&lllaos;The effectiveness of lateral stimuli as support for the role of the amygdala &lllaos;

• Ocular Dearmoring in Orgonomic Therapy vs. EMDR by Leah Longan, 2/3/98
  • Contrasts in medical orgonomy & EMDR by Andrew M. Leeds, 4/4/98
    • The effectiveness of lateral stimuli as support for the role of the amygdala by D. Kukal, 1/10/99
      
      

Yes, life and its viccissitudes does appear to allow the amygdala to learn with the neocortex bypassed. It also appears to allow the amygdala to react with the neocortex bypassed. LeDoux posits that this stems from an evolutionary directive. From an evolutionary perspective overreacting is more adaptive than underreacting. An animal that underreacts becomes anothers1 dinner. Unfortunately, homo sapiens have not evolved beyond this. If we use a computer analogy, we would appear to be operating with two operating systems, simultaneously.

There appears to be no evidence, though, that in treatment with EMDR, that the amygdala learns directly. It may, but we have no evidence, as yet. The onle evidence we have, as I had mentioned in my posting of Jan. 12, 1999, is that the opposite appears true. That the amygdaloid material needs to be processed through the neocortex and the anterior portion of the cingulate gyrus.

EMDR does appear to provide a path to the amygdala in that it allows us to target and process somatic sensations, using them as an analog for a language in the part of the brain where material is housed, but not in a verbal form.The adaptive learning, or recovery/healing does, however, appear to come from gyral and cortical functioning.

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