By Deborah R. Huso
EMDR has been successful in treating trauma from childhood abuse in victims and survivors young and old.
With more than 3 million instances of child abuse reported annually in the United States and probably many more cases going unreported, social workers face an often daunting client list of children and adults who are or have been victims of abuse and neglect. Left untreated, these individuals’ chances of leading lives fraught with substance abuse, incarceration, unwanted pregnancies, and future psychological conditions are multiplied by many degrees.
In the last two decades, however, researchers have made major strides in developing methods for treating victims and survivors of child abuse, including therapies that work as well (and in some cases better) with children as with adults. Among the most successful of these treatments is Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), a therapeutic process that uses eye movements, sounds, and repetitive motions to help clients process and come to terms with traumatic memories more quickly than talk therapy alone. And since many children and some adults are unable to verbalize traumatic experiences, EMDR can often provide the breakthrough that more traditional therapies can’t.
Share This Post!
Arrests of immigrant parents create mental health crisis for children
Damian Zermeño talks to his father over video chat. Saúl Zermeño, a single parent, was deported to Mexico in October after living 36 years in the United States. Karla Gachet for KFF Health News [...]
Risk and Protective Factors
CSF written article Your Content Goes Here Source: CDC Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are not often caused by a single factor. Instead, a combination of factors at the individual, relationship, community, [...]
We’re therapists. Here’s why it’s too soon for kids to return to Camp Mystic.
Sam Owens/San Antonio Express-News CSF written article Your Content Goes Here Source: Houston Chronicle Less than a year after the deadly July 4 flood, Camp Mystic plans to reopen its Cypress Lake location, not [...]
Women who experience trauma are twice as likely as men to develop PTSD. Here’s why
CSF written article Your Content Goes Here Source: American Psychological Association More than half of all women will be exposed to at least one traumatic event in their lifetime, according [...]
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in Children
CSF written article Your Content Goes Here Source: CDC All children may experience very stressful events that affect how they think and feel. Most of the time, children recover quickly and [...]
From Survival to Advocacy: How Chester Street Foundation is Healing Texas
CSF written article Your Content Goes Here Written by: Shawn Alex Nemeth In 2009, Shawn Alex Nemeth was hospitalized and diagnosed with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). It was the culmination of [...]