Individuals benefit from the process (of EMDR) by feeling and understanding what happened to them within the greater context of what occurred. They come to a place of acceptance, where the memories remain as facts, but no longer cause them distress.
As an eclectic clinician, I work within a holistic model with specific purpose and intention for each of my clients. Often times, these clients have uncomfortable memories that get in the way of their healing process. They may feel that they cannot open up and talk about these memories because talking about those memories brings up painful, overwhelming feelings. If care is not taken in discussing these memories, there is the possibility of re-traumatizing clients. The EMDR process is a method that may be applied slowly so that clients may remain able to tolerate their feelings, yet not feeling flooded by them. Individuals benefit from the process by feeling and understanding what happened to them within the greater context of what occurred. They come to a place of acceptance, where the memories remain as facts, but no longer cause them distress. At this point, the person may resume therapy on other issues they are working on.
While working at Sanctuary Centers, I have noticed that my clients tend to have some shared issues, such as acclimating to the residential program, acquiring independent living skills, participating in drug and alcohol recovery programs, learning how to care for their mental illness, and much more. They may also come to Sanctuary Centers with uncomfortable memories about being in hospitals or other programs, and EMDR can help clients process these experiences so they feel more comfortable and at home in our program. Many clients also have childhood issues that still bother them, which can be treated with EMDR therapy as well.
Using EMDR to Process Past Trauma
In my time as a therapist, I have found that EMDR therapy can help clients with a wide range of issues. One of my favorite examples involves a client who was bitten by a neighbor’s dog when she was five years old. When she saw a mother dog nursing new puppies, she rushed with excitement to pet all the tiny dogs. The mother dog, however, became protective and bit my client’s arm, which in turn sent her running to her mother, crying and confused by what had occurred. She couldn’t understand why she had been bitten. This experience negatively affected her and gave her a fear of dogs that she carried from that day forward. It didn’t matter that she had learned more about animals since that early experience and understood in theory how protective they can be with their young. This was not enough to overcome her phobia.
It was not until we used EMDR to process her memory as an adult that she could understand that truth in a visceral, experiential way. As we revisited a small degree of her former fear, she remembered that the mother of the puppies had been growling gently when she approached, to warn her to stay away while the puppies nursed. My client had totally forgotten that. She took a big breath in, exhaled, and told me she understood what originally happened on a much deeper level now. As a child, she had been too excited to pay attention to the mother dog’s warning. Armed with new information, she remembered the incident differently. It finally made sense. The effects of this realization were far-reaching. My client had felt uneasy around dogs all her life, especially ones that resembled the dog that bit her all those years ago. She wasn’t afraid anymore. She even said she might want to own a dog of her own someday, but she would have to think more about that.
For years, I have seen the EMDR approach help clients deal with many problems, ranging from bullying to the stigma of mental illness to traumatizing family issues. EMDR helps individuals make more sense of what has happened to them. As we have seen in the example of my former client, with her new visceral understanding of being bitten by a dog as a child, the results can be powerful. The number of issues EMDR can be used for is limited only by the clinician’s imagination. If you believe you or someone you love might benefit from EMDR therapy, call us at Sanctuary Centers to discuss potential treatment options.
About the Author
Sharon Ybarra, PhD, MFT
Sharon Ybarra, PhD, MFT is an EMDRIA-Certified Case Manager and Therapist for the Mental Health Inpatient Care Program (Sanctuary House) at Sanctuary Centers. Previously, Sharon served individuals and couples in her private practice in Santa Barbara. She has spent 25 years working with people with mental illness and 21 years work with individuals with trauma, using the EMDR process. She has offered groups at Sanctuary on Trauma Recovery, High Level Wellness, Problem-Solving with CBT and will soon offer one on Mindfulness.
