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Health and Wellness Information: What
is EMDR?
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is an
important option available to SAGE clients and staff Most
of the clinicians at SAGE have received training in how to
use EMDR. Additionally, the EMDR Humanitarian Assistance Program
provides pro-bono EMDR therapy to SAGE peer education staff,
in order to make sure that sexual exploitation survivors working
at SAGE receive therapeutic support for their own ongoing
trauma recovery.
EMDR is a psychotherapeutic technique for relieving psychological
distress and enhancing and speeding recovery from trauma.
EMDR therapy was invented by Dr. Francine Shapiro, who—in
1987—discovered that changing eye movements can reduce
the intensity of disturbing thoughts. This led to the recognition
that “bilateral stimulation of the brain”—which
can be accomplished by changing eye movements or by other
means —can be effective in providing physiologically-based
relief from trauma.
When a person is reliving trauma or is very upset, this has
an impact on neurological function, and has various physiological
effects—including patterns of eye movement. In simple
terms, our brains work or process things differently under
extreme stress or during trauma, and this has an impact on
our bodies. For survivors of trauma, this can sometimes create
an inability to release traumatic pain—meaning that
even thinking about a traumatic memory can be as painful as
the initial experience. EMDR works on the principle that alleviating
and shifting some of the body’s physical and neurological
response to a traumatic event can facilitate healing. In other
words, if your body and brain are taught to react differently
to a traumatic memory or thought, this can help you feel better.
EMDR therapy essentially helps give the body and mind the
message that it is okay to release trauma—so that previously
excruciating memories and associations and thoughts become
easier to engage with and work through.
During EMDR therapy, a therapist works with a client to focus
on a specific problem or issue or memory. The client focuses
on that issue or memory, and at the same time, the therapist
stimulates directional movement of the eyes, or some other
form of bilateral stimulation of the brain—such as repeatedly
playing a tone in one ear, then the other, or tapping repeatedly
on one knee, then the other. This practice is continued until
the memory or issue becomes less distressing, or even becomes
associated with more positive thoughts, such as, “it
was not my fault.”
EMDR does not require any kind of medication or hypnosis or
physically intensive activity; many therapist and trauma survivors
consider it a fairly gentle, physiologically-based, non-invasive
technique for providing comparatively fast relief from psychological
pain.
Survivors of trafficking, homelessness, incarceration, sexual
abuse and exploitation, and addiction inevitably have some
degree of trauma or Post-Traumatic-Stress. For many, the accumulation
of violent experiences, repeated betrayals, and prolonged
panic and agitation can generate a degree of trauma that feels
“bottomless” or “endless”.
Healing is never a complete or perfect process, but for survivors
of extreme and repeated violent abuses, it can feel like tremendous
amounts of effort and therapy barely make a dent. EMDR doesn’t
“fix” or take away all the trauma or pain, and
it may not be equally successful or possible with every survivor.
However, EMDR therapy with a competent clinician can dramatically
assist survivor abilities to face traumatic memories, to cope
with and release pain, and to move towards an increased level
of well-being without spending decades making minimal progress.
The bodies of sexual exploitation survivors have experienced
so much shock, terror, violence, and often chemical damage—that
therapies which really involve and work with the body are
absolutely essential. EMDR can be used in conjunction with
other somatic therapies, meaning the same person may be obtaining
EMDR therapy and also working on physical relief through movement,
yoga, dance, or exercise, acupuncture or herbal medicines,
breathing exercises, nutritional therapies, or meditation.
At SAGE, EMDR is recognized as a powerful means to give survivors
with trauma or Complex Post Traumatic Stress Disorder comparatively
rapid and lasting relief from pain and support for healing.
For more information on CSE issues or survivor-sensitive healing
modalities, visit the Information Center using the links above.
For more information about FOPP, EIPP, the STAR Center, Mental
Health, or other SAGE programs and services, use the links
above, or contact us at SAGE.
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