somatic/body oriented therapy
 

this is not an emdr question so i hope that's okay. it is related though, because it's for trauma related issues.

what exactly does body oriented therapy entail? i am interested in knowing how it's done individually, as well as in a group situation.

thank you

fleurs

Re: somatic/body oriented therapy
 

Well, we do limit our discussion here to EMDR related questions. I'll see if I can put your question in a different context, namely: how are EMDR and somatic psychotherapies the same or different.

Similarities: EMDR and somatic psychotherapy (I'm mostly familiar with Somatic Experiencing) have in common that the person tracks their experience in the present moment, with the therapist guiding the tracking. In the tracking, the material is metabolized and released. Both rely on resourcing the individual.

Differences: EMDR is top down, namely a cognitive target is selected, as well as bodily held material. SE is bottom up, beginning with the body as the biological substraate of experience. EMDR is faster, SE is gentler. EMDR starts at the beginning and goes until the target is neutral. SE moves back and forth between resource and trauma, just nibbling at the trauma. EMDR dives in.

SE requires superior levels of empathy and resonance; EMDR requires empathy but does not require the same level of it to maintain the process.

Re: somatic/body oriented therapy
 

thank you, sandra paulsen.

how about for a person who is in a trauma therapy "program", which includes more than one type of therapy, for instance EMDR, talk, and bodywork? wouldn't the bodywork be sort of unnecessary if EMDR is already in the works? or is it something that can compliment EMDR on the side quite well? or might the 2 in conjunction actually be harmful?

thanks again.

Re: somatic/body oriented therapy
 

I should say that there are other kinds of "bodywork," including everything from Reiki to massage to energy methods to Feldenkranz to Polarities to Cranial-Sacral to I don't know what else.

In general, one must be very careful, whether in individual or group treatment, that someone has overall responsibility to oversee the total "dosage" and methods of treatment so trauma work isn't overdone accidentally.

I have found that when I am doing EMDR for a client, if the work is proceeding well they don't also need bodywork. But if the EMDR targets are exhausted and symptoms remain, or if the work is stalled or the person can't access bodily held traumatic material, then bodywork is a useful adjunct.

I insist on being the one to oversee the whole thing, because usually I know more about the total trauma picture, theory and treatment than the body workers. I value the addition of body work when its appropriate and titrated.

For someone who is dissociative, the risks are greater than for someone who isn't dissociative. A dissociative person is more likely to get flooded with too much accessing of material. A non-dissociative person has less tarumatic material to get flooded with, so its not such a big deal.

EMDR should not be done in a group.

Bodywork can't really be done in a group except for some bare bones accessing strategies.

Trauma work can't be done in a group because there is no way to accelerate or decelerate the material as is needed to accommodate each individual person.

Re: somatic/body oriented therapy
 

thank you, that was very helpful!

fleurs

Re: somatic/body oriented therapy
 

I have often used EMDR and bodywork (reiki and/or energy psychology techniques) simultaneously.

The bodywork and/or energy work can really soften and help in rapidly moving through whatever emotion and bodily stored trauma is becoming activated during the EMDR.

Take care,

Carol Ann