EMDR 2.0 is built on the original EMDR protocol but includes several adjustments to improve its efficiency in treating patients with complex PTSD.  It still uses the eight-phase protocol of standard EMDR, but does not necessarily replace it.

How does EMDR 2.0 work?

EMDR 2.0 includes a stronger emphasis on activating memory and challenging working memory. Working memory is like your brain’s temporary storage and processing system. It’s what you use to hold onto information for a short time while thinking or doing something. Your working memory is limited, so you can’t hold too much at once.

There are three main things that EMDR 2.0 does

1. First, the therapist talks to the person to help them put the difficult memory in their mind (working memory). This helps the person prepare for the therapy and understand how it works.
2. Then, they help the person makes the memory stronger, by helping the person to focus on all aspects of the memory like taste, smell, sound, feel etc.
3. Finally, the therapist uses different tasks to help the person deal with the memory. These tasks could include superfast eye movements, tapping, counting, clapping and V-steps. The therapist may use tasks that fit the type of memory being worked on. For instance, if the memory has a strong sound part (like a sigh), they might use tasks that involve listening or speaking, like counting or spelling. This helps make the therapy more effective.

Because the working memory has limited capacity, the doing of the tasks competes with the difficult memory and fragments it, helping to process and make it less disturbing.

Is EMDR 2.0 better than standard EMDR?

We need more research. A highlight of a recent study concluded that

As a long-time practitioner of EMDR, discovering and implementing the EMDR 2.0 protocol has been a significant breakthrough for both my clients and me at EMDR Therapy Sydney. The protocol has allowed us to complete more profound and challenging work in fewer sessions for some cases. However, it depends on the client and where they are in their processing of disturbing memories.

An experienced EMDR practitioner will use both protocols as needed.

EMDR 2.0 is based on the clinical experience of therapy providers lead by Dr Ad de Jongh and Dr Suzy Matthijssen  using scientific research on how our working memory affects the recall of traumatic experiences. The premise behind EMDR 2.0 is that by increasing a patient’s motivation, activating their memory more effectively, and challenging their working memory more strongly, the therapy can be even more helpful in treating PTSD.

 

I call this the “Stand Down Dino!” method.

For over 50,000 years our ancestors had to constantly monitor what was going on around them.  Not only did they have to watch out for the sabre-tooth tiger and poison berries, their biggest threat – their own tribe members.

As resources were limited, groups (about 40-200 members) needed to roam large areas to survive. Anyone of us who met the disapproval of the tribe or was considered working against the common interests was abandoned.

Abandonment nearly always meant death.

A key survival mechanism in our brain was to constantly scan and monitor others to ensure we had their approval. For example, a dirty look or a rolling of the eyes meant you had to do some quick social repair work with Aunt Lucy.

Fast forward to the industrial revolution around the late 1700’s, we moved to cities which gave us access to many new tribes (other than our family or local farming community).

Then, around 20 years ago the internet allowed us access to an even greater number of national and global tribes. If my family or community shunned me because I was gay or vegan or liked long-haired goats, I could find a tribe who accepted me. Today, exclusion does not mean death, but it still may feel like it.

Our brains have not yet evolved to embrace this new reality.  They still react as if a dirty look or being rejected after a first date could mean abandonment or death.

This outdated dinosaur part of our brain is alive, well and running the show.

So, how do we change this?

Simple. Use your Evolved Brain too talk back to it.

The next time you change outfits 5 times, tell yourself your outdated Dinosaur brain is running the show. No one notices the difference between 5 patterned t-shirts.

KEY FACT: people who you think are judging you, have a dinosaur brain that is making them more worried about what YOU and others will think about them….

We are self-focused and paranoid about what others will think of us.

Here are a couple of examples

Dinosaur brain: “That guy on Tinder, didn’t ask me out again, nobody likes me”

Evolved brain: “Stand down Dino, who knows what his reasons are, let me keep on looking for someone who I like, and who likes me back”

Dinosaur brain: “If I get up and dance, everyone will laugh”

Evolved brain: “Stand down Dino, they will be worrying about what I and others think of them, lets dance like nobody is watching”

Dinosaur brain: “Don’t know which of these 5 t-shirts to wear, what if she thinks I’m a dork”

Evolved brain: “Stand down Dino, she probably will be worried about what I think about her outfit, let me wear something I feel is appropriate and comfortable”

Now to assume other people’s opinions of you don’t matter at all, is going too far. You probably won’t get the job if you wear your pajamas to an interview. We still have social rules.

When someone doesn’t approve or love you (and not everyone will), you may feel like you will die….

You won’t. That’s just your Dinosaur Brain.  Talk back to it.

For a more nuanced understanding see:

Evolution, Social Roles, and the Differences in Shame and Guilt by Paul Gilbert, Social Research Vol. 70, No. 4, Shame (winter 2003), pp. 1205-1230

Hierarchy in the Forest, The Evolution of Egalitarian Behavior by Christopher Boehm

Tim Urban neatly calls this our Social Survival Mammoth