EMDR: Fast, Safe and Effective Treatment for Stress, Anxiety, Depression and Trauma
"I can't stop having these horrible thoughts. Am I going crazy?"
No! You are not going crazy.
Disturbing, intrusive, or unwanted thoughts are one of the many indications that you've experienced some unresolved trauma in your life.
For some people, unresolved trauma can also lead to
- Nightmares and sleep problems
- Panic attacks, phobias or free-floating anxiety
- Low self-esteem, lack of confidence or feeling worthless
- Addiction (trying to numb out)
- Physical symptoms like chronic pain, illness or fatigue
What is Trauma?
When you experience trauma you go into a kind of shock. You act instinctively and automatically to get through the experience. It's like one part of your brain "freezes" to allow you to survive. If you never get to thaw out that part, the thoughts and feelings you had at the time keep coming back. Usually these thoughts and feelings are negative and seem irrational outside of the traumatic situation, making you feel crazy, anxious or depressed.
For example, during a car accident it's normal to think, "I'm going to die." If you feel like you're going to die every time you get in a car, then you're having a traumatic response. The car triggers the old belief, even though it's no longer true.
But I've never had real trauma...
We tend to think of trauma as the big stuff like combat, car accidents, violence or abuse. But really, trauma results whenever we feel helpless. So we can have traumatic symptoms even from being criticized, shamed or having our feelings hurt as a child.
How is trauma treated?
Researchers theorize that the frozen memories are stored on the right side of your brain. A special therapy technique called EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) helps those memories connect to information you have on the left side of your brain - the part that knows you are now safe and capable of taking care of yourself.
EMDR is a safe, effective and drug free way to help your mind and body resolve trauma. EMDR uses simple tools (like headphones or hand-grips) to activate the right and left hemispheres of your brain while you remember a traumatic event or think about the resulting negative beliefs and feelings.
History and Effectiveness of EMDR
Since the late 1980s, EMDR has been used successfully to treat trauma in veterans of combat, people who've lived through wars or natural disasters, and victims of violence and sexual or physical abuse. It has a success rate of over 85% and has helped over two million people of all ages relieve psychological distress.
Additional Uses of EMDR
While EMDR was developed for BIG trauma, it has also been successful in treating:
- Relationship Challenges: Helping people stop repeating negative patterns
- Stress and overwhelm
- Grief and Loss
- Performance Anxiety: in areas ranging from sports performance to public speaking to fear of failure
The best part of EMDR is how quickly it works. It is common for symptoms to be alleviated in as little as one to three sessions.
Do I have to stop my current therapy?
If you are already in therapy, you don't have to stop or leave your current therapist. I am happy to collaborate with other therapists on resolving specific problems that are not shifting with traditional psychotherapy. Talk to your therapist if you are interested in EMDR, and feel free to share my contact information.
Contact Christine via email or call (510) 520-2811 for more information.
|
