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Hi BlueGas,

I'm currently having EMDR and to be honest I'm not sure what to make of it! 

I know that it is a common treatment for PTSD but that it's efficacy for OCD is unknown; also that the rationale behind it is that the eye movements it induces mimic rapid eye movement sleep and that this somehow assists the brain in processing unprocessed, highly emotional memories HOWEVER I'm not sure if my treatment (5/6 sessions so far I think) is making a difference or not!! 

I have heard of some people reporting increased anxiety after EMDR and who have said that the treatment seemed to make things worse by bringing up old, traumatic memories, which were then not processed properly by the EMDR. I have also read some stories of people with PTSD who have found the treatment very effective. 

Immediately after EMDR treatment I have sometimes found myself feeling more hopeful and less "stuck" with rumination etc. BUT this is could just as easily be due to the placebo effect. However I have been more anxious and emotional since starting EMDR so it's possible that either the EMDR is making my OCD worse OR that my anxiety is increasing because I am in still processing some traumatic memories. 

Sorry I've not been of much help! 

If you have to choose between EMDR or CBT; go for CBT- there is a lot of evidence to support its use in OCD treatment and you can always explore other avenues for treatment if the CBT does not help you.

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Hi belanna  

you have been a great help I never even heard of it before today so just wanted some feed back was hoping it was some magical cure ( very naive I know ) thanks for a great explanation and good luck ?

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14 hours ago, bluegas said:

Hi has anyone else heard about emdr and have any thoughts on it ??? Thanks for your time 

Just to echo BelAnna's post really.

It's one of those treatments that's gained prominence here for the treatment of OCD over the last year or two, however there is very little conclusive evidence to show its effectiveness.  The reason I believe it's gained prominence is because of the incompetence of some CBT therapists who don't know how to apply CBT for complex OCD so turn to blindly EMDR.  I come to that conclusion after speaking to a lot of our users who have been referred to EMDR, they all have one thing in common, very questionable CBT experiences from the EMDR prescriber.

That said, I don't believe it can cause any harm so if you are offered it on the NHS and choose to give it a go then that's your choice and I don't think should conflict with any other treatments.  If it helps great, but just go into with open eyes.

:)

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Thanks Ashley I would be prepared to give it a go if offered to me !! Been doing more research and what you and belanna say seem to be pretty much the majority of people’s views on this .. I’m on a 8 month to a year waiting list for cbt on nhs and it’s never worked in the past... but this could be just as much down to me as the therapist!! Looking to go private but even more important to get the right treatment!! Thank you for your help !! 

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12 hours ago, bluegas said:

I’m on a 8 month to a year waiting list for cbt on nhs and it’s never worked in the past... but this could be just as much down to me as the therapist!!

Where in the country are you Bluegas, is this IAPT you're waiting for or another level? 

I think it's good to always be open with ourselves about past therapy failures, "did I get this right", "could I have done something different" but at primary level NHS treatment the majority of the time the therapy failure is because of poor understanding of OCD and how to treat it by therapists.  So please don't give up on CBT, there are some good NHS therapists, sometimes they just take a little findings.

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8 hours ago, Ashley said:

Where in the country are you Bluegas, is this IAPT you're waiting for or another level? 

I think it's good to always be open with ourselves about past therapy failures, "did I get this right", "could I have done something different" but at primary level NHS treatment the majority of the time the therapy failure is because of poor understanding of OCD and how to treat it by therapists.  So please don't give up on CBT, there are some good NHS therapists, sometimes they just take a little findings.

I’m in Bristol !!!  And Iapt I think.Definitely think I could be to blame as well!! Tbh you and this forum has helped shift my way of thinking,in the past I’ve  always been stuck on a particular theme and wanted to get that particular theme dealt with and not ocd as a whole!! It’s taken me some time  but understanding the themes how ever distressing are not the real problem  has helped me take a different take on it. I think it’s actually made me realise ocd plays a lot bigger part of my life than I first thought.  In ways  that I deal with work  social  life   Family etc ...,  so I definitely think my mind is a bit more open minded now ... just as well as been suffering since teens and just turned 40 thanks for your help!! Very much appreciated 

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19 hours ago, Handy said:

One thing you can try is search the forum for it. I’m showing 264 results. It’s also a forum rule to search first if you can. 

Sorry for any inconvenience I’ve caused you or any one else .

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