Trauma Therapy
Trauma Therapy
Many people who seek therapy have history of trauma in the past and/or present. Wikipedia defines trauma as “…often the result of an overwhelming amount of stress that exceeds one's ability to cope or integrate the emotions involved with that experience. “ Everyone has gone through some traumatic experience in life. However, people have different abilities to cope, access to resources, and resilience level to overcome the effect of trauma. Unresolved trauma can cause serious emotional and/or physical disturbances, anxiety, depression, low-self esteem, development of negative beliefs, and other mental health issues. These problems can be effectively treated with trauma brain-based treatment approaches such as EMDR therapy.
EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) is a relatively new therapy approach that was developed by Francine Shapiro at the end of 1980’s. EMDR therapy has been researched and proven as a highly effective treatment of Post-traumatic Stress Disorder and other Trauma Related issues. This approach integrates many psychological theories and psychotherapeutic modalities. EMDR is also highly effective to treat anxiety, depression, phobias, addiction, OCD, low self-esteem, complicated grief, loss, etc. EMDR Resource Model is applied at the beginning of the treatment to prepare an individual for trauma work and contains many useful techniques to develop coping strategies, positive inner resources, and resilience level.
By data posted on www.emdr.com “the research studies show that 84%-90% of single-trauma victims no longer have post-traumatic stress disorder after only three 90-minute sessions. Another study, funded by the HMO Kaiser Permanente, found that 100% of the single-trauma victims and 77% of multiple trauma victims no longer were diagnosed with PTSD after only six 50-minute sessions. In another study, 77% of combat veterans were free of PTSD in 12 sessions. EMDR therapy is now recognized as an effective form of treatment for trauma and other disturbing experiences by organizations such as the American Psychiatric Association, the World Health Organization and the Department of Defense.”
The effectiveness of EMDR is based on the Adaptive Information Processing Model which means that our brain has a natural tendency to move toward wholeness, health, and capacity to heal itself. Memory plays a tremendous role in our functioning and learning process. During some traumatic events, brain becomes overwhelmed and if a person does not have the necessary resources to process the trauma, the natural Adaptive Information Process in our brain becomes blocked, and our memories are stored in a way that does not allow a brain to connect to the adaptive memory network. Traumatic memories that stored in a dysfunctional way become frozen in time, thus, when triggered by stimuli in the present, they result in pathological responses to the situations that have little or no danger. When the area of the brain where the “frozen in time” memories along with emotions and body sensations are stuck and get triggered, an individual begins reliving past trauma as like it’s happening in the present. Meanwhile, the rational part of the brain has no or very little control of the brain, thus it becomes extremely difficult to control the impulses and provide more rational response to the situation. EMDR helps to unfreeze these dysfunctional memories, desensitize strong negative emotions and body sensations associated with trauma and restore the brain connection with adaptive positive experience network to develop positive perspectives and adaptive beliefs.
Brainspotting is another brain based powerful approach that uses the body’s innate self-scanning and healing capacities to process and release core neurophysiologic sources of trauma and its physiological symptoms in the deep level of brain. Therapist helps a client to find a “Brainspot” which represents a specific eye position that leads to the brain area where the traumatic memories were stored and “got stuck.” Adding bilateral sounds or tones that enhance the brain ability to process trauma by integration of right and left hemispheres of brain, therapist helps an individual to access the deep subconscious brain wher the trauma got stuck to release the traumatic emotions and body sensations and process the traumatic memories allowing a new perspective and healthy resolution. By some researches, Brainspotting is shown to be even more effective as EMDR.
Maryana Harrelson, LPC,
Gestalt-therapist, EMDR and Brainspotting Practicioner.