Deb’s practice is based on her passion for helping those with trauma-related disorders. Her focus on this passion is evident in all aspects of her work -- individual and group therapies, writing and speaking engagements, and consulting work.

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An overwhelming experience that is outside the stress usually associated with daily living and poses a threat to the integrity of an individual’s physical or emotional well-being.

Severe trauma may include such things as natural disasters, accidents, war, child sexual abuse, rape, and assault, among others. Psychologists sometimes differentiate between big “T” traumas, such as these, and little “t” traumas, such as divorce, job loss, chronic illness, and so on. The effects of little “t” traumas can be just as serious as other traumatic experiences, but they may not be recognized as traumatic because they occur more frequently in the general population.

What makes these situations traumatic to one person, but not to another, is the way the experience is perceived by the person. Other factors include the severity of the stressor, the duration, and the person’s support system and coping style.

Trauma is best treated by someone with experience and training in traumatic stress, grief and loss, eye-movement desensitization reprocessing (EMDR), and/or energy therapies, such as thought field
therapy (TFT) and emotional freedom technique (EFT).

CRITICAL INCIDENT STRESS REDUCTION

Critical incidents are situations that occur, often without warning, leaving a threat to the integrity of the system that is affected. People affected by critical incidents will experience traumatic stress
responses ranging from mild to severe. These responses will produce physical, cognitive, and emotional reactions.

Critical incidents can occur in business, religious, educational, or other settings involving groups of people. Examples of critical incidents include such things as school shootings, the serious injury or death of an employee, natural disasters, robberies, work-related accidents, airline crashes, and so on.

In the course of preparing for or managing a critical incident one or more of the following services may be appropriate:

• Education and training focused on recognizing, understanding, and managing the traumatic stress response.
  
• Intervention -- psychological stress debriefings for persons directly affected by a critical incident
  
• Assessments of at-risk people

  and/or

• Crisis management consultation directed specifically at helping your leadership team to effectively manage a critical incident
  
• Post-trauma therapy, with a goal of decreasing the psychological or physical symptoms commonly associated with trauma and including such things as the following:
  • Individual psychotherapy
  • Eye-Movement Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR)
    Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) and/or Thought Field Therapy (TFT)
  • On-site group therapy

EYE-MOVEMENT DESENSITIZATION REPROCESSING (EMDR)

EMDR was developed by Dr. Francine Shapiro as a form of accelerated information processing. It is based on current understanding of brain functioning and may be related to what occurs during REM or dream sleep, where eye movements aid in processing unconscious material. It appears that traumatic events are processed and stored differently than other experiences.

This can then lead to the intrusive symptoms associated with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), such as avoidance, numbing, flashbacks, disturbed sleep, and so on. EMDR helps to unlock the nervous system so that the brain can do its work.

EMDR treatment involves a specific approach. First, the therapist addresses the original incident that is creating distress for the client and elicits the negative belief the individual holds about the incident. Then, the therapist uses eye movements to allow processing to occur. Third, the therapist works with the client to install a positive belief about the incident they are addressing, with the result being fewer symptoms and a greater sense of self-mastery. The client then keeps a running log of any disturbing thoughts or feelings related to the incident so that they can be addressed at the next session.

The exciting thing about EMDR is that it is the client’s own brain that is doing the healing and he or she is in charge of how fast the therapy progresses. This is extremely important for persons who have experienced childhood abuse or other severe trauma where they have felt powerless.

EMOTIONAL FREEDOM TECHNIQUE (EFT)

EFT was developed by Gary Craig and is based on Dr. Roger Callahan’s Thought Field Therapy (TFT) treatment. EFT and TFT are often referred to as energy therapies and are based on the mind/body connection and the corresponding belief that client complaints will have a physiological component, as well. However, in our society, we have become quite adept at ignoring the interaction between our feelings and our bodies.

Often, clients will present with a specific issue to work on, but will be unable to access anything on an emotional or somatic level. Instead, they will talk about the issue, but find that they are unable to move beyond it. This disconnection of mind/body can lead to numerous psychological and physiological complaints.

EFT treatment consists of identifying a specific issue, the thoughts and feelings associated with it, and how it is experienced in the body. Then the client is taught how to tap specific acupressure points while thinking about the problem. This technique is often used to treat phobias, traumatic stress responses, and extreme emotional responses that the client feels unable to manage. It is also used with clients who are “blocked” in therapy and need an intervention that will help them to continue to move forward.