This chapter discusses comprehensive school crisis interventions, identifies the characteristics that define a crisis, finds ways to assess for the level of traumatic impact, and determines what interventions can be provided to help with response and recovery. It highlights the PREPaRE Model of crisis prevention and intervention. There are six general categories of crises: acts of war and/or terrorism; violent and/or unexpected deaths; threatened death and/or injury; human-caused disasters; natural disasters; and severe illness or injury. Children are a vulnerable population and in the absence of quality crisis interventions, there can be negative short- and long-term implications on learning, cognitive development, and mental health. Evidence-based interventions focusing on physical and psychological safety may be implemented to prevent a crisis from occurring or mitigate the traumatic impact of a crisis event by building resiliency in students. Crisis risk factors are variables that predict whether a person becomes a psychological trauma victim.

Depression is a chronic, recurring disorder that impacts children’s academic, interpersonal, and family functioning. The heritability of major depressive disorder (MDD) is likely to be in the range of 31% to 42%. This chapter begins with a brief overview of the etiology of depression. It presents a description of a cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) intervention designed to be delivered in a group format, an individual interpersonal intervention, and an individual behavioral activation (BA) intervention that includes a great deal of parental involvement. The ACTION program is a manualized program that is based on a cognitive behavioral model of depression. There are four primary treatment components to ACTION: affective education, coping skills training (BA), problem-solving training, and cognitive restructuring. The chapter concludes with a brief discussion of universal therapeutic techniques to be incorporated into work with depressed youth regardless of the therapeutic orientation or treatment strategy.

Divorce is a lengthy developmental process and, in the case of children and adolescents, one that can encompass most of their young lives. This chapter explores the experience of divorce from the perspective of the children, reviews the evidence base and empirical support for interventions. It provides examples of three evidence-based intervention programs, namely, Children in Between, Children of Divorce Intervention Program (CODIP), and New Beginnings, appropriate for use with children, adolescents, and their parents. Promoting protective factors and limiting risk factors during childhood and adolescence can prevent many mental, emotional, and behavioral problems and disorders during those years and into adulthood. The Children in Between program is listed on the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) National Registry of Evidence-Based Programs and Practices. The CODIP and the New Beginnings program are also listed on the SAMHSA National Registry of Evidence-Based Programs and Practices.

Children and youth with serious emotional, behavioral, and social difficulties present challenges for teachers, parents, and peers. Youth who are at risk for emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) are particularly vulnerable in the areas of peer and adult social relationships. The emphasis on meeting academic standards and outcomes for children and youth in schools has unfortunately pushed the topic of social-emotional development to the proverbial back burner. This chapter emphasizes that social skills might be considered academic enablers because these positive social behaviors predict short-term and long-term academic achievement. Evidence-based practices are employed with the goal of preventing or ameliorating the effects of disruptive behavior disorders (DBD) in children and youth. An important distinction in designing and delivering social skills interventions (SSI) is differentiating between different types of social skills deficits. Social skills deficits may be either acquisition deficits or performance deficits.

Eating disorders (EDs) are a complex and comparatively dangerous set of mental disorders that deeply affect the quality of life and well-being of the child or adolescent who is struggling with this problem as well as those who love and care for him or her. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) outlines specific criteria for the diagnosis of anorexia nervosa (AN), bulimia nervosa (BN), binge eating disorder (BED), and other specified feeding or ED. Treatment of eating disordered behavior typically involves a three-facet approach: medical assessment and monitoring, nutritional counseling, and psychological and behavioral treatment. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and interpersonal psychotherapy (IPT) are also evidence-based approaches to treatment for AN. The treatment of EDs should be viewed as a team effort that integrates medical, nutritional, and mental health service providers.

Asthma, a pulmonary condition, is a chronic respiratory disorder typified by persistent underlying inflammation of tissues, airway obstruction, congestion, hyperresponsive airways, and the narrowing of smooth airway muscle. Asthma is one of the most common chronic medical conditions in children and is the leading cause of school absenteeism. This chapter describes childhood asthma, including its causes and triggers. It elucidates the extant research supporting treatment of the disorder and provides step-by-step empirically based interventions to ameliorate asthmatic symptomatology in children. The psychological underpinnings of asthma have been investigated in the field of psycho-neuroimmunology (PNI), which examines the interplay of the central nervous system, neuroendocrine, and immune system with psychological variables and their relation to physical health. Researchers have shown that relaxation and guided imagery (RGI), written emotional expression, yoga, and mindfulness therapy improve pulmonary lung functioning, decrease rates of absenteeism, and improve overall quality of life.

This chapter reviews the empirical support for such a multifaceted approach by considering selected neurodevelopmental concerns and medical variables that present as obstacles to healthy neurodevelopment. It discusses select neuro-developmental prenatal complications that can be prevented or ameliorated through behavioral interventions with the pregnant mother. The chapter addresses the deleterious effects of legal substances on the developing fetus, but professionals should be vigilant about preventing or reducing intrauterine exposure to illicit substances as well. Tobacco is a legal substance that, when used during pregnancy, has the potential to harm both the mother and fetus. Of particular concern with tobacco use are the detrimental health risks, such as hypertension and diabetes, which adversely affect the cerebrovascular functioning of pregnant women. The process of neurodevelopment is complex and represents a dynamic interplay among genetics, behavior, demographics, the environment, psychosocial factors, and myriad physiological factors.

This chapter aims to help clinicians learn stabilization interventions for use in the Preparation Phase of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) treatment. Using these interventions will aid clients in developing readiness for processing trauma, learning how to manage symptoms of dissociation, dealing with affect regulation, and developing the necessary internal cohesion and resources to utilize the EMDR trauma-processing phase. Earlier negative experiences stored dysfunctionally increase vulnerability to anxiety disorders, depression, and other diagnoses. When assessing a client with a complex trauma history, clinicians need to view current symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or depression as reflections of the earlier traumas. The chapter outlines the strategies dealing with dissociative symptoms, ego state work, and internal stability that help clinicians to develop an individualized treatment plan to successfully guide the client through the EMDR phases of treatment.

This chapter describes key steps, with scripts, for the phases of therapy with a dissociative identity disorder (DID) client, and for an eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) session with a DID client. In brief, the method employs the artful use of EMDR and ego state therapy for association and acceleration, and of hypnosis, imagery, and ego state therapy for distancing and deceleration within the context of a trusting therapeutic relationship. It is also endeavoring to stay close to the treatment guidelines as promulgated by the International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation. The acronym ACT-AS-IF describes the phases of therapy; the acronym ARCHITECTS describes the steps in an EMDR intervention. Dual attention awareness is key in part because it keeps the ventral vagal nervous system engaged sufficiently to empower the client to sustain the painful processing of dorsal vagal states and sympathetic arousal states.

One way of thinking about procrastination is to regard it as a form of addiction; an addiction to putting things off. As with other addictive patterns, the client will choose a short-term gratification instead of going for a long-term result that might, in the end, be more satisfying or empowering. As with other addictions, a procrastinating client often suffers ongoing erosion of her self-esteem. Quite often, procrastination may function as a defense as a way to avoid other life issues that are disturbing. With this type of problem, we can use a variation of Popky’s addiction protocol, and the level of urge to avoid (LoUA) procedure. It is also important to use resource installation procedures to help the client develop an image of the benefits that would come with being free of this problem.

The important elements of the Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) and Phantom Pain Research Protocol are client history taking and relationship building, targeting the trauma of the experience, and targeting the pain. This protocol is set up to follow the eight phases of the 11-Step Standard Procedure. This chapter presents a case series with phantom limb patients obtained a few before and after EMDR magnetoencephalograms (MEGs) at the University of Tübingen, Germany on arm amputees that show the presence of phantom limb pain (PLP) in the brain images before EMDR and the absence of it after EMDR. In these case series, it is found that PLP in leg amputations is much easier to treat than arm amputations, likely due to the much more extensive and complex arm and hand representation in the sensory-motor cortex compared to the leg and foot representation.

The “Image Director Technique” was developed to target recurring nightmares or bad dreams and those targets that are directly related to a traumatic experience. This technique is a special module that is embedded in the Standard Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) Protocol. The technique begins with the worst image of the dream and then accesses and measures it as in Phase 3 of the Standard EMDR Protocol that includes the image, cognitions, emotions, and sensations. Clients are more likely to work with short clips or films if the subjective units of disturbance (SUD) of the target image is low. This technique can also be considered an imagery exposure method that is based in systematic desensitization, a behavioral approach. Often, clients prefer the tactile bilateral stimulation (BLS) because they can close their eyes in order to be visually undisturbed during the creation of the new images.

This chapter focuses on office automation and systems that are useful in the mental health field, along with principles to be aware of when considering the use or purchase of such systems. Most managers have to rely on input from outside in order to form an opinion about how to resolve complex issues. The complexity of the issue increases significantly when the current federal health care laws are incorporated into the task of choosing appropriate clinical information management software. The significance of Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) would seem to dictate at least a brief foray into its content because it lays the foundation for virtually everything that is happening in the clinical information management (CIM) realm. The information provided in the chapter can give a backdrop by which current practices can be examined for goodness of fit with the available client information management systems.

This chapter explores recent insights from preclinical and clinical studies of cancer induced bone pain (CIBP). There are various neuropathic, nociceptive, and inflammatory pain mechanisms that contribute to CIBP. Neuropathic pain can be induced as tumor cell growth injures distal nerve fibers that innervate bone and pathological sprouting of both sensory and sympathetic nerve fibers. These changes in the peripheral sensory neurons result in the generation and maintenance of tumor induced pain. CIBP is usually described as dull in character, constant in presentation, and gradually increasing in intensity with time. A component of bone cancer pain appears to be neuropathic in origin as tumor cells induce injury or remodeling of the primary afferent nerve fibers that normally innervate the tumor bearing bone. The treatment of pain from bone metastases involves the use of multiple complementary approaches including radiotherapy, chemotherapy, surgery, bisphosphonates, and analgesics.

Cancer can affect the autonomic nervous system in a variety of ways: direct tumor compression or infiltration, treatment effects (irradiation, chemotherapy), indirect effects (e.g., malabsorption, malnutrition, organ failure, and metabolic abnormalities), and paraneoplastic/autoimmune effects. This chapter focuses on a diagnostic approach and treatment of cancer patients with dysautonomia, with an emphasis on immune-mediated autonomic dysfunction, a rare but potentially highly treatable cause of dysautonomia. Autonomic dysfunction can be divided into nonneurogenic (medical) and neurogenic (primary or secondary) causes. Orthostatic hypotension is a cardinal symptom of dysautonomia. The autonomic testing battery includes sudomotor, vasomotor, and cardiovagal function testing and defines the severity and extent of dysautonomia. Conditions encountered in the cancer setting that are associated with autonomic dysfunction include Lambert-Eaton Myasthenic Syndrome, anti-Hu antibody syndrome, collapsin response-mediator protein 5, subacute autonomic neuropathy, neuromyotonia (Isaacs’ syndrome), and intestinal pseudo-obstruction. The chapter describes various pharmacologic and nonpharmacologic therapies for treatment of orthostatic hypotension.

This chapter provides an overview of working with clients who present with more complex trauma. Many of the clients that come for Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR) will have a history of complex trauma or a chaotic childhood. Clients who have experienced complex trauma may lack basic life skills or have missed out on developmental stages due to a chaotic childhood, for example, parents who were absent, neglectful, or abusive. Clients may not have been taught how to regulate their emotions in early childhood. They may present with impulsive, risk-taking, or suicidal behaviors. Before carrying out the desensitization phase of EMDR, individuals need to have an adequate level of resilience and be sufficiently resourced. Clients with Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) display at least two distinct and enduring “alters” or identity states that recurrently take control of their behavior.

Child psychotherapy requires case conceptualization through the lens of developmental psychology in a multimodal approach to assessment, diagnosis, treatment planning, and clinical interventions. This chapter outlines a blueprint for therapists to provide treatment for children by integrating these fundamental principles while collaborating with the other people in the child’s life. The chapter guides the therapist through case conceptualization that integrates the most efficacious treatment interventions into the eight-phase template of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR). Adaptive information processing (AIP) theory drives treatment with EMDR throughout the eight phases of that protocol and provides a template for case conceptualization and treatment planning. The use of the EMDR approach to psychotherapy is well documented and approved as evidence-based practice in Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration (SAMHSA) and California Evidence-Based Clearinghouse for Child Welfare (CEBC).

Children are exposed to distress, violence, and trauma even before they are born. In-utero and early childhood exposure can contribute to severe medical and psychological consequences. Children who have been exposed to such traumatic events often arrive at the psychotherapist’s office with emotional and behavioral symptoms suggestive of reactive attachment disorder (RAD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and dissociation. This chapter reviews relevant theories of dissociation integrated with theories of development to provide a summary of how attachment impacts dissociation. With a developmentally grounded theory of dissociation, the chapter describes clinical interventions for treating the dissociative sequelae of attachment trauma in children. This theoretical framework offers a developmentally grounded and integrative framework for working with children with complex trauma and dissociation. Symptoms of dissociation are common with PTSD, but an extreme response to trauma can be dissociation and dissociative disorders.

This chapter presents how eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) therapy and Theraplay can be used together when treating children with a history of complex trauma. Theraplay focuses on the parent-child relationship as the healing agent that holds within it the potential to cultivate growth and security in the child. The chapter shows some core concepts that help define and illuminate the application of Theraplay. Now that a clear review of basic Theraplay principles has been provided, people need to look at EMDR therapy and the adaptive information processing (AIP) model in conjunction with Theraplay and Theraplay core values. Early in its development, Theraplay integrated parental involvement into its therapeutic model. During the reprocessing phases of EMDR therapy, Theraplay can be very helpful in providing different avenues for emotion regulation and for the repairing of the attachment system.

This chapter integrates elements and strategies of internal family systems (IFS) psychotherapy into eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) therapy with complexly traumatized children. It shows a description of healing a part using in-sight with a child. In-sight involves having the client look inside to find and work with parts that he or she sees or senses and describes to the therapist. The IFS therapist starts by ensuring the client’s external environment is safe and supportive of the therapy. In a self-led system, polarizations are absent or greatly diminished, leaving more harmony and balance. However, when and how the self is formed may be seen and conceptualized through different lenses in adaptive information processing (AIP)-EMDR and IFS. According to the AIP model, the human brain and biological systems are shaped by the environmental experiences they encounter.

This chapter focuses on the assessment phase and importance of negative cognitions (NCs) drawing heavily on illustrative case vignettes. Janoff-Bulman introduced the notion of an “Assumptive World Theory” to describe how individuals make assumptions about themselves and the world they live in. According to McCann and Pearlman’s Constructionist Self-Development Theory (CSDT), people give meaning to traumatic events depending on how, as individuals, they interpret them. Person-centered counseling refers to “self-concept” describing the individual’s self-image largely based on life experience and attitudes expressed by significant others, such as family, teachers, and friends. Therapists should familiarize the client at an early stage with the mechanics of DAS and allow them some control in choosing the technique to be used. In choosing the target memory, the therapist and client need to determine the touchstone event, that is, the earliest memory linked to the current pathology.

The inclusion of parents and family caregivers throughout the phases of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) therapy is essential for best treatment outcome with highly traumatized and internally disorganized children. Parental responses that create dysregulation in the child’s system also appear to be related to the parent’s capacity to reflect, represent and give meaning to the child’s internal world. This chapter shows a case that exemplifies how the caregiver’s activation of maladaptive neural systems perpetuates the child’s exposure to multiple and incongruent models of the self and other. Helping parents arrive at a deeper level of understanding of their parental role using the adaptive information processing (AIP) model, attachment theory, regulation theory and interpersonal neurobiology principals will create a solid foundation. The thermostat analogy is designed to assist parents in understanding their role as external psychobiological regulators of the child’s system.

This conclusion presents some closing thoughts on key concepts discussed in the preceding chapters of this book. The book attempts to contribute to improving children’s lives by providing a comprehensive and effective treatment protocol. To enhance treatment efficacy and improve the trajectory for children’s lives, case conceptualization in child psychotherapy must integrate developmental theory, neuroscience, and best practice models into clinical practice. The book reviews some of the latest research on attachment and neuroscience that impacts case conceptualization in child psychotherapy. In 1989, Shapiro proposed a new treatment approach she entitled eye movement desensitization (EMD) and, later, eye movement desensitization reprocessing (EMDR) to treat trauma. After reviewing the major theories of attachment and Schore’s current rendition that he labels self-regulation theory, the book offers a foundation for therapists to use develop-mentally grounded theory through the lens of adaptive information processing (AIP) to treat attachment issues in clients of all ages.

This chapter presents several strategies, analogies, and metaphors to address dissociation from different angles and perspectives. Clinicians will have a wide range of methods of introducing and explaining dissociation to children. Analogies and stories that help children understand the multiplicity of the self may be presented during the preparation phase of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) therapy. A good way of introducing the concept of dissociation is by using the dissociation kit for kids. Stimulating interoceptive awareness is a fundamental aspect of the work needed during the preparation phase of EMDR therapy with dissociative children. Visceral, proprioceptive, as well as kinesthetic-muscle awareness should be stimulated. The installation of present resolution (IPR) was inspired by an exercise developed by Steele and Raider. In this exercise, the child is asked to draw a picture of the past traumatic event followed by a picture of the child in the present.

During the installation phase, the child can experience a felt positive belief about himself or herself in association with the memory being reprocessed. Children with history of early and chronic trauma have difficulty tolerating positive affect. Enhancing and amplifying their ability to tolerate and experience positive emotions and to hold positive views of the self are pivotal aspects of eye movement desensitization reprocessing (EMDR) therapy. This chapter shows a script that may be used with children during the body scan phase. Assisting children in achieving emotional and psychological equilibrium after each reprocessing session as well as ensuring their overall stability are fundamental goals of the closure phase of EMDR therapy. The reevaluation phase of EMDR therapy ensures that adequate integration and assimilation of maladaptive material has been made. The future template of the EMDR three-pronged protocol is a pivotal aspect of EMDR therapy.

This chapter focuses on the desensitization phase during which the therapist processes the dysfunctional material. It explores a range of issues that are frequently raised in this phase, including therapist anxiety and abreactions and explores challenges during the desensitization phase, such as blocked processing and the use of cognitive interweaves. It is not only the client who gets anxious about the desensitization phase. It can be very daunting to the new EMDR practitioner. Performance anxiety can be a block for the therapist as well as for the client. The therapists’ role is distinct in this phase and involves supporting the client verbally with minimum intervention unless the client is stuck. They should help the client to focus on the flow of feelings, thoughts, and body sensations as they unfold. The therapist will observe the nonverbal signs, troughs and peaks of sensations, and will monitor the changes.

The primary goals of the assessment phase are to access the memory network containing traumatogenic material and to access and activate the cognitive, affective, and somatic aspects of the memory. Since the reprocessing phases of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) therapy follow immediately after the assessment phase, the clinician should have prepared potential interweaves in case the child’s processing of the memory gets blocked. Children with complex trauma histories may already have sensitized sympathetic systems that make them prone to being in fight flight mode even in the face of safety. The chronically traumatized children present with sensitized dorsal vagal systems. Current caregiving and attachment behaviors have the potential for activating the attachment system, and with it past dysfunctional attachment experiences. One of the best adjunct approaches that can be used within a comprehensive EMDR treatment is sandtray therapy.

The incorporation of a skill-building phase and eye movement desensitization reprocessing (EMDR) games can greatly enhance and facilitate the utilization of EMDR therapy with children who have a history of complex trauma. Some EMDR games work with cognitive skills, others work with emotional skills, while others work with the body and the language of sensation. The use of positive cognition cards offers a great opportunity to play and use a wide range of card games. This chapter exemplifies how to use negative cognition games. Feeling cubes contain different basic emotions appropriate for children. Clinicians can purchase plain wooden cubes and write different feelings on the cube. A wide range of card games can be used with the feeling cards. The memory wand offers another playful approach to the process of identifying traumatic events with children. The chapter shows a playful way of exploring and identifying parent-child interactions.

The basic goals of phase one are to develop a working relationship and a therapeutic alliance and to determine if the level of expertise of the eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) clinician is adequate for the complexity of the case. Other goals are to develop a comprehensive treatment plan and case formulation. EMDR therapy was developed as a form of treatment to ameliorate and heal trauma. Clinicians working with complex trauma must have substantial understanding of the adaptive information processing (AIP) model and the EMDR methodology. During phase one, the clinician works on creating an atmosphere of trust and safety so a therapeutic alliance can be formed with the child and the caregivers. This chapter shows an example of how medical issues can affect the quality of the parent-child communications. The adult attachment interview (AAI) gives us the view of the presence of the experiences in the parent’s life.

Child psychotherapy is different than any other type of adult-child relationship. A trained mental health professional is using clinical skills to help a child find the answers to the problems he or she has encountered. This chapter outlines the most common symptoms in child psychotherapy. Anxiety is one of the most common symptoms of childhood, but the etiology and manifestation of anxiety varies. Anxiety is a symptom of many other disorders, including generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), separation anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder, panic disorder, social phobia and other specific phobias, selective mutism, mood disorders, and post-traumatic stress disorder. Gifted children tend to have higher levels of anxiety because they can think about things they are not yet emotionally prepared to manage. The chapter discusses clinical interventions for common issues of childhood, along with resources for children, directions for parents, and references for parents, caregivers, educators, and therapists alike.

This chapter explores theories of human development, also referred to as developmental psychology, as a knowledge base for professionals to integrate theory into case conceptualization in child psychotherapy. It provides a brief overview of the significant contributions of developmental psychology to the field of child psychotherapy that impact case conceptualization in the clinical treatment of children. Many theorists have shaped the study of human development, including Buford Jeanette Johnson, Anna Freud, Jean Piaget, Lev Vygotsky, Urie Bronfenbrenner, Erik Erikson, Jerome Kagan, John B. Watson, B. F. Skinner, Albert Bandura, Lawrence Kohlberg, Jerome Brunner, Robert J. Havighurst, and Emmy Werner. Collectively, their theories propose explanations of all aspects of human development, including psychosexual, cognitive, social, psychosocial, behavioral, and neurological development, along with memory, information processing theories, and resilience. The chapter includes educational theory in order to understand how children are challenged to learn not only internally, but also externally, as well.

International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation (ISSTD)’s professional training institute offers comprehensive courses on childhood dissociation that are taught internationally and online. This chapter briefly cites some of the theories that have emerged in the dissociative field. One system, the apparently normal personality (ANP) enables an individual to perform necessary functions, such as work. The emotional personality (EP) is action system fixated at the time of the trauma to defend from threats. As with the Adaptive Information Processing Model (AIP) in eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR), each phase brings reassessment of the client’s ability to move forward to effectively process trauma. There are many overlapping symptoms with Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD) and dissociation that often mask the dissociation. The rate of diagnosis of pediatric bipolar disorder has increased 40 times in the last ten years.

This chapter focuses on case studies of installation, body scan, closure, and reevaluation of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR). The installation phase is concerned with integrating the positive cognition (PC) with the targeted memory. The PC should be checked for ecological validity and rated on the validity of cognition (VOC) scale. Closure is important at the end of any therapy, and particularly so after EMDR desensitization. As such, it is important to allow sufficient time for closure, debriefing, safety assessment, and homework. As with any therapy, clients will sometimes find that something occurs that disrupts the therapeutic plan. Modeling, education on social skills, and testing out new behaviors will now be the focus of therapy. This may be an unexpected crisis, such as a relationship breakdown or being diagnosed with cancer, and clients will need support in making adjustments in their present life.

Desensitization is a complex and important phase of eye movement desensitization reprocessing (EMDR) therapy. This chapter covers child-friendly strategies and interweaves that support and stimulates the social engagement system, maintain dual awareness and kindle children’s integrative capacities. It presents advanced strategies and interweaves that can facilitate the assimilation of memories of trauma and adversity as well as to promote vertical and horizontal integration. Shapiro developed a strategy to jump-start blocked processing that she called ‘the cognitive interweave’. According to Shapiro, clients spontaneously move through the three plateaus of information processing: responsibility, safety, and control/power, to a more adaptive perspective during reprocessing. Most children injured and traumatized in the adult-child relationship carry within the responsibility of the event. Mindful awareness in EMDR is pivotal during the reprocessing phases. The use of nonverbal communication strategies can greatly facilitate the process for children working on memories of events occurring pre-verbally.

This chapter provides information for therapists to integrate theories of neuroscience into the practice of child psychotherapy. Neuroscientists have described how the brain develops, documented the impact of external experiences on the developing brain, and integrated theories of neurodevelopment and neuroplasticity into our understanding of the impact of our interpersonal relationships on our brain. The chapter focuses on developmental trauma disorder and the research on the impact of trauma on children. The majority of the research on trauma in children has focused on the assessment and diagnosis of Post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD); however, there are a limited number of studies that have documented the efficacy of the treatment of PTSD in children. The chapter reviews diagnoses specific to neurodevelopment, including autistic spectrum disorders (ASD) and sensory processing disorders (SPD).

This chapter discusses the client’s ability to self-regulate and handle high levels of affect. The maintaining factors of the effects of trauma- or anxiety-based disorders include fear, avoidance, and loss of control. Building or reinforcing coping strategies allows the client to regain some sense of control over what is happening, which, in turn, can have a positive impact on the fear and avoidance. Many novice Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR) therapists report additional performance anxiety when their client is a mental health professional. Hyperarousal after a traumatic experience is normal. It occurs when a person’s brain believes that person is at risk again because it misreads an external signal or trigger. Grounding techniques can be taught very easily to clients and are another tool to help the client prepare for dealing with a possible abreaction while undergoing EMDR therapy.

The work directed toward increasing the child’s ability to tolerate and regulate affect, so that the processing of traumatic material can be achieved, is initiated during the preparation phase. The process of providing the neural stimulation to improve the child’s capacity to bond, regulate, explore, and play should begin during the early phases of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) therapy. The Polyvagal theory presents a hierarchical model of the autonomic system. In complexly traumatized children, the development of this system has been compromised due to the early dysregulated and traumatizing interactions with their environments and caregivers. When describing the various forms of bilateral stimulation (BLS), go over the different options and practice with the child. If the child went through the calm-safe place protocol successfully, motivating the child to actually use it when facing environmental triggers is an important goal.

Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) therapy was independently designated as a psychotherapy approach, and was validated by twenty randomized controlled clinical trials. Results of meta-analyses show EMDR as an effective and efficacious treatment for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in adults and children. Childhood complex trauma refers to the exposure of early chronic and multiple traumatic events. The adaptive information processing (AIP) model constitutes the central piece and foundation of EMDR therapy. Affective neuroscience brings up the importance of PLAY as a healing agent. The polyvagal theory emerged out of the work of Stephen Porges on the evolution of the autonomic nervous system (ANS). Interpersonal neurobiology (IPNB) brings a viewpoint that integrates objective realms of scientific findings and subjective realms of human knowing. The structural dissociation theory of the personality is based on Pierre Janet’s view of dissociation as a division among systems that constitute the personality of an individual.

The Resource Connection Envelope (RCE) derives from the assumption that the dialectical healing movement between negative stored memories or problems and positive stored memories or resources is crucial for adaptive processing. The Assessment Phase in the Standard Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) Protocol makes the problem, which is represented by the traumatic image or picture, more accessible for processing. The RCE aims to complement it by making the resource pole accessible as well. The RCE begins with a Past Resource Connection (PRC), collects the Present Resource Connection (PrRC) that comes up during processing, and ends with a Closing Resource Connection (CRC) chosen from the Present Resources or the Past Resource. In the Assessment Phase of the Standard EMDR Protocol, Compact Focusing is performed on a representative picture of the traumatic event. Different therapeutic approaches have various techniques to enhance accessibility or do their own version of Compact Focusing.

Clients need to be aware that the process of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) treatment can be disturbing and that dissociated material may surface during therapy. Because EMDR has the potential for rapid uncovering of this unsuspected material, some of which may be extremely distressing an assessment needs to be made of the client’s ability to handle strong emotions. For some clients there may be ambivalence about recovery from their dysfunction or distress. Common secondary gains include the loss or reduction of a compensation claim or disability pension. It is strongly recommended that EMDR is not used with clients who have dissociative disorders (DD) unless therapists are confident and competent in their EMDR practice as well as in working with this client population. The chapter also presents a snapshot of Emma’s assessment that should be gathered to determine suitability for EMDR.

This chapter clarifies treatment throughout the similarities as well as the differences between eye movement desensitization reprocessing (EMDR) therapy and sensorimotor psychotherapy in child treatment. Dysregulated arousal and overactive animal defenses biased by traumatic experience are at the root of many symptoms and difficulties observed in traumatized children. Traumatic or adverse experiences are encoded in memory networks in the brain. The adaptive information processing (AIP) looks at different components of the memory network: cognitive, emotional and somatic. EMDR therapy and its phases access not only the cognitive aspects of the memory, but the affective and bodily states. In working with children, microphones may add a playful approach to translating the body’s language. Oscillation techniques are also useful in helping children to shift their focus from dysregulated states to a more resourced experience, which supports flexibility in state shifting and increases awareness of different states.

Intracranial imaging is vital to the initial evaluation, staging and treatment planning, and posttreatment follow-up of brain tumor patients. The modalities used to evaluate the brain are CT and MRI. A familiarity with basic radiologic concepts can enable a provider to better translate the intracranial process to clinical care. This chapter is intended to give the clinician a baseline for interpreting images independently in either the acute or chronic setting. Imaging of the brain using CT and MRI techniques is essential to the evaluation of patients with intracranial malignancy, both in the acute and chronic setting. Knowledge of basic imaging principles related to the presence of an intracranial mass and familiarity with findings unique to certain malignancies are useful tools for the clinician. These skills can be built over time by reviewing patient images independently, utilizing the kinds of fundamentals discussed in this chapter.

Interventional pain procedures are an adjunct to pharmacologic therapy for cancer pain. While pain at the location of the tumor might be the primary cause of pain, cancer patients may also have non-cancer related pain as a result of altered anatomy or biomechanics, for example, myofascial pain. Myofascial pain is pain or autonomic phenomena referred from active trigger points in the muscles, fascia, and tendons. This chapter discusses about the therapies for muscular pain which includes the trigger point, botulinum toxin, acupuncture, therapies for peripheral nerve mediated pain, local blockade, ultrasound guided procedures, sympathetic blocks, complex regional pain syndrome, spinal procedures, epidural steroid injections, neuromodulation, vertebral procedures and facet arthropathy. Kyphoplasty and vertebroplasty not only have been studied most extensively in stabilizing compression fractures from osteoporosis, but have also been used to treat fractures resulting from osteolytic metastasis, myeloma, vertebral osteonecrosis, and hemangioma.

This chapter serves as a one-stop resource where therapists can access a wide range of word-for-word scripted protocols for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) practice. The imagery of an “Inner Safe Place” is part of a body of work on stabilization techniques for trauma therapy called “Psychodynamic Imaginative Trauma Therapy (PITT)”. It is used within PITT to prepare clients for EMDR. However, it works very well as a resource for EMDR. It is important to know that clients who live in unsafe circumstances are often not able to develop the images and so seeing what happens while working on installing the inner safe place can tell us something about clients’ external safety. If clients are able to create an inner safe place, the therapist can proceed with the exercise. If clients are unable to create and install a safe place, other stabilization work is used.

The EMDR Accelerated Information Resourcing Protocol (EMDR-AIR Protocol®) is designed to look for that learned generational reaction to trauma that the client is currently using to cope with the current situation while, at the same time, tapping into the historical strengths and resources that enabled survival. These resources are found through the rapid accessing of client history by using Multi-Tiered Trans-Generational Genogram (MTTG). The MTTG seeks to look at family history, birth dates, cultural information, transgenerational behavioral patterns, lifestyle, untold secrets, multi-tiered transgenerational trauma and sexual history, belief systems, historical events, and styles of celebration. The main objectives for the EMDR-AIR Protocol are to recognize potential stuck components in the EMDR processing that are related to trans-generationally transmitted behavioral and emotional patterns and to enable the client to step away from the crisis so as to begin the process of reprocessing with EMDR, with the chronologically most relevant Touchstone Event.

Clients with dissociative identity disorder (DID) or dissociative disorder not otherwise specified (DDNOS) live with a multiple reality disorder where parts are often living in the past and are not aware of where they are, the current date, or the time. The goal of this resource is to reduce the anxiety of parts living in the past and increase the client’s ability to differentiate the past from the present. Beginning with the host, adult, or other oriented parts, make a list of information that the disoriented parts need to be oriented and to decrease anxiety. Once the list is developed, install the list using dual attention stimulation (DAS). Useful items tend to be concrete and help differentiate the past from the present. If the client is being abused in some way in the present, often there are ways to differentiate the past from the present.

The most critical therapeutic work with dissociative clients is stabilization. This chapter describes the modified Resource Development Installation (RDI) procedures that can help such clients slowly develop skills that lead to this kind of stabilization. There are many reasons stabilization is a central facet of work with the dissociative disorders. Frequently, there are physical symptoms, visual intrusions, sleep difficulties, nightmares, barraging inner voices, and other negative affects. The chapter conceptualizes the cause of the particular kinds of negative affect listed above as consequent to intrusions from or responses to activated traumatic memory. Managing the intense negative affects associated with eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) is not yet part of the client’s repertoire. Such capacities must be developed for the client to use EMDR effectively. Learning how to support and provide self-care can result in present time satisfactions and the decrease in the experience of negative affect.

This chapter includes scripts for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) treatment of clients with cancer, eating disorders, headaches, somatic disorders, sexual disorders, and more. It also includes summary sheets for each protocol to facilitate gathering information, client documentation, and quick retrieval of salient information while formulating a treatment plan. The treatment of chronic pain is a new and growing application of EMDR. The suitability of EMDR for chronic pain stems from a number of sources. There are similarities and overlaps between traumatic stress and physical pain that would suggest EMDR as an appropriate addition to working with chronic pain. Negative Cognition (NC) is optional when the pain is not related to trauma. If possible, the NC will elicit clients’ attitudes or beliefs about themselves around their pain. Positive Cognition (PC) is about how clients would like to feel about themselves in relation to their pain.