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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
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Posted by kezia on December 12, 2007, at 10:18:09
I have been seeing my current therapist (well, my first therapist ever actually) for a couple of years now. We have been talking about doing EMDR for a number of months and have decided that I will be ready for a session next week.
I have no idea what to expect and am a little nervous. I have a hard time opening up and am worried that my therapist will just be wasting her time. Also, a friend of mine had EMDR for similar issues as me and it was, initially, quite traumatic.
Could those of you who have been through EMDR share your experiences with me. I would really appreciate it.
Thanks so much.
Posted by star008 on December 12, 2007, at 12:59:23
In reply to First EMDR session next week - what to expect, posted by kezia on December 12, 2007, at 10:18:09
http://www.behavior.net/bolforums/forumdisplay.php?f=16
Kezia,
Check out the forum that i listed above.. It is an EMDR forum run by one of the big EMDR people. It will teach you alot about it.
My personal experience with it-- WEll it worked wonderfully for an experience that I had a couple of yers ago involving a dead body..The experience was horrible and it haunted me..The memories were "in my face" all the time.. I saw images of it and it wouldn't leave me..EMDR took it away from me..Although I remember it well the emotional charge was not there anymore.. It worked right away. But, (there always has to be a "but"), huh?? lol.. This issue was different than some other issues I tried to work on. It did not effect my worth as a person, it did not effect the way I felt about myself the way some early memories do. IT was not something that was done to me, just somethng I witnessed,
When I tried EMDR for childhood trauma it was very traumatic. It took me days to get over it and I have a gret fear of doing EMDR again.. I need EMDR to get over the EMDR!!! I have a dissociative disorder and was not prepared for EMDR. It can be done but you need to do alot of ground work before attempting it. I was stuck in an inner child for days and days. I split off and couldn't gt back into my adult.
I would suggest trying it on something kind of like my first expereince..Something that doesn't effect your sense of being. Try it with something easier and see how it goes. Make sure your T screens you for dissociative disorders.. I didn't know I had one. I think it does work but can be very traumatic if you are not prepared for it. I don't know if I will ever do it again. I don't have the inner resources that you need to get through it and to deal with overpowering feelings.
I am not a very open person either.. It was hard to expose myself to EMDR but I went with it anyway.So.. I guess in my opinion, it does work but it depends what you are working on and the inner resources that you have. Good luck with your work..
Posted by ClearSkies on December 12, 2007, at 14:11:23
In reply to First EMDR session next week - what to expect, posted by kezia on December 12, 2007, at 10:18:09
Hi, Kezia. There are a few threads here about EMDR if you do a search on it. I had some EMDR as an adjunct treatment to my therapy several years ago for some specific trauma that I was just unable to put behind me.
The preparation for the EMDR treatment took longer than the treatment itself. Appointment after appointment talking about what we were going to do, and NOT do. It was very reassuring to have it so clearly laid out before we started.
My therapist recommended another counselor in the same practice as her who was certified in EMDR (Level 2, I think) - she was trained by the person who had developed the process. She used her finger in front of my face and I followed it with my eyes, back and forth, while she talked me through the particular trauma. Other therapists use noise instead of a visual cue to follow.
Following the treatment I would always feel rather light-headed and ultra sensitive to sights and sounds. The therapist scheduled the treatments later in the evening so I would be able to go straight home and to bed afterwards. I don't think I would have been able to, say, go back to work after a treatment. I found the treatment to be enormously beneficial in clearing the trauma from my immediate thought, and it paved the way for me to be able to deal with deeper and underlying issues in therapy. It was invaluable at the time, and I don't regret having had the treatment at all.
Hope this helps.
ClearSkies
Posted by kezia on December 14, 2007, at 19:56:19
In reply to Re: First EMDR session next week - what to expect » kezia, posted by star008 on December 12, 2007, at 12:59:23
Thanks so much taking the time to respond to my post and for sharing your experiences with EMDR with me as well as the good advice. I think my T's plan is to start as you have suggested - with something that isn't going to be too traumatic and affect my sense of being. I'm sorry that your second experience proved so traumatic. It must have been very scary to go through that :-( Why is it that something that can ultimately help us in the long term can be so devastating and tramautic in the short term?
Thanks for the link to the forum as well. I will read through posts to get a better sense of how others have reacted and responded. I'm sure that will help some.
> http://www.behavior.net/bolforums/forumdisplay.php?f=16
>
> Kezia,
>
> Check out the forum that i listed above.. It is an EMDR forum run by one of the big EMDR people. It will teach you alot about it.
>
> My personal experience with it-- WEll it worked wonderfully for an experience that I had a couple of yers ago involving a dead body..The experience was horrible and it haunted me..The memories were "in my face" all the time.. I saw images of it and it wouldn't leave me..EMDR took it away from me..Although I remember it well the emotional charge was not there anymore.. It worked right away. But, (there always has to be a "but"), huh?? lol.. This issue was different than some other issues I tried to work on. It did not effect my worth as a person, it did not effect the way I felt about myself the way some early memories do. IT was not something that was done to me, just somethng I witnessed,
>
> When I tried EMDR for childhood trauma it was very traumatic. It took me days to get over it and I have a gret fear of doing EMDR again.. I need EMDR to get over the EMDR!!! I have a dissociative disorder and was not prepared for EMDR. It can be done but you need to do alot of ground work before attempting it. I was stuck in an inner child for days and days. I split off and couldn't gt back into my adult.
>
> I would suggest trying it on something kind of like my first expereince..Something that doesn't effect your sense of being. Try it with something easier and see how it goes. Make sure your T screens you for dissociative disorders.. I didn't know I had one. I think it does work but can be very traumatic if you are not prepared for it. I don't know if I will ever do it again. I don't have the inner resources that you need to get through it and to deal with overpowering feelings.
> I am not a very open person either.. It was hard to expose myself to EMDR but I went with it anyway.
>
> So.. I guess in my opinion, it does work but it depends what you are working on and the inner resources that you have. Good luck with your work..
Posted by kezia on December 14, 2007, at 20:04:02
In reply to Re: First EMDR session next week - what to expect » kezia, posted by ClearSkies on December 12, 2007, at 14:11:23
Thanks so much, Clearskies, for sharing your experience with me. It was very helpful. I'm glad the EMDR useful for you. Like you, the preparation for the EMDR treatment has taken a long time. We have been working up to it for quite some time. Finally, at my last appointment, my T said it looks like we're ready for an EMDR session. So, I am both excited and nervous. My session will be first thing in the morning, but I do not have to go to work that day and can come home and chill if I am drained after. I hope it helps pave the way to making more gains in therapy for me.
All the best.
Kezia
> Hi, Kezia. There are a few threads here about EMDR if you do a search on it. I had some EMDR as an adjunct treatment to my therapy several years ago for some specific trauma that I was just unable to put behind me.
>
> The preparation for the EMDR treatment took longer than the treatment itself. Appointment after appointment talking about what we were going to do, and NOT do. It was very reassuring to have it so clearly laid out before we started.
>
> My therapist recommended another counselor in the same practice as her who was certified in EMDR (Level 2, I think) - she was trained by the person who had developed the process. She used her finger in front of my face and I followed it with my eyes, back and forth, while she talked me through the particular trauma. Other therapists use noise instead of a visual cue to follow.
>
> Following the treatment I would always feel rather light-headed and ultra sensitive to sights and sounds. The therapist scheduled the treatments later in the evening so I would be able to go straight home and to bed afterwards. I don't think I would have been able to, say, go back to work after a treatment. I found the treatment to be enormously beneficial in clearing the trauma from my immediate thought, and it paved the way for me to be able to deal with deeper and underlying issues in therapy. It was invaluable at the time, and I don't regret having had the treatment at all.
>
> Hope this helps.
> ClearSkies
Posted by ClearSkies on December 19, 2007, at 12:35:39
In reply to Re: First EMDR session next week - what to expect » ClearSkies, posted by kezia on December 14, 2007, at 20:04:02
Kezia, have you had the EMDR session? How did it go for you?
ClearSkies
Posted by kezia on December 19, 2007, at 17:28:52
In reply to Re: First EMDR session next week » kezia, posted by ClearSkies on December 19, 2007, at 12:35:39
Thanks for asking, ClearSkies. My appointment was supposed to be yesterday, but my therapist had a death in her family and had to reschedule the appointment. It won't take place until January 15. Oh well, only a few more weeks.
I'll be sure to post once I have had the session to say how it went. I am both nervous and excited about it.
Have a great day!
> Kezia, have you had the EMDR session? How did it go for you?
>
> ClearSkies
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