Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)
and Resolving Traumatic Experiences
Trauma is a complex psychological and emotional response to an event or series of events that overwhelm our ability to cope or function. These events can have lasting and often profound effects on our mental and physical well-being. Examples of traumatic experiences vary widely and can include major life events such as natural disasters, accidents, or violence. These involve significant threats to life or limb. Trauma can also more subtle, yet equally impactful events, such as experiencing emotional neglect, bullying or harassment, repetitive nightmares, or damages in the parent-child attachment systems.
Sometimes these feelings and experiences are too big for us to process. These feelings exist on a spectrum too: they may be surprising, overwhelming, scary, terrifying, devastating, or traumatic. Regardless of the severity, when this occurs, the emotion gets stuck, frozen in time. This is why we can emotionally re-live unpleasant and traumatic experiences when we think of them, or when we are reminded of them. What also happens during these experiences, is that the brain is called into action, and in an attempt to process the un-processable, creates a rule. These rules, which are attempts to protect us from future pain, sound like, "I am a failure", or "I did something wrong," or "I will never get over it", as examples. These rules however, are often negative. They may be limiting, self-deprecating, or may not be helpful, and definitely don't take us in the directions we want to go.
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is a well-established intervention which alleviates the mental and emotional distress associated with traumatic memories, blocked processing, and distressing experiences. EMDR is unique in that it forever changes the way traumatic memories are stored in the brain, rather than focusing on merely reducing emotions, changing thoughts, or reprogramming the responses which resulted from traumatic experiences.
To release these emotions and limiting beliefs from our bodies, both sides of the brain have to work together to understand the experience which occurred. This is also how the memory itself is moved into the long-term storage parts of our brain. In EMDR, bi-lateral (both sides of the brain) stimulation is used through eye movements or tapping to unlock past experiences. Once they are cleared/resolved, the rules once made no longer apply, and new ones - which are more helpful - can be installed.
The changes and relief are permanent, and you don't have to rehash the trauma or even talk about everything which occurred if you don't want to. If you are feeling it, Spirited Connections Counselling can help you heal it.
EMDR Can Help With:
- Addictions
- Anxiety and Panic Disorders
- Child Abuse and Childhood Traumas
- Emotional Pain
- Intergenerational and Past Life Trauma
- Overcoming Distressing Life Events
- Performance Anxiety (academic, workplace, sport)
- Phobias
- PTSD and C-PTSD
- Sleep Disturbances and Nightmares
- Somatic Pain and Psychosomatic Experiences
- Trauma
- Victimization and Domestic Violence
EMDR with Complex Trauma
Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (C-PTSD) is a more pervasive form of trauma. It is usually the result of prolonged exposure to traumatic events, often involving interpersonal trauma or abuse. Individuals with C-PTSD may experience not only the typical symptoms of PTSD, such as flashbacks and nightmares but also additional challenges like difficulties with emotional regulation, problems with forming and maintaining relationships, and a distorted sense of self.
The counselling offered through Spirited Connections Counselling can help you reduce the intensity and severity of your C-PTSD and help resolve the traumatic memories associated with your diagnoses. Together, we can help you live the life you want.
EMDR with Intergenerational Trauma:
Intergenerational trauma refers to the enduring emotional, psychological, or physical consequences of traumatic experiences that are transmitted from one generation to the next. While this is often observed in families or communities that have been exposed to prolonged adversity, such as war, displacement, or systemic oppression, it can also present as unspecified anxiety, deep-rooted fear, or feelings of loss. The impact of these experiences are passed down through the generations, as trauma can have a molecular imprints on your genetics. EMDR is an effective intervention for treating individuals who are experiencing the consequences of intergenerational trauma. The EMDR offered through Spirited Connections Counselling also promotes healing for the family system as a whole!
EMDR with Past Life Trauma:
Spirited Connections Counselling loves to support you whether your challenges emerged from traumatic experiences in this life, or even in past lives. Some deep-seated emotional wounds transcend the current lifetime. Unresolved issues from previous incarnations can manifest in the present and impact your mental, emotional, or physical well-being. EMDR serves as a tool to help individuals process and integrate traumatic experiences from past lives, allowing them to alleviate present-day symptoms and gain insights into the sources of their distress. Whether viewed through a spiritual or psychological lens, the goal remains to facilitate healing and promote a sense of resolution, providing individuals with a unique avenue to address the complex interplay of trauma across different lifetimes.
