not 0 to 10.
6
Find the expansion spot with Inside Window
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Expansion Brainspotting Frame Set-Up

The full frame set-up for expanding into a desired state, belief, or way of being.

1
Find the greatest Expansion Possibility
Explore the issue and collaboratively find the possibility the client believes will be most effective in reaching their desired goal. Help activate the expansion.
2
Locate the expansion in the body
Explore where the experience of expansion is felt most strongly in the client's body.
3
Measure its strength (0 to Infinity)
Have the client strengthen the felt sense in their body if needed, or switch to a stronger possibility.
4
Find the Expansion Brainspot
The spot that correlates to the expansion body sensation, found with Inside Window.
5
Process mindfully
6
Check back in on the strength of the expansion
0 to Infinity, halfway to Infinity, and so on.
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Double Spotting Frame Set-Up Activated and Expansion Brainspots

Pairs a bookmarked Activation Spot with an Expansion Spot, letting the client pendulate between the two.

1
Determine the activated issue the client wants to work on
2
Check on activation
3
Take a SUDs (0 to 10)
4
Find the location of body activation
5
Find the Inside Window Activation Spot
Bookmark the spot to remember for later.
6
Guide the client to go within to find the highest possibility in resolving their issue
7
Find where the expansion possibility is held in their body
Measured 0 to Infinity.
8
Find the Expansion Brainspot and bookmark it
9
Pendulate between the Activated and Expansion spots
The client moves between the two using their own instincts.
10
If no expansion spot presents itself, process on the Activated Brainspot
An expansion spot may emerge later. We must have no agenda.
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Performance Expansion Frame Set-Up

The Expansion frame set-up applied to a performance goal of any kind: athletic, creative, or personal.

1
Find the best Expansion Possibility for the performance goal
Explore the client's performance goal and collaboratively find the possibility they believe will be most effective in reaching it.
2
Locate the expansion in the body
Explore where the experience of expansion is felt most strongly in the client's body.
3
Measure its strength (0 to Infinity)
Have the client strengthen the felt sense if needed, or switch to a stronger expansion possibility.
4
Find the Expansion Brainspot
The spot that correlates to the expansion body sensation, found with Inside Window.
5
Process mindfully
6
Check back in on the expansion and the goal
How strong is the desired expansion, and how strongly do they believe they can accomplish their performance goal? (0 to Infinity, halfway to Infinity, and so on.)
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