The second way is EMDR, which is an effective and quick way to deal with trauma and is widely practiced. It is a new therapy that is fast and relatively painless. It is based on the theory that REM or rapid eye movements, which occur during dreaming, is the way that our brain shifts short-term memory to long-term memory. Long-term memory doesn’t have much emotion or immediacy connected to it. Clients hold the most salient aspect of the trauma in their mind as the therapist moves a couple of fingers of their hand in front of their face to induce rapid eye movements. This seems to recreate the trauma and cause a mini abreaction. After just a few sessions clients usually report remembering the trauma without the emotion.
The third and fourth way are sister therapies, but NET™ is by far the more sophisticated, versatile, and effective. Neuro Emotional Techniques™ or NET™ was originally practiced by chiropractors and only later taught to mental health therapists. It is still very difficult to find a counselor proficient in this technique as yet. It is based on Chinese medicine and the Acupuncture and Meridian Systems. It allows a clinician to follow the body’s own present traumas and feelings and discover whether these feelings might be related to past traumas. It then enables a clinician to tap lightly on a few points of the body around the spine and the toxic memory is released. This allows the affected person to be more fully in the present adult mode where effective action and change is easier to initiate. If a persons’ adult abandonment feelings are complicated by feeling the abandonment they felt when they were 10 years old, a person will be less competent in the present situation. NET™ releases old and present traumas residing in the body quickly and effectively.
TFT, or Thought Field Therapy, which is also based on the Meridian System, is another quick and painless therapy and more clinicians are trained in this technique. It is not as versatile as NET™ and its diagnostic abilities are limited in my opinion, but it relieves some fears and phobias quite effectively by tapping on various acupressure points.
All of these “power therapies” seem to work to effect change on levels other than the conscious plane. They are often quicker and more effective than traditional forms of therapy. This is because they focus on the more primitive brains, which are not usually reached by older therapy models. I believe fully that insight is important and this is often provided by traditional counseling, but change is not as quick or complete without accessing the more fundamental brains. This is done most efficiently by the newer therapies.
