Art therapy and EMDR: Integrating cognitive, somatic, and emotional processing for treating trauma

The treatment of trauma-related disorders demands an approach that is integrative and flexible, blending theory and clinical practices that are neurobiologically informed, interpersonally connected, and experientially engaging. Art Therapy and EMDR Therapy are two approaches that have been found to be useful for working with trauma. This chapter describes a unique, trauma-informed model incorporating elements from Art Therapy and EMDR in clinical practice. The underlying assumption for this approach is that there is a neurobiologically wired information processing system that exists across three contexts: cognitive processes and meaning making, physiological awareness and somatic experience, and emotional regulation and interpersonal relatedness. The three elements of this model, which the author has likened to a three-legged stool, include areas affected by traumatic stress: the brain, the body, and the emotions. Thus, the goal of trauma treatment is to help clients find a manageable way to access and reprocess disturbing memories using cognition, emotion, and the body. By addressing symptoms that keep clients stuck and re-living their traumatic experiences, this innovative approach can begin to unpack and revise trauma narratives in an experiential, mindful, and increasingly adaptive way.

Book Section

English

Tally Tripp

Tripp, T. (2022). Art therapy and EMDR: Integrating cognitive, somatic, and emotional processing for treating trauma. In E. Davis, J. Fitzgerald, S. Jacobs, & J. Marchand, J. (2022). EMDR and creative arts therapies (pp. 176-207). New York, NY: Routledge