Do you need to be ready for EMDR therapy?
There are a number of factors that can make a difference in how effective and safe the process of EMDR therapy is. There is always those first few times when you do not know what to expect, you may worry whether you are doing something wrong or the initial changes may be subtle and you are not sure they are due to EMDR.
While we may not feel 100% prepared, below are 5 factors that you and your therapist may be considering and working towards before what we know as ‘trauma processing’:
You can cope with some emotional discomfort
This means that you can think of difficult memories or situations that make you feel upset, and even if you do not like or choose to have them, you have ways of dealing with them. Maybe you trust that they will go, or maybe you have tools that can help you through the waves of emotions.
You have some coping skills for difficult emotions
These coping skills include breathing exercises, grounding and attention techniques that help you to feel regulated between the sessions, and during sessions.
You trust your therapist
And you feel comfortable asking questions and expressing your needs with them. I sometimes hear people wondering about what happened in during sessions or whether they did something wrong. It is important that you feel able to ask questions to your therapist about the process.
You trust that EMDR can help
Even if you do not understand exactly how it works. It is important that you do know what your therapist is asking you to do, that you are aware of any unusual things that may happen and what to do if you experience intense emotions. Your therapist can give you the information you need, and pace the steps and phases to your needs.
You know what to do after an EMDR session
If you notice anything unusual between sessions, and/or you know who to contact.
After EMDR sessions, people may find that their emotions fluctuate a little more than usual, but it should not affect their functioning. This tends to go away after a few days, and it is important to identify anything that is beyond this normal part of the process or other contributing factors that are not EMDR related, such as ongoing stressors or challenges in your life, because they may be the cause of your difficulties, and not the EMDR trauma processing.
Below are some signs that you and your therapist may need to spend more time preparing you for EMDR processing
- You feel overwhelmed by emotions often, and you do not have tools or strategies to deal with these emotions.
- If there is a lot going on in your life, unpredictability, not feeling safe, worried and threatened. There are strategies, including EMDR techniques that can help you to feel more able to deal with day-to-day challenges before you work on traumatic memories.
- You often experience dissociation. If your nervous system frequently relies on dissociation, it may shut down, leaving you feeling emotionally numb, disconnected from sensations, and struggling to concentrate or follow your therapist’s suggestions. The first step in addressing this is coming out of dissociation using grounding and stabilisation techniques. Your therapist can also help you recognise when you are in a dissociative state, increasing your awareness and making it easier to regain presence.
EMDR therapists do a thorough assessment and get information about how ready you are, and what skills or areas you need to pay attention to before you start the phase of EMDR that involves processing.
Have you already tried EMDR therapy but you did not get the outcome you expected or thought? You may wish to have a look at my blog ‘why didn’t EMDR therapy work?.
