Brian G.

Dear Dr. Shapiro,

Where to begin?! For the most part, I'll simply let the some of the evidence speak for itself.

1) I cannot find your citation of Van Etten and Taylor (1998) in either psych lit or medline where most all credible references are listed. I would very much like a chance to examine such an article which is absent from these major sites.

Regardless, about EMDR and CBT:

J Anxiety Disord 1999 Jan-Apr;13(1-2):131-57

The relative efficacy and treatment distress of EMDR and a
cognitive-behavior trauma treatment protocol in the amelioration of
posttraumatic stress disorder.

Devilly GJ, Spence SH

The growing body of research into treatment efficacy with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
has, by-and-large, been limited to evaluating treatment components or comparing a specific
treatment against wait-list controls. This has led to two forms of treatment, Eye Movement
Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) and Cognitive-Behavior Therapy (CBT), vying for
supremacy without a controlled study actually comparing them. The present research compared
EMDR and a CBT variant (Trauma Treatment Protocol; TTP) in the treatment of PTSD, via a
controlled clinical study using therapists trained in both procedures. It was found that TTP was
both statistically and clinically more effective in reducing pathology related to PTSD and that this
superiority was maintained and, in fact, became more evident by 3-month follow-up. These
results are discussed in terms of past research.

2) Let's not be so hasty in declaring eye movement component studies confirming of EMDR. Here's a recent one that comes to the same results as (many, many other) previous studies.

J Anxiety Disord 1999 Jan-Apr;13(1-2):101-18

The contributions of eye movements to the efficacy of brief exposure
treatment for reducing fear of public speaking.

Carrigan MH, Levis DJ

The present study was designed to isolate the effects of the eye-movement component of the Eye
Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) procedure in the treatment of fear of
public speaking. The two independent variables assessed were
treatment condition (imagery plus eye movements vs. imagery alone) and type of imagery
(fear-relevant vs. relaxing Although process
measures indicated exposure to fear-relevant imagery increased anxiety during the procedure, no
significant differences among groups were found on any of the outcome measures, except that
participants who received eye movements were less likely to give a speech posttreatment than
participants who did not receive eye movements. Addition of the eye movements to the
experimental procedure did not result in enhancement of fear reduction. It was concluded,
consistent with the results of past research, that previously reported positive effects of the EMDR
procedure may be largely due to exposure to conditioned stimuli.

3) Your opinion of Lohr et al. in understandably negative because they have failed to come to a favorable conclusion of your therapy. They claim that you engage in selective memory when it comes to discussing EMDR. Who has more to gain by presenting false information? You profit hansomely from EMDR and they do not. In a recent publication they only point to additional information that comes to the same conclusions: your opinions of EMDR are not supported by the majority of the evidence:

J Anxiety Disord 1999 Jan-Apr;13(1-2):185-207

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing: an analysis of specific
versus nonspecific treatment factors.

Lohr JM, Lilienfeld SO, Tolin DF, Herbert JD

In this paper, we
critically examine the question of whether Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing
(EMDR) possesses efficacy above and beyond nonspecific treatment effects and components that
are shared with well-established interventions. A review of recently published efficacy studies
reveals that (a) the effects of EMDR are largely limited to verbal report indices, (b) eye
movements and other movements appear to be unnecessary, and (c) reported effects are
consistent with nonspecific treatment features. Examination of individual studies shows that control
procedures for nonspecific features have been minimal.

The discussion is continued in the following post: A response to Shapiro (part II).

Replies:

Re: Brian G., by Shapiro, 2/15/00

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