FCASV Hosts EMDR Training

"EMDR quickly opens new windows on reality, allowing people to see solutions within themselves that they never knew were there. And it’s a therapy where the client is very much in charge, which can be particularly meaningful when people are recovering from having their power taken away by abuse and violation." - Laura S. Brown, Ph.D., author of Cultural Competence in Trauma Therapy: Beyond the Flashback

Imagine twenty-eight licensed and license-eligible clinicians, all of them working with trauma survivors in one or more settings, crammed into a too-small training room with one trainer and three facilitators for three very long days. Okay, now imagine that 10 of those 20 hours of training are supervised practice (with one another) in front of seasoned clinicians…and you can get a good feel for the intensity of the weekend.

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing is a therapeutic technique developed by Francine Shapiro, Ph.D. and now widely used to treat people with traumatic stress. A complex approach to psychotherapy that accelerates the treatment of a wide range of issues related to past traumatic events and present life conditions, EMDR addresses clinical issues relevant to behavior in the social environment. Numerous randomized clinical trials have demonstrated the effectiveness of EMDR with trauma survivors, including but not limited to adult survivors of child sexual abuse, and adult rape survivors.

Because EMDR training is labor intensive, requiring one trainer and several facilitators for each three-day training session, the cost of training is often prohibitive. Fortunately, the EMDR Humanitarian Assistance Program, a 501(c) (3) was established in 1995 to (1) give local mental health professionals the tools to meet the long-term emotional needs of traumatic stress survivors in their own communities by training them in EMDR and (2) promote further research in using EMDR for humanitarian purposes. Funded in large part by donations, EMDR HAP works with a local nonprofit organization to bring EMDR Part I and Part II trainings at a substantially reduced cost to professionals working in nonprofit and governmental agencies. The happy collaboration between the Florida Council Against Sexual Violence and EMDR HAP that led to presentation of EMDR Part I was encouraged by Christine Inger, Ph.D., a psychologist in private practice here in Tallahassee, in response to the need for sexual violence trauma survivors to receive timely, effective trauma-focused intervention. Staff members from several certified rape crisis programs, including the Refuge House, the Putnam County Health Department Sexual and Physical Violence Intervention Program, Family Service Centers of Pinellas County, and the Crisis Center of Tampa Bay, attended the training. Also in attendance were staffers from the local Guardian ad Litem program, Children’s Home Society, Apalachee Center, the University of West Florida Counseling and Wellness Services program, and community-based nonprofits in south Georgia.

FCASV’s collaboration with EMDR HAP will, we hope, be ongoing. Many Part I weekend participants have already receive the consultation required before attending Part II at in-person group consultation sessions held in FCASV’s office and led by Christine Inger, Ph.D., LMFT and Noreen Legare, Ph.D., LMFT. The FCASV-sponsored EMDR HAP Part II weekend has been scheduled for August 13-15 in Tallahassee.

Anyone interested in the efficacy of EMDR with trauma survivors can find information on research outcomes at www.emdr.com, and at www.emdrhap.org.  Information on training dates, locations and costs can be found at both websites, as well. Therapists and advocates wishing to make referrals for EMDR treatment can find an EMDRIA (EMDR International Association) certified practitioner by clicking on the “Find an EMDR Therapist in your area” link on the EMDRIA webpage.