Bumping this thread because I am still doing EMDR in about half my sessions, and wanted to share that I have found it really, really helpful. Sometimes it's just like flipping an emotional switch. I'll be vaguely bothered by something, whether old or new, and we'll do a long set on it. Inevitably, I'm able to release and process - if not in the first set, then the second or third. Sometimes I'll just burst into tears, or if it's anger, punch the pillows, then burst into tears and acknowledge the hurt behind the anger. And so many other physical reactions occur; it's astounding how the body knows what's going on in the subconscious mind. For me, it's such a good technique. It's enabled me to say, "That hurt," or, "That was hard," or, "I didn't deserve that," and acknowledge long-buried things in my past. I feel like it's enabled me to see situations for what they really were...something my long-time friends have always done, but that I minimized as a defense mechanism.
Just recently I noticed that the initial trauma with which we started EMDR, the dogbite, has become far less difficult to think about and talk about - and I don't dream about it now. I had nightmares for the first time in a while last week, and although there was a lot of other scary stuff, the dog/wolf figure was conspicuously absent.
I've found it does work better when T is alternately tapping on my knees and I have my eyes closed. I have a hard time following her fingers going back and forth and back and forth with my eyes...I start counting because it reminds me of a metronome from when I played piano.
I am sometimes a mess afterward because of everything it stirs up and unearths, but am learning how to combat or deal with that better. It's really difficult sometimes, but worth it.
