Creative cognitive interweaves with EMDR

Working with severely damaged clients, we can hardly expect EMDR-processing to go smoothly by itself. ‘Just staying out of the way’ is not enough to help these clients process their traumatic material. A more active approach is called for to bring traumaresolution. In EMDR this type of intervening is called ‘(cognitive) interweaving’. The therapist may need to intervene on the process level with process interweaves, in order to keep the client within his window of (affect) tolerance. Or the therapist has to intervene on the content level with content interweaves; when the client gets stuck in a specific problem he is unable to solve with the information he has available. In this workshop the participant learns to use process interweaves to modulate the arousal level of the client. In addition to this a toolkit of useful content interweaves is presented, cognitive and non-cognitive, e.g. sensory, physical, and religious interweaves. Metaphors for all kinds of blocks, bits and pieces of psycho-education for specific stuck points, unorthodox, creative or hilarious interweaves to get round resistance, and interweaves to bring reconciliation and forgiveness.

Conference

English

Joany J. Spierings

Spierings, J. J. (2008, June). Creative cognitive interweaves with EMDR. Presentation at the 9th EMDR Europe Association Conference, London, England