Trauma Recovery “Crash Course”

Folks have been wondering if my EMDR intensives help any or not. I’d like a minute to talk about what EMDR is and how doing a bunch of it in a short period can be helpful.

What’s EMDR?

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) was identified by a woman who had cancer and who was walking in a park and noticed she was reprocessing her trauma as she walked. At the time she thought she was benefitting from the eye movement going back and forth and later found that many different things such as bilateral sounds, vibrations, body drumming and other bilateral things helped. Bilateral just means something happening on this side and then on that other side of your body. For example, it could be moving one’s eyes from left to right or drumming on your own thighs right to left. There are a number of areas or sensations that feel uncomfortable for folks so we take some time to find the right experience and fit for each patient.

Our brains sort of go “offline” when something traumatic occurs like the death of a loved one. EMDR helps us bring it to a place where we’re anchored enough, and still engaged with the traumatic memory to reprocess it so it doesn’t stay stuck in our mind, body, or energies if that makes sense. It’s pretty powerful stuff and has been noted by WHO (yeah WHO has lots of problems, but just hang in there with me for a sec) as one of the TWO trauma therapies to be effective for addressing trauma. EMDR has also been found to be helpful with a number of other things such as disordered eating.

I love supporting folks using EMDR to help with complex traumas and relational trauma. Watching people get closer to what they hope for themselves is powerful. I remember in my EMDR training we discussed what the healing properties are behind EMDR and people threw out a bunch of answers. It is pretty amazing to stick with something scary for a bit, use age old body drumming or back and forth eye movements, and walk through something with someone until they get to a less charged place.

Why would I want to do it?

I saw people use EMDR around complex sexual abuse and neglect, single incident acute trauma, and long-term relational chronic traumas. I’ve seen folks in all of these situations benefit from EMDR. Of course EMDR can cause some nightmares, panic, or other adverse situations for some people in certain circumstances (much like risks with most treatments), but I am just profoundly moved by the results I’ve anecdotally seen and experienced. I’m a big believer in connecting with a provider and walking through this stuff, not around our under it, but through it.

Doing EMDR can, with an attuned provider, mean you get closer and closer to that authentic you. It could mean making decisions from a place of love, rest, and authenticity.

Why do it quickly and all bunched up?

Folks sometimes want to do EMDR in a quick, more condensed manner because they want to be a birthing parent soon. Some may want to do it in this way because they have a bit of time off to focus on their recovery. Others may have a number of other reasons that they want a prime time chunk of slots to dedicate to their recovery. I offer EMDR intensives to and with people who feel anchored in their inner work in between sessions meaning folks who say xyz helps me deescalate in between sessions and I think I’ll do it when I need it. If someone is very activated and not sure what really helps them deescalate we may work for a while to build trust and inner resources before doing deep dive EMDR work. My EMDR intensive premium packages can be found here and there’s ONE summer slot available left for mid August this summer so check it out soon! Email today to find out if an intensive premium package might be a fit for you!