What is EMDR?

" .. Bessel van der Kolk, a leading Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) expert defines trauma as an “experience unable to be processed and integrated."..
type of treatment that is especially useful for processing trauma experiences. Only those who are extensively trained should be treating clients with this tool .. has been approved by the APA (American Psychiatric Association) and has been researched for its efficacy in over 20 clinical studies. ..

EMDR stands for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. It works by using bi-lateral tones listened to on headphones, tapping, and/or eye movement while thinking about the trauma .. seems to have a direct effect on the way that the brain processes information. Following a successful EMDR session, a person no longer re-lives the images, sounds, and feelings when the event is brought to mind; he still remembers what happened, but it is less upsetting. EMDR appears to be similar to what occurs naturally during dreaming or REM (rapid eye movement) sleep .. "

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Columbia Univ Survey for Women Survivors of CSA

You are invited to participate in an online survey that investigates the benefits and costs of talking to a therapist about the sexual abuse you experienced in childhood. This information will be used to help clinicians be more effective in treating survivors of sexual abuse, as it will allow them to better understand the experience of survivors.This research is being conducted at Teachers College, Columbia University. All responses will be anonymous. The survey takes about 15-20 minutes to complete. Upon completion, you will be entered into a raffle for a chance to win $100.

Eligibility Criteria:

• Must be 18 years of age or older

• Must be female

• Must have experienced at least one incident of sexual abuse in childhood

• Must currently be in therapy or have been in therapy at some point in the past

If you meet the above criteria, please complete this survey by logging onto: www.psychdata. com, enter "129928" in the "Go to survey #" box, and enter the password "Disclosure. "If you have any questions, please contact Sarah Feldman at Columbia.tcsurvey@ gmail.com. *This project, #09-202, has been approved by the Teachers College, Columbia University Institutional Review Board*

Healing Codependence

" .. If you are codependent, you likely grew up with or had prolonged exposure to a set of oppressive rules that prevented the open expression of feelings, and which taught you to avoid conflict. You very likely are a caretaker, you’re controlling and you have a diminished capacity to initiate or participate in loving relationships. So what can you do about it? Here are a list of steps you can take to reduce codependency .. "

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Australian Ad Campaign: Adult Survivors of Child Abuse

“ .. If only it was this easy to get over child abuse .. “

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A Letter To My Non-Survivor Friends: Things I Want to Tell You but Don’t Know How

" .. My friends are all wonderful people with a strong sense of justice. They could easily be any of the posters here. None of them, however, are abuse survivors and perhaps that’s where the problem lies.But most of my friendships have experienced strains once I started talking of my past. So here are some things I want to say: .. "

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Former Miss America Marilyn Van Derbur Speaks Out On Child Abuse

“ .. I’m in touch with more adult survivors than anyone else in America, and we’ve all felt that shame in ourselves — that if people know, we will no longer be respected or admired,” she said .. her message to her fellow survivors is that they should shift their perspective from shame to pride. “It took me 53 years to understand that I didn’t do anything wrong,” she said. “We talk a lot about how we protect our children, and how to teach them that their bodies are their own,” .. The other message is that it’s rarely the “stranger in the park” who is the perpetrator. “Almost always, we are violated by someone we trust,” she said. “Part of my mission is also to say that it happens in the nicest homes .. "

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Olympic Medallists Go Public with Sexual Abuse

" .. Margaret Hoelzer .. the swimmer who won three medals at the Beijing Olympics is ready to share her story and work to make sure what she says happened to her doesn't happen to other kids .. "Some days I feel great about it, and I'm completely at peace with it, completely calm and ready to do this. Then, there are other days where I'm like, 'Oh my God, do I really want to do this?’ ..

Hoelzer, in counseling for more than a year after telling her parents of being abused, decided it was time to return to therapy. During the process, Hoelzer dredged up all sorts of uncomfortable feelings and memories. But she also began to gain a better understanding of herself. "I was looking for a sense of peace within myself, and I was looking for a sense of confidence," Hoelzer said. "Since I've been back in counseling, the biggest thing I've learned is that what (sexual abuse) does. It undermines people's value. It undermines their self-confidence ..

Chris Witty, a Winter Olympic gold medalist in speedskating, .. too, was a victim of childhood abuse, violated by a trusted neighbor from the age of 4 to 11. She, too, hid her secret for years. Finally, after extensive therapy and a triumphant performance at the 2002 Salt Lake City Games, Witty turned to the media to get her story out. Once she went public, Witty was overwhelmed by the reaction. She was bombarded with letters and e-mails, all of them praising her for taking such a bold step. Total strangers came up to reveal their own cases of abuse. Most poignantly, a friend, emboldened by Witty's courage, came forward to reveal being molested. "As soon as I heard that, I knew it was mission accomplished," said Witty, who now lives in the Netherlands. "I don't think I would have had closure about my abuse issue unless I could tell people about it .. “

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Brother and Sister Write Book to Give Voice to Sexual Abuse Survivors

" .. In their newly released book, “The Lie That Binds: Overcoming the Tragic Effects of Child Abuse,” they share their story of abuse at the hands of their father while growing up on a small Ojibwa Indian Reservation in Ontario, Canada. Each and every member of the Sault family of sixteen brothers and sisters was brutally violated in a different, terrifying way. “We wrote this book to give a voice to the millions of people who have had their innocence stolen from them -- an estimated 39 million survivors of sexual abuse exist in America today,” say authors Claire Heath and Larry Sault. “We are living proof that the truth will set you free, and that it is never too late to find forgiveness and strength to get better.” .. "

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Childhood Traumas: An Outline and Overview

" .. There appears to be a group of problems brought on in childhood by the experience of extreme fright generated by outside events. Some of these childhood problems are created by one external shock, and others are created by a multiplicity of blows. Untreated, all but the mildest of the childhood traumas last for years. The child’s responses, in fact, may create a number of different kinds of problems in adult life. There are four characteristics, however, that seem to affect almost everyone subjected to extreme terrors in childhood. These findings seem to last and can be retrieved in histories. They include repeated visualizations or other returning perceptions, repeated behaviors and bodily responses, trauma-specific fears, and revised ideas about people, life, and the future .. "

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Healing Your Inner Child

“ .. The inner child is your core emotional self. No matter how much you think you know intellectually, this is the person inside you who reacts first and unconsciously whenever your buttons get pushed. This usually occurs in situations that evoke emotional memories or patterns that are painful.

As you progress with your inner child, you will be able to see your parents' behavior as signs of their inner child needing to heal from their parents. These unhealed patterns repeat themselves until a generation is able to heal. If you have children, you will pass your unhealed behavior on to them unless you work on your own healing .. "

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Psychological Impact of Child Abuse

" .. According to a new Mayo Clinic study, a history of child abuse significantly impacts the wide range of challenges facing depressed inpatients. Included are an increase in suicide attempts, prevalence of substance use disorder, and a higher incidence rate of personality disorder .. "

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