S01E04 “Allowing the brain and the mind to repair itself”: Recovery after trauma

The phrase psychological trauma can be roughly translated as “the wound of the soul”. Contemporary neuropsychology shows us that the wound is not metaphorical, as this poetic-sounding phrase might suggest, but rather a real one, detectable in the brain’s neural networks. 

To understand what these wounds look like, how we acquire them, and what we can do about them, the Brain Health podcast team interviews a practitioner of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing therapy (EMDR), Isabel Fernandez. A cognitive-behavioral psychologist and a psychotherapist, Fernandez is trained in EMDR therapy and currently serves as the president of both EMDR Europe (a professional association of EMDR therapists) and its Italian branch (EMDR Italy). Besides discussing psychological trauma treatment, Fernandez also shares her rich knowledge of childhood trauma and trauma symptoms. 

EMDR Europe was founded in 1999 with a mission to use EMDR treatment to help people suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and emotional trauma, as well as mental illness, to overcome their issues. Having started with a few hundred, the association is now 23 000 therapists strong, and has 31 national committees in Europe. Furthermore, they work with EMDR International Association and EMDR Research Foundation within EMDR Global Alliance, and promote the therapy in the Middle Eastern and African countries. They often provide psychological first aid where there is a high risk of trauma - refugee hotspots, and sites of terror attacks and tragic accidents. 

Kim Baden-Kristensen is the co-founder and CEO of Brain+, a digital therapeutics company that helps people with brain disorders and injuries to recover their fundamental cognitive brain functions and daily life capabilities by using an app-based cognitive rehabilitation platform, which is developed in close collaboration with patients, clinicians and researchers.https://www.linkedin.com/in/kbadenk/

Alessia Covello is a life science IT consultant working in the field of healthcare technology implementation, and advocating for better services for people with brain conditions and learning disabilities.https://www.linkedin.com/in/alessiacovello/

Talking points include :

• 5:03  What is EMDR therapy and how it works
• 9:27 Psychological trauma: Basic facts
• 14:47 - Trauma symptoms in the brain: the physiological level, stress reactions, hormonal reactions
• 23:24 - What happens with the memory of a traumatic experience and how EMDR helps
• 27:56 - Childhood trauma: Why children don’t talk about their traumas and what to do about it
• 31:18 - What are our natural “tools” against traumatic experience, and when in life do they develop?
• 35:49 - Risk factors: Practical advice
• 44:22 - Recovery from trauma - different phases and obstacles
• 47:52 – Protective factors: Practical advice
• 53:47 – Exposure therapy relying on virtual reality (VR)

Disclaimer:
All references to products, companies, and organizations in this podcast and the article that accompanies it are included with the purpose to inform, rather than promote or advertise. The podcast authors do not receive financial compensation for any of these references.