WHAT IS TRAUMA THERAPY?

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) is a psychotherapeutic treatment that helps you understand your thoughts and feelings and how they influence your behaviours. CBT is commonly used to treat a wide range of mental health challenges, including depression, anxiety, and phobias.

Identifying Negative Thoughts

Awareness: The first step is becoming aware of the automatic negative thoughts that can contribute to emotional difficulties, unhealthy behaviours, and distorted perceptions.

 Identification: The therapist helps the individual identify these thoughts, which often occur without conscious awareness.

Challenging Negative Thoughts:

Examination: Once identified, these thoughts are examined for their accuracy and helpfulness. The therapist and client work together to challenge these thoughts and replace them with more realistic and balanced ones.

Evidence Gathering: 

This may involve gathering evidence for and against these thoughts, considering alternative viewpoints, and examining the impact of these thoughts on the individual's life.

Developing New Patterns of Thinking:

Cognitive Restructuring: The goal is to replace negative thought patterns with more positive, realistic ones. This is known as cognitive restructuring.

Behavioural Experiments: Clients are often asked to test out new ways of thinking in real-world situations, reinforcing the new patterns.

Behavioural Techniques:

Skill Development: CBT also involves learning and applying new skills to handle situations differently. This might include stress management, problem-solving, and coping strategies.

Exposure Therapy: For conditions like phobias, exposure therapy might be used, gradually exposing the individual to the feared object or situation in a controlled way to reduce fear.

Homework Assignments:

Practice: Clients are typically given homework assignments to practise the skills learned in therapy sessions. This helps reinforce the new behaviours and thought patterns outside of therapy.

CBT has been extensively researched and is evidence-based. It has been found to be effective for a wide range of mental health issues, including but not limited to:

• Depression
• Anxiety Disorders
• Panic Disorders
• Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
• Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
• Eating Disorders

• Goal-Oriented: CBT is typically focused on specific problems and goals.
• Time-Limited: It is generally a short-term treatment, with a specific number of sessions.
• Collaborative: The therapist and client work together actively, with the client taking an active role in their own therapy.
• Structured: Sessions are structured, with specific techniques and strategies used to address the client’s issues.

In conclusion, CBT is a practical, solution-focused approach that empowers individuals to take control of their thoughts and behaviours, leading to lasting changes and improved mental health. By learning to identify and challenge negative thinking patterns and developing new, healthier behaviours, individuals can significantly improve their quality of life.

Eye Movement Desensitisation Reprocessing (EMDR) is a psychotherapy approach designed to help you process and integrate traumatic memories and reduce their distress. Developed by Francine Shapiro in the late 1980s, EMDR is particularly effective for treating post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) but has also been used to address various other mental health challenges.

There are 8 phases to EMDR and these are listed below. Some phases take longer than others but are specific to each individual client’s needs. For example phase 1 can take 1-3 sessions depending on the complexity. 

History Taking

The therapist gathers a detailed history of the client and identifies specific traumatic events or disturbing memories to target.

Preparation:

The therapist explains the EMDR process to the client and teaches self-soothing techniques and coping strategies to ensure the client feels safe and supported.

Target Selection:

The client and therapist identify specific traumatic memories or disturbing experiences to focus on during the sessions. These targets include the image, negative belief, and physical sensations associated with the memory.

Desensitisation:

Bilateral Stimulation: The core component of EMDR involves the client focusing on the traumatic memory while simultaneously experiencing bilateral stimulation (BLS). This is usually done through guided eye movements (following the therapist's fingers or a light bar), but can also involve tactile (tapping) or auditory (tones) stimulation.

Processing: As the client recalls the traumatic memory and follows the BLS, the therapist encourages the client to notice any thoughts, feelings, or sensations that arise. The process continues until the memory becomes less distressing and more neutral.

Installation:

The therapist helps the client replace the negative belief associated with the trauma with a positive belief. For example, changing "I am helpless" to "I am in control."

Bilateral stimulation is used to strengthen and integrate this positive belief.

Body Scan:

The therapist guides the client through a body scan to identify any residual physical tension or discomfort related to the traumatic memory.

If any negative sensations remain, they are processed using BLS until they are resolved.

Closure:

Each session is ended with techniques to ensure the client feels stable and safe, even if the targeted memory has not been fully processed.

The therapist provides coping strategies for the time between sessions.

Re-evaluation:

At the beginning of the next session, the therapist assesses the client’s progress and determines if further processing of the same memory or different memories is needed.

EMDR is considered an evidence-based treatment for PTSD and has been endorsed by organisations such as the American Psychological Association (APA) and the World Health Organization (WHO). Research has shown that EMDR can be effective in reducing the symptoms of PTSD and other trauma-related conditions. Additionally, EMDR has been used to treat other issues, such as anxiety, depression, phobias, and complicated grief.

EMDR therapy typically involves 6-12 sessions, but the duration can vary based on the individual’s needs and the complexity of their trauma.

• The exact mechanisms of EMDR are not fully understood, but several theories have been proposed:

•  Adaptive Information Processing (AIP) Model: EMDR posits that trauma disrupts the brain's natural information processing system, leaving traumatic memories unprocessed and stuck in their original, distressing form. EMDR helps to reprocess these memories, allowing them to be integrated into a more adaptive, non-distressing state.

•  Bilateral Stimulation: The use of bilateral stimulation may facilitate the connection between the two hemispheres of the brain, aiding in the processing and integration of traumatic memories. It might mimic the rapid eye movement (REM) stage of sleep, during which the brain processes emotional experiences.