EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing)

DR. FRANCINE SHAPIRO

• February 18, 1948 - June 16, 2019

• American Psychologist

• Originator and developer of EMDR Therapy

• Senior Research Fellow Emeritus at Mental Reseach Institute in Palo Alto

• Executive Director of the EMDR Institute in Watsonville

• Founder and President Emeritus of the EMDR Humanitarian Assistance Program

WHAT IS EMDR?

• Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is a

  form of Psychotherapy that was developed to resolve

  symptoms resulting from disturbed and unresolved life event

  or experience.

• A powerful counseling techniquewhich has been very

  successful in helping people who suffer from trauma,

  anxiety,panic, disturbing memories, post traumatic stress and

  many other emotional problems.

BILATERAL STIMULATION

EMDR USES A TECHNIQUE CALLED

BILATERAL STIMULATION WORK

• Bilateral stimulation used in EMDR helps activate

  our body’s natural healing so the meaning of

  traumatic events can be processed and transformed

  on a deep emotional level.

• EMRD does not require that all memories be

  consciously talked about and analyzed for hours on

  end. Instead, it prompts our brain’s natural healing

  abilities to work through blocks and move towards

  healing.

WHAT CAN YOU EXPECT FROM EMDR?

Although most research into EMDR has examined its use in people with PTSD (PostTraumatic Stress Disorder), EMDR is also used to treat many other psychological problems.

EMDR is also used to treat many other psychological problems including

• Injury or Loss of a Loved One

• Car Accident or Work Related Accidents & Injuries

• Witness of Violent Crimes/Post Traumatic

• Stress

• Test Anxiety/Relational Anxiety

• Trouble Sleeping/Worrying/Phobias/Fears

• Low Self-Esteem/Bad Temper/Panic Attacks

• Physical, Emotional, Verbal & Sexual

• Abuse/Rape

• Natural Disasters/Fire/Childhood Trauma & Abuse

• Depression/Anger/Sadness/Assault

• Eating Disorders/Performance

• Anxiety

• High Anxiety/Lack of Motivation

• Memories of a Traumatic

• Experience

• Fear of Being Alone

• Unrealistic Feelings of Guilt and Shame

• Difficulty in Trusting Others

• Relationship Problems.

EIGHT PHASES OF TREATMENT

1. HISTORY AND TREATMENT PLANNING

2. PREPARATION

3. ASSSESSMENT

4. DESENSITIZATION

5. INSTALLATION

6. BODY SCAN

7. CLOSURE

8. RE-EVALUATION

HISTORY AND TREATMENT PLANNING

Generally takes 1-2 sessions at the beginning of therapy, and can continue throughout the therapy, especially if new problems are revealed.

• History taking

• Treatment plan

• Identify and clarify potential

• targets and goals for EMDR

• Targets refer to a disturbed issue,

• event or memory for uses as an

• initial focus.

PREPARATION

For most clients this will take only 1-4 sessions. For others, with a much traumatized background, or with certain diagnoses, a longer time may be necessary.

• Establishing a trusting relationship between the

  client and therapist is a primary goal during the

  preparation phase of EMDR therapy.

• During the second phase of treatment, the

  therapist ensures that the client has several

  different ways of handling emotional distress.

• During the second phase of treatment, the

  therapist ensures that the client has adequate

  methods of handling emotional distress and good

  coping skills, and that the client is in a relatively

  stable state.

ASSESSMENT

For a single trauma reprocessing is generally accomplished within 3 sessions. If it takes longer, you should see some improvement within that amount of time.

• Used to access each target in a controlled and

  standardized way so it can be effectively

  processed.

• During the Assessment Phase, the person

  identifies the negative emotions and physical

  sensations s/he associates with the target. The

  client also rates the disturbance using the 0 (no

  disturbance)-to-10 (theworst feeling you ever had)

  Subjective Units of Disturbance (SUD) scale.

• Then, the positive cognition should reflect what is

  actually appropriate in the present. At this point,

  the therapist will ask the person to estimate how

  true s/he feels his/her positive belief is using the

  1-to-7 Validity of Cognition (VOC) scale.

• Phases One(1) through Three(3) in EMDR therapy

  set the foundation for comprehensive treatment

  and reprocessing of targeted events.

DESENSITIZATION

• Focus on Disturbing Emotions and Sensations: This phase of EMDR

  therapy centers on addressing the client's disturbing emotions and

  sensations, as measured by the Subjective Units of Disturbance (SUDs) rating scale.

• Comprehensive Resolution: Clients explore all responses, including

  memories, insights, and associations, as the targeted event evolves and its distressing elements are resolved. This phase offers the opportunity to identify and address similar events associated with the target, enabling clients to surpass initial goals and achieve healing beyond expectations. During desensitization, the therapist guides the client through sets of eye movements or other forms of stimulation until SUD-scale levels are significantly reduced, facilitating complete resolution of the target and associated associations.

INSTALLATION

• The goal is to concentrate on and increase the strength of the positive belief that the person has identified to replace his/her original negative belief.

• During this fifth phase of treatment, the goal is to accept the full truth of positive self-statement at a level of 7 (completely true). If the person is aware that s/he actually needs to learn some new skill, such as self-defense training, in order to be truly in control of the situation, the validity of his/her positive belief will rise only to the corresponding level, such as a 5 or 6 on the VOC scale.

BODY SCAN

• Research findings suggest that unresolved traumatic memories are stored in motoric or body systems memory rather than narrative memory. This retention includes negative emotions and physical sensations associated with the original event.

• A successful EMDR session is determined by the client's ability to recall the original target event without experiencing residual body tension. While positive self-beliefs are vital, their effectiveness is contingent upon being genuinely believed on an experiential level, not just intellectually.

CLOSURE

• Closure ensures that the person leaves at the end

  of each session feeling better than at the beginning.

• If the processing of the traumatic target event is

  not complete in a single session, the therapist will

  assist the person in using a variety of self-calming

  techniques in order to regain a sense of equilibrium.

• Throughout the EMDR session, the client has been

  in control and it is important that the client

  continue to feel in control outside the therapist’s

  office.

RE-EVALUATION

• Opens every new session, the therapist checks to

  make sure that the positive results (low SUDs, high

  VOC, no body tension) have been maintained,

  identifies any new areas that need treatment, and

  continues reprocessing the additional targets.

• The next session begins with phase eight, re-

  evaluation of the previous work, and of progress

  since the previous session. EMDR treatment ensures

  processing of all related historical events, current

  incidents that elicit distress, and future scenarios

  that will require different responses.

Revisiting Traumatic Moment:

The counselor gently guides the client to revisit the traumatic experience, recalling associated feelings, negative thoughts, and memories.

Bilateral Stimulation Technique:

The counselor utilizes bilateral stimulation techniques, such as moving fingers back and forth or hand tapping, while the client tracks these movements, simulating watching ping pong. This process facilitates the emergence and processing of intense images and emotions, exchanging painful feelings for more peaceful and resolved ones.

EMDR Success:

Despite being relatively new, EMDR therapy is widely successful across the country. It's considered a natural process where the client and therapist collaborate to release traumatic energy and promote healing, ultimately aiming to restore the client to a state of peace and groundedness in life.