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Doglover
Senior Contributor

EMDR - Has anyone done this

Hi all, i have had 1 session with a new psychologist who i like, but she has suggested we do a number of sessions of EMDR - Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprogramming. Apart from the cost factor which i rly cant afford, im pretty nervous about the whole thing. Supposedly it  desensitises u to past trauma and its affects but things like this rly scare me. As any of u that i hav bn communicating with know i am going thru an extremely difficult time right now and im not sure that digging up or re-experiencing past traumas is the best way for me to go right now, even if the idea is to reduce the traumatic nature of those events. Im scared enough of the trauma and torture im going through right now! Id rly appreciate any feedback from anyone that has had this type of thereapy. I am seein her on monday and we are supposed to be devising our treatment plan so i need to make a decision by then. I have tagged some of my forum friends in but please feel free to tag anyone else in that u think might be able to provide some feedback.

 

@greenpea  @Shaz51 @Gazza75 @Flying_Hams @Former-Member @eth @BryanaCamp @Snowie @Appleblossom @TAB @outlander @oceangirl @BlueBay @Faith-and-Hope @Former-Member @Eden1919 @DGoldman @CheerBear @Sad2 @Hope4me @ali11

Thanks all and sorry any i missed!

468 REPLIES 468

Re: EMDR - Has anyone done this

I haven't heard of this before @Doglover

It sounds interesting and it might be one possible avenue to get better. I think having a unique approach can have its benefits. I've always remained open to new treatments and new approaches in my experience with mental health

But you must he at peace with the decision you make. Regardless of what that decision is.

Revisiting old trauma can be confronting but sometimes it pays to visit it so that we can unpack what went on and possibly learn how to confront it again the future maybe?

Keen to hear more about your views on that

Re: EMDR - Has anyone done this

Hi @Flying_Hams , thanks for ur reply. Im very conservative and cautious when it comes to things in general, including treatment of MI. Especially given that the proper medical treatment iv been getting has caused more harm than good. Im rly skeptical of a lot of these types of things (hypnosis, acupunccture, acupressure and the like) and dont want to do anyrhing that could potentially do more harm than good, or that goes against my beliefs. Thats the thing, i need to be at peace with the decision i make and im not sure how to come to that place. Hence asking help from my forumite buddies. Doing some googling too to try and better understand what it actually is and how it works.

Re: EMDR - Has anyone done this

Ask @Zoe7 hamso @Flying_Hams

Re: EMDR - Has anyone done this

Hey @Doglover  I've been doing EMDR sometimes with my current psychologist and find it's really working for me.  Took a few sessions to be able to see that clearly.  But I have to say we spent a long time 'trauma mapping' before we started the EMDR.  There are different ways of doing it - one is with lights and your eyes, another is with little buzzers in each hand - that's worked for me, another is tapping on your legs alternately.  While you do it you first establish a 'safe place' in your mind that you can come back to any time.  Then focus on a particular moment in an event - and in between bursts you talk about what you are specifically feeling, both physical and mental.  What I've found it that things that used to trigger me really badly are significantly milder now.  They can still bring up a memory but I don't relive the event and the memory passes sooner.  Much less panic attacks and startle reflex when I'm out, tho' I'm still only going out with a support worker.  I definitely think that for me it's worth continuing.  Different people respond to different therapies in different ways tho'.  Hope some of this is helpful to you.

Re: EMDR - Has anyone done this

Hi @Doglover 

quite a few years ago I was referred to a clinical psychologist who uses EMDR therspy. 

It was very traumatic snd triggering. For me it didn’t work. Nit sure if I tried again if it would help. Yes it is also very costly. 

Good luck with it. You need to try. 

Re: EMDR - Has anyone done this

@Doglover I have done EMDR but unfortunately it was re-traumatising for me and we had to stop. Everyone reacts differently to the process but one thing I would say is that you have to feel ready and comfortable to face things head on. With consultation between my GP, psych and pdoc we all agreed that EMDR and revisiting the past was not the direction to go in. It has been super hard to move forward in any direction but a lot of time and energy put into the here and now has been what has worked best for me. Sometimes in causes more harm reliving the past and that was definitely the case for me.

For others the benefits of EMDR are lessening of triggers and their longer term effects but for me it brought up even more and was extremely distressing.

I would suggest that you have a very frank and open discussion with your psych before you start and make sure there are processes in place to look after you after each session. I did have very good follow up from all my team and that was part of the reason they could see it was not something I should or needed to continue with. I became very suicidal again and felt like I was back in my past all over again and it took a lot of ongoing support to move on from that.

I am telling you this because not every therapy is right for every person and it is good to have all sides to be able to make a decision that is right for you. It is certainly worth giving a go if you think that it would benefit you but also be confident to say you are reluctant or scared to try it at present if that is what you are thinking. Therapy only works if you can immerse yourself into it and feel comfortable in whatever direction it is taking. So if you give it a go and find it is not working for you at present then speak up. The decision ultimately has to be yours and what is best for you.

Re: EMDR - Has anyone done this

Hi @Doglover 

If you are experiencing current trauma, now might not be the time, but on the other hand, it still may give you some tools to apply to help manage all your trauma.  I have not actually done EMDR but had to manage a lot of trauma before traum treatments became availablle. The general idea is still being able to manage the onslaught of emotion in the best possible way ... I believe we need a lot of alone time to constructivley manage trauma no matter the therpautic modality. ...if you have heavy child rearing or family responsibilities ... try and timetable it well  or delay it ???

Hugs

Apple

 

Re: EMDR - Has anyone done this

hi @Doglover i havent done EMDR but im glad others have shared their experiences with you.

Re: EMDR - Has anyone done this

Thank u @outlander 

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