Child Therapists Utilizing EMDR

• How Can EMDR Help Children?

  EMDR Therapy can be used with children and adolescents of all ages. Case reports indicate that EMDR has been used successfully with preverbal children, as well as with teens who do not want to talk out loud about the upsetting issues. As with any intervention, the younger the child or the more avoidant the child, the more challenging it is to find ways to engage them and focus their attention on the problem at hand.

  When children are traumatized, have upsetting experiences or repeated failures, they lose a sense of control over their lives. This can result in symptoms of anxiety, depression, irritability, anger, guilt, and/or behavioral problems. Events such as accidents, abuse, violence, death, and natural disasters are traumatic, but we do not always recognize the ways they effect and influence a child’s everyday life.

  Even common upsetting childhood events, such as divorce, school problems, peer difficulties, failures, and family problems, can deeply affect a child’s sense of security, self-esteem, and development. When an upsetting, scary or painful experience happens, sometimes the memory of the experience stays “stuck” or “frozen” in the mind and body. The experience may return in a distressing and intrusive way and the child may cope by avoiding everything associated with the upsetting experience.

  Trauma can result from one event, multiple events, or a series of them. These events can cause children to see the world as dangerous and can alter their ability to function. A child may experience fear of death, panic, powerlessness, and deep sadness. When the trauma is a result of violence perpetrated by a caregiver they trust, it becomes overwhelming and can cause a child to be in a constant state of worry. This, of course, interferes with the child’s ability to trust or to sustain and maintain relationships.

  Most experts agree that the best way to get “unstuck” and become free from the symptoms is through processing of the traumatic experience.  EMDR Therapy helps the child work through facing the memories or troubling events until they are no longer disturbing.   Bilateral Stimulation (right/left brain stimulation) refers to the use of alternating, right-left tracking that may take the form of eye movements, tones or music delivered to each ear, or tactile stimulation, such as alternating hand taps.

  Creative alternatives have been developed for children that incorporate the use of play, puppets, stories, dance, art, walking and even swimming.  EMDR is often used in combination with other therapeutic modalities, such as art therapy, sand tray therapy, play therapy, yoga therapy, and even animal-assisted therapy. A therapist who offers a multifaceted approach, based on the child’s unique needs and interests, is ideal.

• Is EMDR Safe for Children?

  EMDR is effective and well supported by research evidence for treating children with symptoms accompanying posttraumatic stress (PTSD), attachment issues, dissociation, and self-regulation. It has also been effective in treating symptoms related to guilt, anger, depression, and anxiety, and can be used to boost emotional resources such as confidence and self-esteem.

  During the past five years, the World Health Organization and the California Evidence Based-Clearinghouse for Child Welfare (along with other State Child Welfare Agencies) recommended two psychotherapies for children, adolescents, and adults with PTSD: Trauma-focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and EMDR Therapy. Of the two modalities, some of the research describes EMDR as “significantly more efficient.” Many child therapist we have trained in EMDR Therapy, who also know TF-CBT echo these recommendations.

• What Do Kids Say About EMDR?

  Therapy can be a scary prospect to a child. When children learn that our brains are amazing things that have the ability to heal themselves, and that EMDR Therapy can help their brains do just that, they usually react with curiosity and intrigue and the process becomes much less scary.

  The EMDR process is different for each child, because the healing process is guided from within. Some children report that EMDR is relaxing and have an immediate positive response. Other children may feel tired at the end of a session, and the benefit from the treatment comes in the days to follow. For example, after EMDR treatment, a ten-year-old who wore a body cast for a year and was preoccupied with injury, illness, and death due to a traumatic accident, began crying tears of joy and stated, “I’m so happy, it really is over and I am strong!” A five-year-old who had behavioral problems and had worked with his therapist using other kinds of therapy, tried EMDR and stated, “Why didn’t you do this with me before?” An eight-year-old who suffered from repeated nightmares stated, “They just popped out of my head, the monsters are gone.” Other children say little at all, but their behavior changes and parents state: “Things are back on track.”

• References

  1. EMDR International Association. (2018). Retrieved from https://s3.amazonaws.com/thinkific/file_uploads/71919/attachments/6d1/949/91e/EMDR_and_Children_Brochure_English_%28003%29.pdf
  2. California Evidence-Based Clearinghouse for Child Welfare. (2010). Retrieved from http://www.cebc4cw.org
  3. Gomez, A. (2008). Beyond PTSD: Treating depression in children and adolescents using EMDR. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the EMDR International Association, Phoenix, AZ.
  4. Jaberghaderi, N., Greenwald, R., Rubin, A., Zand, S. O., and Dolatabadi, S. (2004). A comparison of CBT and EMDR for sexually abused Iranian girls. Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, 11,358-368.
  5. Trauma Institute & Child Trauma Institute. (2015). Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprocessing. Retrieved from http://www.childtrauma.com/treatment/emdr/
  6. World Health Organization. (2013). Guidelines for the Management of Conditions Specifically Related to Stress. Geneva, Switzerland. Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK159725/

If You Are a Child, Adolescent, or Family Therapist Interested in Utilizing EMDR Therapy with Your Clients…

We Are Excited to Help You!