• 💖 [Donate To Keep MyPTSD Online] 💖 Every contribution, no matter how small, fuels our mission and helps us continue to provide peer-to-peer services. Your generosity keeps us independent and available freely to the world. MyPTSD closes if we can't reach our annual goal.

Seeing two therapists at the same time?

Status
Not open for further replies.
When I had EMDR I had the EMDR therapist and my regular therapist. The key is defining the roles each serve. During EMDR you will have stuff to deal with outside of EMDR. Use your regular therapist for that, and daily functioning even including your ptsd symptoms. EMDR for some can be so intense you need that support of your regular therapist. Focus on your EMDR therapist work around the EMDR work. During EMDR your going to have a lot to process having the two can be beneficial. You just have to maintain boundaries on the role of each therapist. avoid engaging (putting one therapist against another) in splitting if you disagree with one of the therapists. Best to embrace that DBT concept “observe non judgmentally”, observe your trauma instead of emotionally re-living it.

unfortunately I had to stop EMDR after a month. My trauma was institutIonal and extreme, rated an 80 on a scale of 1 to 100 By my therapist. My EMDR stirred up so much emotions I got overwhelmed and started having body memories. CBT has worked better for me, because I am able to pace the CBT. EMDR compresses your trauma work in your processing thus EMDR is not for everyone. We are all different. And our EMDR experiences are individually different. But don’t let this discourage you because EMDR works wonders for some. Give it a chance to work.

While it was not the best for me, it did help me uncover a lot of stuffed events, and it did help me understand the relationships in my trauma, which is important. So in that sense it was successful in the furthering my trauma recovery.

good luck
 
I don't think she would see it as ideal that we pause our work together a) so suddenly and b) during a major global crisis – especially as this wouldn't be me consciously and positively deciding I want to pause but rather someone else telling me I have to stop. But I really don't know...she may have a very hard line 'no' on parallel therapy...

If she is not EMDR trained, why would she ask you to pause your sessions with her? It's proven that EMDR helps PTSD and in my own experience, I needed tradional therapy AND EMDR. If my therapist wasn't EMDR trained, he'd send me to someone who was, to do that along with his tradional therapy. And when he was talking about retiring (now not happening) he was talking about opening private practice to do ONLY EMDR. But those people would still have tradional therapists.

I dunno. I'd tell your main therapist. The EMDR therapist doesn't need to know (if you prefer but again, don't see an issue with both knowing unless its against the rules of the NHS or something) as EMDR can be done with or without them knowing. But, I'd say tell your regular therapist. Not because for "fessing up" but because you may need additional therapy or focused therapy during EMDR or surrounding your EMDR sessions and about EMDR specifically. So, I see value in telling your regular therapist for those reasons.
 
Just as a warning, I caution everyone that experiences severe dissociation to do EMDR with a professional that doesn't know how to modify the treatment for that. It can rapidly destabilize the patient.

I have done EMDR with my therapist a few times now, but it is not the main modality and she modifies it a lot not to overwhelm my system.
 
The key is defining the roles each serve. During EMDR you will have stuff to deal with outside of EMDR. Use your regular therapist for that

Thanks. Yes, this is what I was thinking so it’s good to know that others have used it successfully that way - even though it was only for a short while for you because of the EMDR process itself.

EMDR compresses your trauma work in your processing thus EMDR is not for everyone.

Yes, I have to admit I’m pretty nervous about this. I have always gone at a snail pace in therapy so I do worry that this will suddenly be very direct, fast and confronting and that I’ll get overwhelmed and either get badly triggered or else shut down/dissociate.

If she is not EMDR trained, why would she ask you to pause your sessions with her?

I think because some therapists are just not open to working with a client who is also working with someone else.

you may need additional therapy or focused therapy during EMDR or surrounding your EMDR sessions and about EMDR specifically.

This is what I thought. And I did then speak to my T last week and she was of the same view - that she would be on the scene to support around the EMDR process.

she modifies it a lot not to overwhelm my system.

EMDR T does know I have a background of dissociation, which is much, much improved now...I guess before we get into things properly I should probably ask her what her approach is with patients who dissociate...
 
Yes, I have to admit I’m pretty nervous about this. I have always gone at a snail pace in therapy so I do worry that this will suddenly be very direct, fast and confronting and that I’ll get overwhelmed and either get badly triggered or else shut down/dissociate.

My therapist does something he calls "EMDR light". It has an actual name but I forgot it. My first actual EMDR session years ago went very badly so he does these EMDR light type of sessions where we are focused on either a side direct of my trauma (like my dad who was not there during the worst of it) instead of the worst parts of the trauma. Or he has done it with things I struggle with at work. Just not so directly on the worst trauma parts. I think we'll get back there but this does help a lot in the meantime and it's always focused on thinking I struggle with because of the worst trauma so its still hitting those thinking patterns and emotions but its just not thinking directly about the worst trauma. If that makes sense.

I guess before we get into things properly I should probably ask her what her approach is with patients who dissociate.

Yeah, great question.
 
Thanks. Yes, this is what I was thinking so it’s good to know that others have used it successfully that way - even though it was only for a short while for you because of the EMDR process itself.

Yes, I have to admit I’m pretty nervous about this. I have always gone at a snail pace in therapy so I do worry that this will suddenly be very direct, fast and confronting and that I’ll get overwhelmed and either get badly triggered or else shut down/dissociate.

A good EMDR therapist will pace you within your capacity to process and won’t overwhelm you. For me the EMDR therapist would not slow the pace down.

I think because some therapists are just not open to working with a client who is also working with someone else.

True, Keyword being “some”, the main reason is some patients will use the therapist to counter the other, its known as “splitting”.

This is what I thought. And I did then speak to my T last week and she was of the same view - that she would be on the scene to support around the EMDR process.

EMDR T does know I have a background of dissociation, which is much, much improved now...I guess before we get into things properly I should probably ask her what her approach is with patients who dissociate...

I think almost (I may be wrong) every one in EMDR does. I disassociated during my EMDR big time both during and after, I think the answer you get will be along the lines he/she keeping/returning back to present moment. Keep in mind that disassociating is part of your brain processing, and one important part of EMDR is post processing. Don’t look at disassociation as a negative, look at it as a tool in your brain that allows you to process such horrible stuff. Sort of like a steam valve analogy, too much pressure it opens to release it, Use it to your benefit. It’s part of the process that helps keep you sane.



<modEdit to fix formatting>
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top