Struggling with EMDR

[unbrokenwarrior]

Hi, so I've been in therapy (this time around) for about 6 months and we've spent that time building up a relationship etc. The past couple of weeks we have been practising grounding work in preparation for this week (thurs) when we start processing some of the trauma. I asked last session what we would be doing and she said to think about the specific trauma and what's the image that comes to mind. Now here is were I have a problem. If she was to ask me to bring up an image in my head of a dog, I could picture a still image of a dog. But asking me to bring up an image to do with the trauma, memories start playing out like a video. Is that normal? Am I supposed to just think of an image or think of the things that happened?

Sorry this is long and I hope I make sense xo

 

[Snowflake]

That is okay. There is no right or wrong answer. If you see just a dog then say that. If you see a series of things then say that. She is trained to work with whatever. My mind is all over the place. I see a lot but she works with that. It will be okay just say what you see and feel.

 

[unbrokenwarrior]

That is okay. There is no right or wrong answer. If you see just a dog then say that. If you see a series of things then say that. She is trained to work with whatever. My mind is all over the place. I see a lot but she works with that. It will be okay just say what you see and feel.

Thank you for replying, so it doesnt have to be an image, it's okay for memories to play out. My mind ends up being taken over by memories coming full force and I guess I felt like I had to sit with one image rather than allowing what was happening.

 

[Snowflake]

Thank you for replying, so it doesnt have to be an image, it's okay for memories to play out. My mind ends up being taken over by memories coming full force and I guess I felt like I had to sit with one image rather than allowing what was happening.

My memories are full force too. The therapist will help break it down to a smaller memory or thought or vision.
You are doing fine-this is why it’s called complex trauma. I’m here anytime for questions just ask away.

 

[Freida]

Ya ... when your brain meets emdr it kinda goes where ever the hell it wants. It's really important to let your t know when you get overwhelmed so that she can tweak how long she keeps you in it. Those data dumps can be brutal. But it is totally worth it when its over. :hug:

 

[frogthroat]

EMDR is a wild ride the first few times and it seemed to make everything worse. Sometimes it takes a few days for everything to process through. The terrible feelings and the distress of an actual event can come up right to the surface after EMDR and it can be really tough but then the distress of the memory is lessened and sometimes completely gone and so it's worth the the bit of grieving you have to go through. At least it has been in my experience.

 

[Rumors]

Hi, so I've been in therapy (this time around) for about 6 months and we've spent that time building up a relationship etc. The past couple of weeks we have been practising grounding work in preparation for this week (thurs) when we start processing some of the trauma. I asked last session what we would be doing and she said to think about the specific trauma and what's the image that comes to mind. Now here is were I have a problem. If she was to ask me to bring up an image in my head of a dog, I could picture a still image of a dog. But asking me to bring up an image to do with the trauma, memories start playing out like a video. Is that normal? Am I supposed to just think of an image or think of the things that happened?

Sorry this is long and I hope I make sense xo

Yes, I played mine like movies and I couldn't really turn it off until the movie was over. It would just restart in my head. The emdr has helped with that but I can tell you the processing part was hard. Feel free to pm me if you have any questions. I have done a lot of emdr. It has helped a lot. I have a lot of childhood crap that I have processed. Hang in there

 

[susannahsays]

Also, keep in mind that EMDR isn't for everyone. Yes, it may work wonders for you as it has for many people. However, I've noticed that there has been a narrative that has emerged that EMDR is some sort of universal solution. That isn't true of any treatment, including EMDR. Sometimes people end up feeling like failures when they have been doing EMDR and things just keep getting worse or nothing changes. They end up pressuring themselves into continuing a treatment that isn't helping or is making things worse. So I just wanted to mention that EMDR, while helpful for many, is not a universal panacea.