437: What helps with releasing trauma Tapping or EMDR?
In this week's podcast, we're talking about what helps with releasing trauma and discussing EMDR and EFT Tapping in response to some questions from our private Facebook Group.
Points covered in this Episode:
When working with trauma and anxiety it is not just about the technique you choose to try; having compassionate support from an experienced practitioner is essential.
It’s important to find a practitioner who has a thorough understanding of trauma and anxiety and even better still, somebody that has lived through it. They are best equipped to support you with empathy and understanding.
What is EMDR?
Eye movement desensitisation and reprocessing (EMDR) is a type of psychotherapy that was developed by psychologist Francine Shapiro in 1987 to help people deal with and heal from experiences that have caused emotional trauma. Through EMDR techniques, which use eye movements, hand tapping, and/or audio stimulation to unblock emotional processes that have been stagnant due to distress.
What is EFT Tapping?
EFT is the abbreviation for Emotional Freedom Techniques an effective self-help tool for calming negative emotions. Tapping is a description of the way EFT is used on the body's natural healing energy points - or meridian points (the same points used in acupuncture to help healing). EFT is like acupuncture for emotional healing, but you can do it for yourself, and there are no needles, just tapping on a sequence of calming meridian points with your fingertips.
Why we prefer EFT Tapping fro releasing trauma
We like EFT Tapping because of its gentle nature - it is not necessary to fully access, or relive trauma, to get help. When EFT was first developed in 1998, it was nicknamed ”the tearless trauma technique” for that reason.
EFT has been used with thousands of people from veterans of war to members of the public who have been impacted by mass shootings, or natural disasters and individuals who have experienced personal trauma.
Tapping offers a variety of approaches.
Listen to the full episode for examples of EFT Tapping being used for recovery from trauma after a burglary and a car crash.
EFT Tapping offers a supportive technique you can apply for yourself between sessions anytime you feel triggered, anxious, or scared.
Tapping can help release the shock and painful emotions around trauma, it can help us honour and tell the story of the event without feeling distressed. The memories remain, but the emotional pain goes.
Trauma is complex, and along with it there are often feelings of anger, shame, or resentment, these feelings are natural responses too.
Trauma can cast a shadow over our present tense as a fear of the possibility trauma re-ocurring. Sometimes we feel we have to be armoured to protect ourselves. We may develop emotional shields that we think keep us safe, but those shields can sometimes be very good at keeping out the good stuff too like emotional connection.
When working with trauma, it’s important to have support to grow your sense of inner meaning, strength and joy. We are not defined by what happened to us, but trauma can make it feel that way.
Feeling shaken, afraid, hyper-vigilant, or thrown back into a traumatic event via triggers or flashbacks is a natural response to trauma, psychologist and trauma expert Dr. Edith Eger calls PTSD Post Traumatic Stress Reaction (not disorder) for this reason.
Whatever healing modality you choose to try, make sure you find a trained professional you feel very comfortable with. You should never feel any pressure or discomfort. It is essential to feel safe to be heard and to be able to take your time and explore any surrounding issues with a sense of safety and understanding. You deserve compassion and quality support if you don't feel you are receiving that we recommend you find a new practitioner.
Thanks for listening to Anxiety Slayer.
Learn more about EFT Tapping
If you’re ready for private coaching support, you can set up a session with Ananga