Light the Path to Healing
What is Emotional Transformation Therapy (ETT)?
ETT is a bottom-up, brain-based approach that helps ease emotional pain as well as stress-related physical symptoms in ways that traditional talk therapy can’t reach. Developed by Dr. Steven Vazquez, ETT accesses healing by using specific wavelengths of light and color, directly processing at deeper levels of the brain.
ETT can help a variety of symptoms:
PTSD, Complex Trauma, and DID
Anxiety and Panic
Depression
Anger
Grief
Addictions
OCD
Performance blocks (creative or sports)
Burnout
Sleep disorders
Chronic pain and illness
History of Emotional Transformation Therapy
Dr. Vazquez first came across the idea of using color and light from Syntonics Optometry. This version of optometric phototherapy used different frequencies and colors of visible light to stimulate the brain to improve vision, focus, and other issues. Certain optometrists noticed that the autonomic nervous system was being shifted by light and affected the patient's emotional states. Dr. Vazquez began doing experiments with clients where they looked at colored lights while talking about their symptoms. When a client who had arthritis for 15 years looked at different colors and experienced immediate relief, he realized wanted to investigate more.
Additionally, Dr. Vazquez had a personal experience where he was teaching in Germany. He was experiencing some emotional distress about a relationship issue, while on a train. On the train ride, he passed 5 stops where, as it so happened, the train was painted different vivid colors. He noticed that at the end of his stops, he had easily worked through his issue.
What to Expect in an ETT Session?
Choosing the Issue – we’ll start by identifying what you want to work on. I’ll ask questions to hone in on what emotion you’re feeling.
Choosing the Technique – ETT uses several different approaches. The main two we’ll focus on are 1) Focusing on a spectral chart (an expensive and highly accurate image of the color spectrum) and 2) following colored wands with your eyes in a specific motion (very similar to EMDR and Brainspotting).
Science of Emotional Transformation Therapy
The science behind ETT draws from research on how color and light interact with the brain through ongoing feedback loops. Studies show that color perception and emotional state influence each other, as do color and thought content; color can also affect language and verbal expression, while language can shift how color is perceived. Color further interacts with memory—especially recall—and memory states can alter color perception. Taken together, this means that when clients focus on a precise, specific color while an emotion is active, visual perception, emotional state, thoughts, memory, and language may shift simultaneously. Clients may temporarily find it harder to speak or become more verbally expressive as these systems reorganize. Importantly, color effects are state-dependent rather than universal, varying based on the client’s nervous system state in the moment.
Building on this, visual input from the eyes does not go straight to the visual cortex first. A significant portion is processed rapidly through subcortical systems involving the thalamus, superior colliculus, and limbic structures, which are closely tied to autonomic regulation, threat response, and body state. Because of this, visual input can shift emotional and physiological state before conscious awareness. ETT uses light, color, and eye position to directly engage these bottom-up pathways, allowing activated emotional circuits to update with minimal cognitive effort. When a memory or emotion is already online, this added visual input may facilitate rapid memory reconsolidation, reducing emotional charge.
Why Try Emotional Transformation Therapy?
Impossible to “get it wrong” – there’s no way to do the technique in an incorrect way. (ETT has a novel approach at tracking dissociation.)
No effort needed – the only thing the client has to do is to look at colors or light.
Efficiency – Clients report the process is very quick and leads to rapid change.
Please note: because ETT can have such profound effects on the brain and nervous system, we recommend clients be able to take the remainder of the day off, avoid major responsibilities, and allow time for rest and integration.
Dr. Steven Vazquez