Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Support Group
Find support with others who have gone through a traumatic experience. Whether you have chronic or acute PTSD, we are here for you.
I'm embarking on EMDR treatment and we started the process of reviewing my trauma timeline. Of course, I have multiple traumas (i.e. childhood abuse and medical) and I feel ultra-sensitive to everything. My husband was clearly upset over something that had nothing to do with me and his reaction triggered guilt and fear in me.
We haven't even started the actual EMDR. Is it normal to be more sensitive during EMDR treatment?
What was your experience like?
We haven't even started the actual EMDR. Is it normal to be more sensitive during EMDR treatment?
What was your experience like?
One of his favorite uses of EMDR is to have the client imagine being on a train (like the trains in Harry Potter, maybe), safe, comfortable, and present with your therapist. Then you look through the window as you recall the traumas of the past. You can see them, but they can't hurt you. The train image helps keep you grounded and feeling safe in the present.
I have been through EMDR with my own therapist, and when I told her about the "train" imagery, she liked it so much that she has integrated it into her own practice. She was certified many years ago and apparently this "train" imagery has only recently been added to the curriculum.
It has really helped me a lot. If you start to go into a flashback, the therapist can remind you that you are just looking at the trauma through the train window, and that you are safe, here and now.
Good luck on your own "journey!"