Therapist Refuses To Do Emdr On Me...

[ReachingOutJ]

OH! and if you have multiple traumas that's a HUGE thing. For me, one trauma triggered another, an...

I have multiple traumas, and I have been diagnosed with C-PTSD. It makes sense to me now why she doesn't want to do this yet, or not at all. Today, she told me that she wants me to be prepared for IFS, so we're taking some time to get to know one another, and she wants me to be able to be calmer before she begins treatment. The truth is that therapy kind of freaks me out a bit, and I end up having loose stools before going to her office, and when i get home. I just got home from a session, and it's been difficult to calm down. I ended up running to the bathroom.

The heat, traffic, and the hassle of getting there is also added stress right now, because I reside in a beach town, and the beach traffic is heavier at the time of day I have my appointment with her. It is the only time she has open, so I took it.

The therapist I had before her was rough. She would criticize me for things such as my baggy clothing; I had lost a lot of weight, from an operation, and from stress. She often got on my case about things, and it felt like she was blaming me. It was weird.

 

[Eagle3]

Yeah, my T uses EMDR very sporadically with me. Only when I'm in a good place. The rest of the time we talk, work on grounding techniques, hypno-therapy, or bodywork. He knows I have multiple and developmental traumas, am quick to dissociate, and have very empty chakras to work with. It pays to wait and take your time with EMDR, it can definitely mess you up fast!

 

[desiderata310]

OOF! If you've already had a bad experience with a therapist, then your new one is right on the money in want to make sure that you have time to get your feet under you. I've been in therapy for... oh... a year and 8 months and just now beginning to feel like I am safe enough to make any real headway. Even THEN my therapist is trying to give me a "few weeks of calm" before digging into the hard stuff.

He's just gotten a place where he gets to see the "real Desi" instead of the freaked out, triggered Desi. Heh... We finally have a base line. It takes a while. Take your time. It's necessary.

 

[desiderata310]

COMPLETE tangent. There are so many DOG avitars on this posting!

 

[ReachingOutJ]

Thank you for your responses, and yes, there are doggie pics. So cute. :)

 

[KwanYingirl]

I agree that you need trust and stabilization before EMDR. My therapist is of the "do no harm" school of thought. Several times he has told me we'd do EMDR the next session, but I have so much anxiety about it, I'm too messed up the next week. We've shelved the whole thing for awhile. It's not even a goal at this time. Speaking of time, PTSD treatment takes carefully paced time. It sounds like your new therapist has her wits about her. I'm sure you will make progress with her

 

[shell]

She sounds just the right therapist, I have been told the same thing from several therapist.

If you are highly dissociative,have complex trauma then it is important to work slowly and safely. EMDR can cause more damage if not used correctly. A good T has more than one method, I am using imagery and somatic experiencing at the moment and it has released so much of the blocked memories I have, and in combination with other methods has added together to increase my stablization, and growth towards healing.

If one thing doesn't work try another, I have got something from each type of therapy I have used. I would love to try IFS.

 

[KuanYin]

I started with my current T specifically to do EMDR to see if it would help alleviate some of the symptoms of my PTSD. EMDR can be really intense and on more than several occasions it has elicited a really disturbing physical and emotional response from me. My T prepped me for what to expect before we began any sessions of EMDR and she worked on grounding techniques with me. some sessions I'm up for it and others I am not and we proceed accordingly. I think your therapist is doing the right thing by taking it slowly and getting to know you first. EMDR can really knock you for six! I wish you good luck.

 

[Fembot]

It takes extra time to tease out the tangles

EXCELLENT analogy! We wouldn't want too break or rip hair out from the root and cause unnecessary pain would we?

 

[IdesOfMarch]

I know it's hard working with someone new. I read a post from you in a different section that your previous therapist became frustrated and chastised you. It's probably hard to distance yourself from that experience...it's like trauma on top of trauma. Please give this new clinician a chance to get to know you and map out a treatment plan for you. Again, I know it's hard. But, I am also confident that you can do it.

 

[Truthful_Whispers]

EMDR helped me some, at least for a while. I wasn't able to go back and "recharge", so my issues slowly crept back into my life. And, I hit a roadblock during my treatment, because of my repressed memories when young.