Browse Items (73 total)

EMDR therapy administered to patients with cancer has proven to be effective in the reduction of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms and PTSD diagnosis remission. The main objective of this study was to measure the PTSD scores and diagnosis…

Despite roots that go deep into American history, Katherine Davis’ experience in life has turned her into a woman who deeply understands the diversity of the human spirit.Although Kathy’s ancestors did not arrive on the Mayflower, her family came to…

Mona Zaghrout-Hodali is Head of Counseling in the Rehabilitation services of the East Jerusalem YMCA, which provides services throughout East Jerusalem and the West Bank and extending in training and supervision to other areas in the Middle East and…

Turning points in our lives often contain earth-shaking events precipitating a change in worldview sometimes over time and sometimes in a flash. Margaret, or Peggy as we know her, Vasquez Moore has had a number of these: moving to South America; the…

Lourdes (Lulu) Medina comes from the Republic of the Philippines, an archipelago of 7,107 islands bordered by the Philippine, Sulu, South China and Celebes Seas and the Luzon Strait. In 2013, the Philippines has become the world’s 12th most populous…

In 1995, Mark went from being a Marine to joining the Navy and becoming a “squid”, as there were no medical facilities in the Marines. It was a shock to go from the clean-cut appearance of the Marines to seeing sailors wearing beards and looking like…

How does one choose one’s way in life? Bessel van der Kolk believes that “Lives are accidental and unexplainable. Stuff happens and then life is never the same, and you can’t explain why. We are subject to the whims of the universe.” Even though he…

Gyða Eyjólfsdóttir was born in Reykjavik, Iceland. Gyða’s father, Eyjolfur Thor Georgsson, was working as a taxi driver when he met Dora Olafsdottir, who was working at the taxi station. They instantly became friends. After his marriage ended, he and…

Susana’s love of her family, her community and her country are the guiding principles that inspire the choices in her life. She is the sixth child of seven born to Tarsicio Uribe and Susana Ramirez in Guadalajara in the state of Jalisco and in the…

Carol Forgash is one of our EMDR community treasures. Her parents were immigrants; her motherwas from Belarus, and her father was from Galicia. They came to Brooklyn, New York as childrenand later met at a basketball game in their mid-20s. They only…

Susan Rogers’ recounting of her life is as clear and as straightforward as her teaching. Her father, George Phillips Rogers, was from Corry, Pennsylvania and her mother, Mary Louise Warren, was from Fairfield,Connecticut. They met in college and…

Louise Maxfield has been one of the most prolific and interesting women that I know. She was born in Southend-on-Sea in London to parents who found each other in a hospital ward during WW2 when her father was dying from a ruptured appendix and her…

Ana M. Gomez is our Colombian-born colleague who now lives in the United States. Her mother, Elizabeth Ramirez, and father, Pedro Jose Gomez, met each other in Cali, Colombia. He was in the military and later became a schoolteacher and she was a…

When you first get to know my good friend and colleague, Bennet Wolper, you would not think that his early life was filled with neglect and abuse. He is the person in the room towards whom people gravitate because of his wonderful smile and positive…

Although Jinsong Zhang is a soft-spoken woman, she has had a strong impact on psychiatry in China. She was born in 1966 at the beginning of the chaotic years in China, also known as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution. She is a native of…

Sombat Tapanya grew up in a loving home, where people appreciated learning. His father, Sriwang, was an elementary school teacher and lived in a small province in the North of Thailand. He was known in his community and probably met his mother,…

Mazal Menaham lives in the southernmost tip of Israel called South Arava, near the Red Sea. It is the junction where Israel, Jordan and Egypt come together and is a peaceful part of the country. Her parents were Malka, who was born in Jerusalem, and…

Silvia Guz was born in the municipality of Santo André in the metropolitan region of São Paulo, Brazil. Her father’s family emigrated from Poland during WWI and her mother’s came from Syria. Her parents, Icchok and Stela, grew up in the same town and…

When I think of Sandra Wilson, I think of a kaleidoscope of dynamic shapes and colors coinciding with the different facets of her life: caring friend, wife, mother, grandmother, philanthropist, psychologist, researcher, humanitarian, wilderness…

Over the many years that I have known David Wilson, each time I meet or talk with him I learn something I did not know before about him. Whether he is telling me about his latest invention, or a new concept in research, or something about one of the…

Bob Tinker is no stranger to trauma. It began when he was 5 years old and his mother died of breast cancer. In retrospect, he realized that this event caused a reaction in his father that led to his developing PTSD symptoms resulting in alcoholism.…

When I think back to when I learned EMDR compared to now, I marvel at the numbers of people who are trained in this methodology. I can go anywhere in the world and know that there will be some eager mental health care worker wanting “to talk EMDR.”…

In this time of increasing world-wide disasters -both natural and man-made- and in the wake of September 11 th , I have joined many of my colleagues in thinking about how lucky we are to be able to offer some relief from the grief, loss and trauma…

In a world filled with conflict, confused thinking and cacophony, Steven M. Silver is the person that you want covering your back. Whether it is on a flight mission in Vietnam, dealing with his fellow veterans who have PTSD or tilting with the…

Francine Shapiro…was she a cousin…a long lost relative? That is what Elan Shapiro wondered when he heard about the first EMDR training that took place in Israel in 1989. When Elan was a college student, he worked with Dr. Danny Kahaneman who later…

On July 24, 2011, our friend and colleague, David Servan-Schreiber died at 50 years of age. He was a leader in our field. He brought his special talents to the understanding of healing and went beyond the usual Western medical framework in which he…

There is a man who is taking the French-speaking world by storm and his name is David Servan-Schreiber. He has written a best selling book called “Guérir le Stress, l'Anxiété et la dépression sans Médicaments Ni Psychanalyse” (The English title will…

At a time in all of our lives when conflict, racism and divisions are rampant throughout the world, Reyhana Seedat-Ravat offers an alternative way of being in the world and addressing these issues. She is a model for us all. Reyhana is from South…

The district of Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam is located in northern Sumatra and possesses one of Indonesia’s largest reserves of natural gas and oil. This has resulted in conflict between the residents of Aceh and their government over wealth, and…

Udi Oren comes from a tradition of service to family, community and country. Yechezekel Oren, Udiʼs father was born in Poland and came to Israel as a child; his father assisted in the building of Tel Aviv. His mother, Ruth, was born in Israel; her…

AJ (short for Arnold Jay) Popky has always been an innovative thinker and curious about all life has to offer. Born to Rose and Charles Popky in Wilkes- Barre, PA, AJ was the youngest of three. His older brother by 11 years, Murray, and his older…

If ever there were a good candidate for leprechaun, Michael Paterson would be our man. Light of step, keen of wit and big of heart, this engaging Irishman knows about life from the depths of anguish to the transcendent mysteries of the…

What is immediately noticeable about Regina D. Morrow when you first meet her is her heart and capacity for joy. She embodies the best of the legacy of her family. Harold Forbes Davis and Rebecca Nan Stringer Davis came from Thomasville, GA. They met…

The circumstances of Richard Mitchell’s birth were symbolic of many of the things that would become important in his life: separateness; trauma; madness; large institutions and connections to Europe. Born in the Lennoxtown lunatic asylum -that was…

Extraordinary women flourish in our EMDR organization. Sushma Mehrotra from Bombay, India has followed in the footsteps of Francine Shapiro as a woman with vision, compassion and the drive to push through, despite the obstacles in front of…

John J. McCarthy (Jack) and Margaret S. Bacon (Peggy) met in 1992, while participating on a consultation team. Both were psychologists who shared a passion for learning, understanding diversity, challenging situations and travel. Peggy was born in…

Since John Marquis recently told me that he rides his bicycle almost 60 miles a week going home and to work, I have been having this wonderful vision of him riding across the skies of California…sort of like E.T.! Perhaps, this is a loose…

Elfrun Magloire was born Elfrun Saynisch in Hemer, Germany during World War 2. She was conceived while her father was on leave but he never returned. Her mother became a milliner to support her family and worked in her mother’s shop and Elfrun…

Jennifer Lendl is the epitome of the Renaissance woman. She is a multilingual world traveler, an academic with advanced degrees in history and psychology, a champion swimmer, a champion of women’s causes, a public and human relations specialist, an…

An inquisitive and adventurous nature is often an attribute that describes early pioneers in EMDR. In 1992, Christopher Lee was given an offer he could not refuse. He received a call from Don Heggie, a very successful, Australian businessman who had…

Emre Konuk is a man of service. Since he was a young man, he has been interested in understanding and improving the human condition and thought he would write about human nature when he got older. However, as he matured, he followed in his parent's…

Those of us on the East Coast of the United States have created a family of facilitators over the many years we have been working together. Because of the small number of our group in the beginning, we have had the delight and the privilege of really…

Who is this man, Jim Knipe, who lives in the mountains of Colorado? Here is what his friends and colleagues say: “I remember the first impression of him when I went up to the bus which took us to the lecture hall in Istanbul. I was the only one who…

At EMDR Institute trainings, Frankie Klaff likes to introduce herself as “Borderline.” The joke is that she lives on the border of Delaware, Maryland and Pennsylvania; however, the truth is that there is no one more firmly rooted in her self and the…

What provides the impetus for us to choose the paths that we take? For Ignacio “Nacho” Jarero, his drive to care for othersʼ came from the influences in his early childhood. Nachoʼs father, Jose Jarero, began his career as a surgeon in emergency…

On a sunny, lovely day, at the EMDRIA 2002 Conference in San Diego, I had the chance to visit with Masaya Ichii, in the Rose Garden, and learn about him and his life story. Despite the difficulties of the Japanese-English language barrier, Masaya…

Arne Hofmann is influential in the world of trauma education and healing, especially in his native country, Germany. Those who know Arne have been astounded and delighted by the determination and the dedication he has shown in introducing, edifying…

It was in the early days of EMDR that I first met John Hartung. He always had a sparkle in his eye and he was interesting and enthusiastic. Over the years I have found out what an amazing teacher and what a wonderful friend he is. John is a man of…

David Hart won the EMDRIA Distinguished Service Award at the September 2000 conference. Who is this man and what is the story about his life of service? David Hart was born in Lichfield, England in 1935. His early years were spent in travel. His…

In this edition, I am delighted to introduce you to Mark Grant from Sydney, Australia. Mark has been involved in using EMDR from early on and is an active member of the EMDR Association of Australia (EMDRAA). In his current capacity as chairman of…