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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 11 of 11. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Thomas W on March 22, 2000, at 8:08:31
Hello,
I was curious as to whether anyone has tried EMDR and if
so what were the results? The counselor that I work
with thinks it would be beneficial but I'm not sure as lot's of
things that work for others don't seem to work for
me. Has anyone gained in lasting benefit from this or
is it another hoky gimmick?
Thanks much for you advice.
Posted by kate on March 22, 2000, at 8:34:44
In reply to EMDR, posted by Thomas W on March 22, 2000, at 8:08:31
Thomas,
i have done emdr once and am probably going to be
doing it again in the next few weeks. i found it to
be quite helpful although it was painful for me to
revisit past events that have caused me trauma. for
me, the experience was like being inside of a waking
dream (a dream that you have when you're concious
as apposed to unconcious.) it was very metaphorical
and symbolic but it did help me to gain access to
a good deal of anger that had been locked away in my
subconcious before. it was a very intense experience
for me. i would say that if you are going to do it,
make sure you are comfortable with your counselor.
also, each person's experience with emdr can be
vastly different from the next person's, so keep
that in mind. do you know the basic's of how it works
and what the purpose of it is? i'd be glad to explain
it as much as i can. have you been through some kind
of traumatic experience before? (what is the reason why you are concidering
the emdr?) you don't have to e specific. hope you
find that it helps you.~kate
Posted by Thomas W on March 22, 2000, at 16:10:25
In reply to Re: EMDR, posted by kate on March 22, 2000, at 8:34:44
> Thomas,
> i have done emdr once and am probably going to be
> doing it again in the next few weeks. i found it to
> be quite helpful although it was painful for me to
> revisit past events that have caused me trauma. for
> me, the experience was like being inside of a waking
> dream (a dream that you have when you're concious
> as apposed to unconcious.) it was very metaphorical
> and symbolic but it did help me to gain access to
> a good deal of anger that had been locked away in my
> subconcious before. it was a very intense experience
> for me. i would say that if you are going to do it,
> make sure you are comfortable with your counselor.
> also, each person's experience with emdr can be
> vastly different from the next person's, so keep
> that in mind. do you know the basic's of how it works
> and what the purpose of it is? i'd be glad to explain
> it as much as i can. have you been through some kind
> of traumatic experience before? (what is the reason why you are concidering
> the emdr?) you don't have to e specific. hope you
> find that it helps you.
>
> ~kate
Kate, I need to hear more. I'm a little afraid of
it. I have had an auto accident with a fatality
involved and I have had several other traumatic
events; along with social anxiety and panic. I took
a MMPI test and it revealed a high level of depression
as well a anger/resentment. What happens when you
do this? I'm afraid I'll freak out or something; I
get really nervous when things are happening that
I don't understand and I don't know about this. Why do
you say that I should be comfortable with the person
adminsistering EMDR? I'm am very curious now.
thanks for more information....thomas w
Posted by dbcooper on March 22, 2000, at 22:01:52
In reply to Re: EMDR, posted by Thomas W on March 22, 2000, at 16:10:25
Thomas,
It is very unlikely that you will "freak out" during an EMDR session. It is actually a very safe and effective technique that helps individuals get over traumatic events. It seems that the eye-movements (some therapists use alternating sounds or tapping) help the brain/mind heal in a natural way. It helps the individual move toward a move realistic perception of the trauma. Kate said you should feel comfortable with your therapist because it may be more effective if you trust and feel safe with your therapist. Safe to sort of let go and allow your mind to go where it needs to go. EMDR can bring up very powerful feelings but they are usually short lived and an experienced therapist will help guide you through them or use techniques that will help you return to a calm state. If your therapist is experienced with EMDR and you trust him/her I would encourage you to give it a try. Best wishes, db
Posted by kate on March 23, 2000, at 12:17:24
In reply to Re: EMDR, posted by dbcooper on March 22, 2000, at 22:01:52
i very much understand your nervousness about dealing
with such a traumatic event. i have the smae problems
every time i do it. it is perfectly natural. but
imagine how you feel after you have faced the traumatic
events that have caged your rage and greif for so long.
afterwards, i felt like i had let go of a great deal
of baggage. sometimes it will take more than a few
times to get to that point but however long it takes,
it is worth it. i said that you should be comfortable
with your therapist mainly because the more comfortable
you are when beginning the emdr, the more beneficial
it can be to you as a whole. often times, when just beginning
one works on building a "safe place" in your mind that
you can return to if you feel like you are getting
out of control. it can be a memory of your kitchen, church,
a beautiful natural place or a place that is a fantasy for you.
as long as it is a place that makes you feel nurtured
and peaceful. this building of a safe place helps you to get
comfortable with the whole technique as well as just have a
foundation of security with which to rely on. what happens is
happens is the person administering the emdr sort of
explians it you, how it works and what it does etc.
then you build your safe place, you describe it to the
person andministering. oftentimes you will pick three
specific words that you associate with your safe place.
then if you are ready you address your traumatic event
by describing three words you associate with that event.
the point of the emdr is to get your feeling about
the traumatic event closer to those of your safe place.
it helps to resolve unresolved issues and it helps you
to gain and unlock knowledge and find acceptance and
growth from your experience. the person waves their hand
close to your face and you follow their moving hands
with your eyes. it simulates r.e.m. sleep. each time you
just go with whatever imagery or event proceeds from the
next one. (you begin with the initial event and proceed
from there.) it can be very intense but as long as the
person who is administering the emdr knows what they are
doing (make sure they've been certified), they will not
allow the situation to get out of control. you can stop
whenever you need to or greturn to your safe place for some
strength to deal with whatever you need to deal
with. i encourage you to try it. as long as it is
practiced safely and you are ready to do it it can
work wonders. and if it is too much for you, all you
have to say is, "i need to stop now." and you can!
let me know how it goes. i will be doing it again soon
too so i'll let you know how my experience went too.
good luck!~kate
Posted by Elena L. on March 25, 2000, at 9:50:07
In reply to Re: EMDR, posted by kate on March 23, 2000, at 12:17:24
> i very much understand your nervousness about dealing
> with such a traumatic event. i have the smae problems
> every time i do it. it is perfectly natural. but
> imagine how you feel after you have faced the traumatic
> events that have caged your rage and greif for so long.
> afterwards, i felt like i had let go of a great deal
> of baggage. sometimes it will take more than a few
> times to get to that point but however long it takes,
> it is worth it. i said that you should be comfortable
> with your therapist mainly because the more comfortable
> you are when beginning the emdr, the more beneficial
> it can be to you as a whole. often times, when just beginning
> one works on building a "safe place" in your mind that
> you can return to if you feel like you are getting
> out of control. it can be a memory of your kitchen, church,
> a beautiful natural place or a place that is a fantasy for you.
> as long as it is a place that makes you feel nurtured
> and peaceful. this building of a safe place helps you to get
> comfortable with the whole technique as well as just have a
> foundation of security with which to rely on. what happens is
> happens is the person administering the emdr sort of
> explians it you, how it works and what it does etc.
> then you build your safe place, you describe it to the
> person andministering. oftentimes you will pick three
> specific words that you associate with your safe place.
> then if you are ready you address your traumatic event
> by describing three words you associate with that event.
> the point of the emdr is to get your feeling about
> the traumatic event closer to those of your safe place.
> it helps to resolve unresolved issues and it helps you
> to gain and unlock knowledge and find acceptance and
> growth from your experience. the person waves their hand
> close to your face and you follow their moving hands
> with your eyes. it simulates r.e.m. sleep. each time you
> just go with whatever imagery or event proceeds from the
> next one. (you begin with the initial event and proceed
> from there.) it can be very intense but as long as the
> person who is administering the emdr knows what they are
> doing (make sure they've been certified), they will not
> allow the situation to get out of control. you can stop
> whenever you need to or greturn to your safe place for some
> strength to deal with whatever you need to deal
> with. i encourage you to try it. as long as it is
> practiced safely and you are ready to do it it can
> work wonders. and if it is too much for you, all you
> have to say is, "i need to stop now." and you can!
> let me know how it goes. i will be doing it again soon
> too so i'll let you know how my experience went too.
> good luck!
>
> ~kateHello--
Could someone please tell me what EMDR is? Thanks. Elena L.
Posted by Peter on March 25, 2000, at 14:50:20
In reply to EMDR, posted by Thomas W on March 22, 2000, at 8:08:31
I haven't tried EMDR but I have heard mixed things about it. There is an interesting article about EMDR and pseudoscience at: http://www.pseudoscience.org/cpr-article-emdr-dissemination.htm
Posted by thomas w on March 27, 2000, at 8:01:17
In reply to Re: EMDR, posted by Elena L. on March 25, 2000, at 9:50:07
> > i very much understand your nervousness about dealing
> > with such a traumatic event. i have the smae problems
> > every time i do it. it is perfectly natural. but
> > imagine how you feel after you have faced the traumatic
> > events that have caged your rage and greif for so long.
> > afterwards, i felt like i had let go of a great deal
> > of baggage. sometimes it will take more than a few
> > times to get to that point but however long it takes,
> > it is worth it. i said that you should be comfortable
> > with your therapist mainly because the more comfortable
> > you are when beginning the emdr, the more beneficial
> > it can be to you as a whole. often times, when just beginning
> > one works on building a "safe place" in your mind that
> > you can return to if you feel like you are getting
> > out of control. it can be a memory of your kitchen, church,
> > a beautiful natural place or a place that is a fantasy for you.
> > as long as it is a place that makes you feel nurtured
> > and peaceful. this building of a safe place helps you to get
> > comfortable with the whole technique as well as just have a
> > foundation of security with which to rely on. what happens is
> > happens is the person administering the emdr sort of
> > explians it you, how it works and what it does etc.
> > then you build your safe place, you describe it to the
> > person andministering. oftentimes you will pick three
> > specific words that you associate with your safe place.
> > then if you are ready you address your traumatic event
> > by describing three words you associate with that event.
> > the point of the emdr is to get your feeling about
> > the traumatic event closer to those of your safe place.
> > it helps to resolve unresolved issues and it helps you
> > to gain and unlock knowledge and find acceptance and
> > growth from your experience. the person waves their hand
> > close to your face and you follow their moving hands
> > with your eyes. it simulates r.e.m. sleep. each time you
> > just go with whatever imagery or event proceeds from the
> > next one. (you begin with the initial event and proceed
> > from there.) it can be very intense but as long as the
> > person who is administering the emdr knows what they are
> > doing (make sure they've been certified), they will not
> > allow the situation to get out of control. you can stop
> > whenever you need to or greturn to your safe place for some
> > strength to deal with whatever you need to deal
> > with. i encourage you to try it. as long as it is
> > practiced safely and you are ready to do it it can
> > work wonders. and if it is too much for you, all you
> > have to say is, "i need to stop now." and you can!
> > let me know how it goes. i will be doing it again soon
> > too so i'll let you know how my experience went too.
> > good luck!
> >
> > ~kate
>
> Hello--
>
> Could someone please tell me what EMDR is? Thanks. Elena L.
Elena L.The web site www.emdr.com/ explains it better than
I could. Take a look. thomas w
Posted by kate on March 27, 2000, at 10:39:36
In reply to Re: EMDR, posted by thomas w on March 27, 2000, at 8:01:17
hey thomas,
what did you think about what i had to say in my
last post? are you still concidering doing it? or
do you think that you aren't ready for it yet?
let me know. you can email me if you like.peace
~kate
Posted by Thomas W on March 27, 2000, at 14:05:29
In reply to Re: EMDR, posted by kate on March 27, 2000, at 10:39:36
> hey thomas,
> what did you think about what i had to say in my
> last post? are you still concidering doing it? or
> do you think that you aren't ready for it yet?
> let me know. you can email me if you like.
>
> peace
> ~kateKate, I did reply to your email address. Check
and see if you received it. Let me know if you did.
thx...thomas w
Posted by TER on March 29, 2000, at 11:51:39
In reply to EMDR, posted by Thomas W on March 22, 2000, at 8:08:31
Yes, I have done EMDR and have found it only positive, even though it is physically exhausing. When I leave an EMDR session I feel much lighter and not emotionally "stuck" anymore. EMDR just seems to help move things along. I was skeptical when I first heard of it and it took me a session or two to really understand it but once I did and I could really tell what it was doing it was amazing (please don't ask exactly what it does, I can't really describe it). My advice is if you are as tired as I was of being emotionally "trapped" or "stuck", go for it. I am not sure I would have gotten this far without it!!! Good luck!
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