EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing) is increasingly acknowledged (ISTSS, NICE, WHO) as a powerful psychotherapeutic treatment approach for clients living with the traumatic aftermath of adverse life experiences. With the adoption in the ICD-11 of new diagnoses embracing Complex as well as single-episode PTSD, EMDR is proving effective in addressing both specific-incident adult trauma (rape, war, RTAs, natural disaster etc) and also the deeper, more complex impact of attachment-informed developmental dysfunction from childhood. EMDR has been recommended as an effective psychotherapy for PTSD and other trauma and stressor-related disorders by organisations worldwide including US, Britain, France, the Netherlands and Israel; and practitioners have increasingly started incorporating EMDR techniques as viable additions to psychoanalytical and cognitive approaches.

Mindfulness practice, meanwhile, has formed the basis of a wide range of psychotherapeutic techniques that have found application in alleviating the manifestations of depression, stress, anxiety and addictions. These scientific observations have emerged with a practice in which the knowing of consciousness is differentiated and then linked with the knowns, utilizing the visual metaphor of a “wheel of awareness” in which the hub is the experience of being aware, the rim that which we can be aware of. The symbolic term MWe integrates the inner aspect of a “me” with the interconnected facet of our lives as a “we.”  With this more integrated sense of our identity, MWe can move forward to cultivate personal, interpersonal, and even planetary health and flourishing. This video resource pack explains how we can build a mindfulness-informed therapeutic practice, guided by the EMDR approach, specifically when working with Trauma and its myriad variations.

In response to the current pandemic, which has presented an unprecedented planetary health emergency, and the consequent restrictions on in-person meetings of all kinds, thereby challenging our long-held reservations in mental health professions towards the provision of psychotherapy and counselling remotely and online; the speakers highlight the efficacy levels that can be achieved when delivering EMDR therapy through online sessions; while helping us navigate the constraints offered by this format of therapeutic engagement.

Part 1:

Dr Jamie Marich especially demonstrates how trauma-focussed skills can be adapted for clients who traditionally ‘resist’ affect regulation and stabilization strategies. Uniquely, she doesn’t present these skills as alternatives to our existing modalities but instead highlights how we can incorporate simple, effective, mindfulness and EMDR-informed approaches into our existing clinical models.

Through lecture, discussion, demonstration, and experiential exercises we explore:

• The foundations of mindfulness practice and how these can be translated into clinical settings
• An initial orientation to how the EMDR approach to psychotherapy views trauma, with a close look at how Francine Shapiro drew upon mind body strategies in her development of EMDR therapy
• Ways to use bilateral stimulation / dual attention stimulus as exercises in moving mindfulness
• How a mindful practice can improve clinical outcomes

For participants not trained in EMDR therapy, this part provides an orientation, while for participants already trained in EMDR, this course pack introduces methodologies that allow for bolstering elements of mindfulness practice; all with a view to enhancing our efficacy in delivering EMDR therapy, particularly when it comes to improving attunement to clients and honing clinical decision making.

Part 2:

Dr Dan Siegel explains how with both biological and physics perspectives suggesting that the human perspective of a “separate self”, reinforced with the messages of modern culture, may be only one part of a much larger view of the deeply interconnected nature of reality and the reality of nature, we can propose that part of the journey forward for humanity on this precious planet is to expand our consciousness and integrate our identity—with practices like mindfulness— to embrace a wider view of who we truly are.  In many ways, we are more like interconnected verb-like events rather than only noun-like separate entities.

Part 3:

Dr Jamie Marich and Mark Brayne explore both practical and relational best practices which are now widely available for delivery of EMDR online. Specifically, this part will:

• Coach participants in the best use of technology, ranging from computer setup and best online platforms for this work
• Explain how we can connect remotely with clients in such a way that a warm and contained therapeutic space is available for safe EMDR delivery
• Highlight how best to deliver the sensory bilateral stimulation which is central to EMDR work
• Discuss the latest guidance being provided by a number of international EMDR bodies across UK, USA and Australia

Learning objectives:

• Define emerging best practice in the delivery of EMDR online
• Demonstrate appropriate technology and environment to ensure safe and effective client experience of EMDR online
• Review considerations and approaches to creating a safe therapeutic container for online EMDR
• Outline distinctive considerations for remote EMDR, including case conceptualisation, session focus and structure