Re: Reviewing the totality of the evidence against EMDR's claims

It is ironic that on this forum, the discussion is often around whether EMDR's effects are better or different than, say, CBT, or even a placebo effect. On a forum of EMDR practitioners, the discussion pivots around the opposite, which I like to call the table-saw effect. We discuss how to avoid cutting off thumbs, that is, making mistakes which the very potent instrument of EMDR makes possible. So many of us have seen both 1) very rapid and complete resolution of PTSD symptoms in simple (adult onset single trauma)PTSD, and 2) for complex PTSD (multiple trauma, early developmental stages) either 2a) rapid resolution when the appropriate protocol is used, 2b) processing getting "stuck" or "looping" until people use the correct protocol or 2c) dramatically problematic processing when people fail to screen for and use the appropriate protocol for dissociative disorders. For many years, these are the findings and statements of EMDR practitioners. I'll wager the same discussions don't come up the same way with the same regularity on a CBT discussion group. These aspects come up in EMDR discussions because we are using a power tool, the effects normally occur rapidly, so deviations from the norm are against a different speedy backdrop. This type of evidence should count for something.

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