# Hypnotherapy and EMDR



## Chrissie1177 (Mar 24, 2003)

I am rather new to the bulletin board. But, from what I've read so far, many of you seem to have gotten a lot of relief from hypnotherapy. So I decided to look into it to treat my IBS. (I tend to lead toward IBS-C, with mostly nausea, upset stomach and pain.) I found a therapist in my area (NE Pennsylvania) who performs hypnotherapy. She came highly recommended and is pretty much the only therapist in my area who uses hypnotherapy. I had my first appointment a week or so ago, at which she told me that she was interested in trying a procedure called EMDR on me. I can't remember what this stands for, but I was wondering if anyone out there has heard of it and also if anyone has used it and found relief from it. Unfortunately, from my initial consultation with this therapist, I found out that she really does not know a lot about IBS. So I'm somewhat concerned that EMDR really won't be helpful in treating my disorder. Any information will be greatly appreciated.Thanks so much!


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## chrisgeorge (Feb 28, 2003)

Chrissie,I've been able to find out that EMDR stands for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing - no wonder they call it EMDR. If you check any search engine for EMDR, you'll find that its used to treat PTSD, (here we go again...Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder). This is out of my league and maybe Dr. Tom Bell can answer this one for us. I'm assuming that the therapist you saw is a qualified psychotherapist and not a hypnotherapist?Hope this helps.TTFN (Ta Ta For Now)Chris


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## trbell (Nov 1, 2000)

EMDR is a technique that when done by a licensed practitioner can help with emotional processing. It's typically used for trauma resolution. I haven't seen any research on it's use for IBS. If the person you saw is licensed they should either be able to treat the problem you came with or refer you to a qualified person who can. Ask the person if they are familiar with Blanchard's book. If not ask your doctor for another referral or see if your state psychology association has a web listing of licensed practitioners. If you are having trouble finding someone email me and I'll put an enquiry on a psychology listserv to see if there is somebody close by. You are to applauded for raising the question by the way. Too many people are willing to go along with what a therapist says.tom


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## Guest (May 6, 2003)

Tom, Chris & Chrissie ... I would also like to learn more about this process as I have also been diagnosed with PTSD. And Tom.... I couldn't have said it better myself:


> quote: Too many people are willing to go along with what a therapist says.


Thank you all for the information.Keep up the good work guys.Evie


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