Recent trauma processing

This workshop will review the special considerations that come with the processing of a recent traumatic experience. Core components of both the established Recent Event Protocol and the more recently developed R-TEP (Recent Traumatic Episode Protocol) will be described and compared. Participants will learn keys to successful implementation of both protocols. Some clients enter treatment to address a recent traumatic experience. Ongoing clients sometimes come to a session having experienced a recent trauma. What is happening in the brain during these early phases of coping? How are the early stages of post-traumatic processing different from the phenomenon of managing older consolidated trauma memories? As clinicians, how do we intervene? How do we assess if and when to move to desensitization reprocessing? In the past, many veteran EMDR therapists have confidently turned to the very specific Recent Events Protocol for clients with recent trauma. With the advent of the R-TEP Protocol (also highly effective), clinicians are challenged to think more deeply about nuanced assessment of the goals of recent trauma processing and how to best assist their client. For example, the R-TEP protocol uses a telescopic means of offering opportunities for EMD, EMDr and/or EMDR related to the recent trauma with clinical determinations for what/when. Other R-TEP terms like "Google search" for a "point of disturbance" reflect concepts that can enrich any desensitization work. Not sure what this means? Of course not...yet. Come to the workshop to get a feel for conceptualizing this common clinical issue and leave with handouts to aid in the implementation of both protocols.

Conference

English

Mark Nickerson

Nickerson, M. (2011, April). Recent trauma processing. Presentation at the 7th Western Mass EMDRIA Regional Network Spring Conference, Amherst, MA