How to Heal From Trauma Faster

“I just want to get it all out,” my client said. Starting to unpack his childhood meant coming to an understanding just how much there was to get out. Clients who come in for trauma treatment often have multiple traumatic experiences or what may feel like a lifetime of trauma going back to childhood. These clients go to therapy to heal from the past that is affecting their present experience. The issue is how much time should be devoted to coping with the present symptoms and how much time should be spent processing the past. Often the beginning stages of trauma therapy involve education about how trauma affects the brain and skills to manage symptoms such as grounding, deep breathing, mindfulness, and containment. Once the client has the initial skills to manage emotional distress, the therapist will move to their preferred treatment approach to processing trauma. In the case of my clients, that is Eye-Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy. EMDR therapy is an evidence-based treatment for trauma, meaning it has been researched and found to be effective. 

The Problem With The Weekly Trauma Therapy Format

A client may come to therapy requesting EMDR to recover from a sexual assault in college that is affecting her ability to be intimate with a current boyfriend. Obviously, the client wants to experience recovery as quickly as possible, so she does not lose the relationship with her boyfriend. However, a few sessions in, she is struggling with how to set boundaries with her mother. The trauma work gets put on hold even though this secondary issue of difficulty setting boundaries may also be connected to the presenting trauma. Going back and forth from present to past inevitably lengthens the time a client is in therapy. If the client could be healed from the past trauma, they would have less to manage in the present and feel better overall.

Often clients have barriers that make it difficult to attend weekly therapy such as childcare concerns, difficulty scheduling around work commitments, and frequent travel.         

What if There Was a Better Way?

One unique aspect of EMDR is that there is no identified benefit to having time in between EMDR reprocessing sessions. In fact, clients are often not able to finish working through a traumatic memory in one session’s length of time. This is due to clients needing time to get into the memory and time to contain the memory at the end of session. Clients often want to update their therapist at the beginning of a session to tell them about present symptoms or issues that came up during the week. Sometimes, around half the session is taken up by the beginning and ending of the session.

EMDR Intensive Therapy Structure

EMDR Intensive therapy is when a client goes to therapy for several hours during one day or multiple days. Clients pick a specific intention for their therapy time such as resolving blocks to setting boundaries in relationships or working through trauma memories contributing to emotional eating. The intention is important for creating reasonable expectations and goals. It also keeps the client and therapist on track. 

While this sounds like a lot of therapy for one client to handle, the day is broken up with short breaks and a longer break for lunch. If the client already had a therapist they were engaging well with, they can return to that therapist for ongoing follow-up sessions to continue working on present goals.   

Is There Anyone Who is Not Appropriate for Intensive Therapy?

Intensive therapy often works well for clients who have already experienced a level of self-awareness through self-help materials, group work, or individual therapy. Clients who have difficulty identifying emotions or body sensations need more preparation work prior to reprocessing their trauma. Clients who dissociate frequently or have a co-occurring personality disorder would also not be appropriate for EMDR Intensive Therapy.