Have you ever thought: “I don’t want to talk about the past, I’m over it. I have already dealt with my past. I want to live in the present! That may be true, however, that’s not how the human brain is wired. Our brain always references past experiences when making current and future decisions.
While it can be scary to go back into the past and “re-experience” what had already taken place – especially negative experiences – there is a lot of benefit going into the past to heal it, and thus reap the benefits for your present and future as a calmer and happier person.
If we accept that our past experiences influence our current today, then it’s important to acknowledge the past in order to heal our present.
Your brain doesn’t know the difference between a year to 30+ years ago, nor between reality and fiction. What did you experience in the past to make you react to thoughts and present experienced? You’re reacting to an old and traumatic experience that was appropriate then – in the past, but is no longer serving you because you’re no longer who you used to be.
EMDR is a tool which helps desensitise the brain to the [perceived] (remember your brain doesn’t know the difference between reality and fiction) traumatic event, in order to manage the state of anxiety, fear, depression, insomnia, broken relationships, abuse of any sort, and more, that the past experience is contributing to what one is currently experiencing. EMDR sessions help one be less sensitive and eliminate triggers, and thus less reactive, to those past (somehow traumatic) experiences that have not been processed and neutralized.
Trauma can be defined as “any life experience that is overwheling and confusing, that has taken place at any age, that feels difficult to process or understand, and hence keeps you in the 3F’s – Fight, Flight or Freeze – mode”. Trauma is an adverse life experience which has made your brain come to a conclusion that YOU are in a perceived, dangerous, space.
EMDR treatment helps the brain process the trauma one has experienced while it also engages the body (where the trauma is most likely stored) to process the incident, because the brain and body are closely connected and both communicate with each other, which is why one often reacts physically to mental stress.
EMDR does not require the person to explain or relive the traumatic event but instead helps the client recognise and release the emotions and negative thoughts about oneself on a cognitive and physical level and to process the emotion, thus desensitising the mind and body to the event and aiding the mind and body to stop getting triggered by the past event, or related events, in the present and future.
Ingrid is a Psychotherapist and Social Worker in private practice with special interest in clinical work & Somatic Therapies. She is an EMDR, Brainspotting, TIR practitioner, Hypnotherapist, & is registered with SACSSP. To find out more how she can assist & book an appointment, email Ingrid@inneressence.co.za. Sessions are claimable from medical insurance. Please visit her website on http://www.inneressence.co.za.
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