What type of therapy that’s not EMDR?

I’ve been seeing a therapist for EMDR, which helped the flashbacks but may have run it’s course, so I’m wondering what else may be available.

I have trouble with negative beliefs formed due to trauma. I know logically that the beliefs are not always true however they still cause anxiety that affects my functionality.

The therapist said we can do EMDR for those thoughts as well, but we tried it and it felt like it opened a big can of worms on old traumas that I now can’t close; I feel worse since doing it even three weeks ago.

I told her and she said ok we don’t have to do it again, but now it’s devolved into plain talk therapy, which I’ve never thought has been helpful.

I feel like maybe cognitive processing therapy or even straight CBT (which I’ve done years ago) may be better?

in CPTSDby codyinin

100%

11mo

blackice1

11mo

Any therapy looking into the traumas will open it up and is very hard to close. My therapist warned me over and over once we open this up we must see it through because it won’t close again. Pandora’s box if you will.

codyinin

11mo

Ok. We’ve done EMDR many times before and it didn’t have that same effect as the last time. I’m not sure what was different.

I guess we focused it on the fear and what generated it versus on specific flashbacks I was having. In the former it would be on one scene or at least start there. In this last case there were multiple different scenarios contributing to the fear that came up. I think that may be the difference.

chris_hrystyna

11mo

Trauma focused cbt, dbt, schema therapy

codyinin

11mo

Thank you. Your post made me recall that I used to have a workbook I think on trauma focused CBT. I’m going to see if I still have it. It was too difficult for me to use it at the time. I forgot there was that version of CBT.

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11mo

codyinin

11mo

Hi, thanks, it is helpful to an extent but it almost leads me down a rabbit hole.

I guess I’m looking for a type of therapy that helps on combatting specifically then negative beliefs (cognitions?) that stem from the trauma, rather than working on the trauma/flashbacks themselves.

I am not sure if there are so many different types of therapy because trauma affects people in so many ways, so the various therapies seem to address those different effects, some moreso than others.

For me right now it’s more the negative beliefs that block me from doing things I want/need to do. That’s why my guess was cognitive processing or even CBT.

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11mo

codyinin

11mo

Thank you. It’s interesting what you wrote on CBT and DBT. My current therapist at one point tried to use positivity and I found it invalidating.

But long story short, I was stalked and assaulted by someone I’d hired to work in my home. So it’s not so much negative self-talk but things like feeling like the world is unsafe.

As an example, before this I’d run thousands of miles alone. Now I have trouble running outside even with my dog; I’m nervous some freaking psycho is going to see me and latch on and it will all start again. Hiring people now is difficult as well and so on.

Honestly I dislike even posting this. Posting things online is even problematic for the same reason and I need to do so at other times for what I do for work. I didn’t have issues with this before what happened to me.

Another issue is that what I’m afraid of isn’t inherently untrue or a rare circumstance. People go running and get attacked for example. Stalking happens every day. So conquering the thought totally is also at issue.

Exposure/just going out and doing it doesn’t help and can make the anxiety worse. I think because the underlying thoughts are still there.

There’s a newer form of CBT called TEAM-CBT. It helps people who have trouble conquering their negative beliefs because there is some value in keeping them. I can’t find anyone near me that does it though.