Relieving suffering and restoring lives: Understanding and treating sexual abuse survivors

Without a thorough understanding of the physical, emotional, and spiritual impact of sexual assault and sexual abuse, therapists may reach an impasse with their clients. With this in mind, supplemental to EMDR training, and clinical experience, therapists must be knowledgable of the emotional, physical, developmental, and spiritual impact of sexual assault and sexual abuse. This presentation offers a holistic approach to the treatment of sexual assault and sexual abuse. Attendees will learn specific techniques for identifying, understanding, and treating it, as well as a greater understanding of the emotional, physical, developmental, and spiritual impact of such traumas. The information provided will enable therapists to conduct developmentally appropriate and clinically sound EMDR treatment. Furthermore, to help EMDR therapists facilitate their clients’ integration of traumatic events, information will be given on combining EMDR with a cross cultural shamanic approach to ego splitting or “soul loss.” Information and techniques will be provided on how to further facilitate processing during EMDR, in order to retrieve the parts of the self, the soul, that were “lost” or “split” during the trauma. Without recovering these parts, clients can be left open and unable to integrate their traumatic experiences. They can continue to experience a sense of not being “whole.” With this in mind, attendees will also learn how to further assist clients’ processing of the behavioural, emotional, physical, and cognitive aspects of traumatic events, thus facilitating clients processing via EMDR. Attendees will learn through a combination of case presentations, activities, and case presentations.

Conference

English

S. Jenkins

Jenkins, S. (2008, June). Relieving suffering and restoring lives: Understanding and treating sexual abuse survivors. Poster presented at the 9th EMDR Europe Association Conference, London, England