Re: EDMR

[jeffl]

I'm new here, I started EMDR in some frustration after nearly a decade of CBT didn't really get me concrete results. But after a few months of EMDR I'm not real sure that's working either. My late mom was a MN and my father was the classic "flying monkey" and I didn't even understand the clinical def'n of a narcissist until I was 56 years of age. My stress level was so high I'm inclined to state it actually played a significant role in creating my strabismus (since corrected surgically) which made it even HARDER to make friends, and I didn't know I had it because I couldn't see my whole face in a mirror with both eyes! I'm inclined to think that people like myself who I'm calling "year zero" ACoNs (abused from birth) aren't all that likely to get much relief from unassisted EMDR, but of course I defer to professional opinion (I never studied topics very far from engineering). I also can't sleep a wink at might without taking seroquel and I did win a SocSec ddisability award. I'm inclined to think Pete Walker has the correct approach because I read and thoroughly approve of his book on C-PTSD (I read what you said on another post about relational therapy, that may also be part of the answer), problem is he's pretty booked up and I couldn't afford to live in Berkeley and I'm getting my current therapy on Medicare which won't even pay for the 90 minute EMDR sessions I should probably be getting and as I understand it Pete doesn't accept Medicare anyway and I don't know of any "third parties" that would be accessible to me (I'm in Ventura County CA but willing to relocate). Any suggestions on which way I should go next would certainly be appreciated.

[Kizzie]

Hi Jeff and a warm welcome to OOTS      I moved your post into a separate thread all of it's own so members can respond to your questions, and not take away from Rigs questions/posts.   

I didn't have success with EMDR myself but that was two years ago and my T then was not trained in Complex PTSD, just PTSD which is similar (CPTSD and PTSD share three symptoms - flashbacks/nightmares, hypervigilcance, and avoidance), but CPTSD has other symptoms as well and more importantly, involves an accumulation of interpersonal trauma (abuse, neglect, exploitation, etc) whereas PTSD is typically a response to single or short-term, non-personal trauma such as crime, accidents, combat, etc. 

According to my new T standard EMDR can help to relieve some of the symptoms that relate to those non-personal, single incidents (e.g., you were in a bad accident), but doesn't work as well with the load of trauma that accumulates when it has been/is ongoing.  That said, many T's are trained or training to work with EMDR for Complex PTSD, it's a matter of finding one near you if that the type of therapy you want to pursue.  There's info here http://www.emdr.com/ and you can always Google for more. 

If you want a relational T, from all that I am reading it's best to look for one who is trained in trauma-informed practice, and specifically in CPTSD related trauma (not just PTSD).   There's some good info here about that - http://outofthefog.net/C-PTSD/forum/index.php?topic=2518.0.  There's also a list of searchable databases here - http://outofthefog.net/C-PTSD/forum/index.php?topic=881.0.  Given you're in the US so there should be some T's in your area who provide relational, trauma-informed care. 

All the best in finding a T Jeff     Pleas keep posting and also let us know how the hunt for a T goes/went.