Brain Study Suggests Traumatic Memories Are Processed as Present Experience

Walking your blues away by thom hartman is a beautiful book that applies emdr + walking to process trauma.

In the book, he notes the prevailing theory that our daily happenings remain on a sort of temporary scratchpad. As we sleep we sort, discard, process as necessary. Trauma however, is too big, too hard to process naturally. So, it stays on that daily scratch pad. Always with you. Every day, the same as if it were happening today. No relief, no dissipation of the emotional charge. Emdr therapy while walking to facilitate both hemispheres of your brain working together, is his prescription.

The book/methodology I can honestly say saved my life and gave me a life, a future. A way to cope with things that were driving me crazy. Everyone I've given a copy to has deeply thanked me later. Please, if you have anything weighing on you, give the book a look. It's only like 70 pages.

Why We Sleep by Matt Walker goes into a similar topic. Paraphrased in hacker language by me, the gist is that the brain’s “cache” holds memories alongside the emotions. Whereas the “hard disk” part of the brain doesn’t hold on to emotions. The process of moving stuff from “cache” to “hard disk” happens during the dreaming/REM phase. Which is inhibited if you’re

1. Having nightmares that wake you up 2. Using sleeping pills 3. Using Alcohol to sleep

I’ve found that dreaming about the trauma/loss can soften the emotions over time

I've done that! When I've had a setback. When my friend died. I use my bicycle but maybe the same deal.

Take out three and you've pretty much got the idea.

1. Any movement that utilizes both halves of your brain/body. Walking is just easiest and the one he chooses. In therapy I've had something as simple as alternatively tapping my hands on my thighs. The point is to be using both sides of your brain. I've found walking works best personally.

2. Think of traumatic thing/event. Really focus on it at the front of your mind. The idea is that while using both sides of your brain walking, and keeping the idea at the forefront of your mind can sort of manually force the processing of the trauma. I have to note it works best (in my experience) with more acute trauma. Complex trauma is harder to keep in the same mental box while you're processing.

3. Unneeded. The walking is what facilitates the idea behind the eye movement. Utilizing both sides of your brain basically.

4. Yeah, the idea is to force the processing. Eventually the sort of "charge" with the memory/event dissipates as you begin to better be able to think about and handle the event.

4b I should note being in therapy helps too, as in general how best to think about the trauma can be difficult. For me though, I'd had plenty of therapy and had the tools, the method helped me actually do the "work" of the processing. YMMV.