AHP Perspective is a magazine published bi-monthly for members of the Association for Humanistic Psychology. It includes interviews, articles, essays, updates on member activities, conference announcements, and book reviews. Members receive the complete AHP Perspective as part of their membership.

AHP PERSPECTIVE April/May 2000 Table of Contents

EMDR: The Breakthrough "Eye Movement" Therapy for Overcoming Anxiety, Stress, and Trauma
By Francine Shapiro and Margot Silk Forrest
Basic Books, 1997.
Reviewed by Paula McDonald

It's too good to be true." Dr. Francine Shapiro and co-author Margot Silk Forrest say this is a frequent skeptical response heard about Shapiros sometimes controversial, leading-edge method of psychotherapy, EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing). When I first heard about the method at a meeting of psychology professionals, members of the audience challenged the speaker with questions about research to support reported results and argued about theories of brain activity. Almost lost were the accounts of profound and lasting healing experienced by people who had suffered trauma of all sorts, from events such as the Oklahoma City bombing to the cumulative effects of repeated abuse in childhood. The authors make it clear that "trauma" can also be understood as more ordinary experiences that may remain unprocessed, resulting in hidden pain that continues to affect an individuals life.

In this book, written not as a training manual for professionals, but rather as an overview of EMDR, Shapiros view of traumatic experiences that are "stuck" in the nervous system in essentially the same form as when they were first experienced, is woven together with many stories of healing. As a persons information-processing system is stimulated using EMDR, stored memories, negative emotions, and physical sensations of the original event(s) become "unstuck" and the individuals natural healing capability can function. The authors present case studies in a form that allows the reader to follow this process. EMDR processing often happens rapidly, although the authors emphasize that speed is not the primary goal in this client-centered therapy that takes peoples differing needs into account with a sensitivity I found appealing.

Based on the principle that human beings have an innate core of health that blossoms forth when given the chance, EMDR is compatible with a wide range of styles of psychotherapy, including humanistic psychology. I believe that EMDR deserves serious consideration, and this book is a very readable and clear introduction to it.

Paula McDonald, Ph.D., is psychological assistant to Neil Schuitevoerder, Ph.D., in private practice in Woodland Hills, California. She specializes in Jungian-oriented depth psychotherapy, psychological type, and Sandplay. She can be reached at pmcd@pacbell.net.

AHP PERSPECTIVE April/May 2000 Table of Contents

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