EMDR, Trauma & Therapy
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is a unique form of therapy mainly used to treat trauma and its lingering effects. Understanding its foundational principles can offer valuable insights into how this method can be a potential path for healing. Let's dive deeper into the main components and stages of EMDR therapy.
The Eight Phases of EMDR
History-Taking and Treatment Planning: The therapist will first conduct an assessment of your history, your symptoms, and the traumatic events that may be causing them. This sets the stage for the treatment plan.
Preparation: The therapist will explain the EMDR process in detail and help you learn ways to manage stress or emotional upheaval. This prepares you for the core part of the treatment.
Assessment: During this phase, the therapist will identify specific memories, negative thoughts, or feelings related to your trauma that will be the focus of the EMDR session.
Desensitization: This is where the eye movements come in. While recalling the distressing memory, you will engage in guided eye movements. This is aimed at reprocessing the traumatic memory and reducing its emotional charge.
Installation: The goal here is to replace the negative beliefs or thoughts related to the traumatic memory with more positive or adaptive beliefs.
Body Scan: The therapist will ask you to pay attention to any physical sensations you're feeling. If you have any tension or discomfort, additional sets of eye movements may be used to address this.
Closure: At the end of each session, you'll return to a state of equilibrium. You may discuss what you've learned or how you feel, ensuring you leave the session feeling stable.
Reevaluation: In future sessions, the therapist will check to see if the positive effects have been maintained and whether additional memories or issues need to be treated.
The Bilateral Stimulation
The eye movements in EMDR are a form of what's called "bilateral stimulation," which means stimulating both sides of the brain. This stimulation is thought to help your brain process the traumatic memory more effectively.
Adaptive Information Processing
EMDR is based on a model called Adaptive Information Processing (AIP). According to AIP, our brains naturally move towards mental health and well-being. However, traumatic experiences can block this natural process. EMDR aims to remove these blocks, allowing your brain to properly process the traumatic memories.
Why Does It Work?
While the exact mechanisms aren't fully understood, the idea is that the bilateral stimulation in EMDR helps you safely recall traumatic memories in a new context. This aids in "digesting" the memory, so it becomes something you remember but don't have an emotional reaction to.
By diving into the basics of EMDR in greater detail, we can appreciate its unique approach to tackling the complexities of trauma. Understanding each phase and the underlying principles can give you a clearer picture of what to expect during the therapy process and how it may aid in your healing journey.In order to better understand how EMDR works, it's crucial to delve deeper into what trauma actually is. Many people think of trauma as something extremely dramatic or life-threatening, such as a car accident or military combat. While those are indeed traumatic events, trauma can also stem from experiences that might seem less severe but are still deeply disturbing or overwhelming.
Types of Trauma
Acute Trauma: This occurs from a single event that is extremely stressful or dangerous. Examples could be a natural disaster, an accident, or a violent attack.
Chronic Trauma: This is ongoing, long-term exposure to emotional or physical danger. Situations like living in an abusive household or experiencing long-term bullying would fall under this category.
Complex Trauma: This is a combination of multiple traumatic events, often occurring over a long period. It could involve different types of trauma, such as emotional, physical, and sexual abuse, often occurring in a setting where there should be trust and care, like a family.
Secondary Trauma: Also known as vicarious trauma, this happens when someone is affected by the trauma of another person. Health care workers, for instance, might experience this after continuously helping people in distressing situations.
Emotional and Physical Responses to Trauma
Trauma doesn't just affect your mind; it also has a physical impact on your body. When you're faced with a traumatic event, your body goes into "fight or flight" mode, releasing stress hormones like adrenaline to prepare you for immediate action. However, when the trauma is too overwhelming, you may feel "frozen" instead, unable to react.
Long-Term Effects
The problem is that these emotional and physical responses can stick around long after the event is over. You might have symptoms like:
Anxiety or excessive worry
Feeling constantly on edge
Difficulty sleeping
Flashbacks or nightmares about the event
These symptoms can get in the way of your daily life, affecting your work, relationships, and overall well-being.
Emotional Scars
Trauma can also leave emotional "scars" that influence how you view the world. You might develop fears or beliefs related to the event. For example, if you were in a car accident, you might start believing that "driving is dangerous," and this belief could interfere with your ability to travel freely.
The Importance of Treatment
The lingering effects of trauma can disrupt your life, but the good news is that treatments like EMDR can help you process these distressing memories. In doing so, you can reduce or even eliminate the long-term effects of trauma, making it easier to move on and live a fulfilling life.
Understanding the complexities of trauma gives us better insight into how therapies like EMDR can help. If you're dealing with the after-effects of a traumatic event, it's important to seek professional guidance to navigate the healing process effectively.