Return to Archive
Browse By Month
Like This?
Subscribe by email:
The Institute for Rapid Resolution Therapy April 2011 Newsletter
Sent Monday, April 4, 2011
 |
P.O. Box 47775 Tampa, FL 33646 P: 800-587-2623 E:cleartrauma@gmail.com |
Rapid Resolution Therapy Training Tidbits |
Lets Connect |
|
Training Tidbits: In Honor of Sexual Assault Awareness
Month
~ Melinda Paige, Ed.S, LMHC, NCC
Master Practitioner, Rapid Resolution Therapy
Dr. Connelly's approach to trauma resolution, Clinical
Hypnosis with Rapid Trauma Resolution, demonstrates the ways in which language,
metaphor and connection create positive outcomes in therapy with those who have
survived sexual assault.
One example of the way language can be disempowering is when
it suggests that a person who has experienced sexual assault has somehow been
essentially and indefinitely changed for the worst by the assault(s).
Therapists commonly address this in therapy by working toward modifying this
individual's perceived sense of self as damaged by the assault(s).
 Instead,
Connelly utilizes language which illustrates that she is not her body and that
the assault(s) did not touch her essential self or personhood thereby separating
perceived identity from the sexual assault. Connelly's use of language also
celebrates the survivor and all he has accomplished prior to the trauma
resolution session. Connelly states, "The hard work was completed before you got
here. The hard work was surviving that experience. All we have to do is spread
the good news that that has already been taken care of and that you're ok. The
hard part was living through it. The easy part is getting mind cleared so that
you fully get it that you have lived through it." ived
through it and you've defeated it!
Connelly suggests that the participant "try on" a
different perspective and then provides metaphors that reconstruct negative
meaning while shifting perceived identity. For example, he might ask the participant to
reflect on what people recall about a person that has passed away. He asks if people are likely to remark about
the person's body or what the person's arm or leg looked like. Instead, he suggests, people are more likely
to remember "the essence" of the person, the part of who we are that
is indestructible, like a beam of light. Next, Connelly suggests "you have a body
and it is absolutely yours, but you are not your body" therefore the
perpetrator "never touched you."
Finally, he says "he never touched you, he never touched your
essence, your essence - who you actually are - can only be touched by
love."
Excerpt from a session in which the participant is asked
to repeat the words Dr. Connelly says:
A second metaphor created by Connelly to eliminate shame involves
prisoner of war automobile license plates often displayed by war veterans.
Connelly asks the participant if she has ever seen these license plates and if
she knows why veterans who have been prisoners of war so proudly display them.
He then asks the participant why women who survive a similar experience do not
display similar automobile license plates that say "Survivor of Sexual
Assault." He suggests that a woman who survived an equally horrific
experience should also proudly display her accomplishment for all to
appreciate.
A third metaphor Connelly created demonstrates the gift of
trauma. He tells the following story: Two women are walking through the desert.
The first woman has plenty of water with her to drink along her long journey.
She arrives at the end of this journey and discovers a beautiful fountain
overflowing with water with bottles of cold drinking water lining the
fountain's edge. The second woman has no water with her to drink along the same
journey through the desert. Her mouth is so dry as she walks that she can
barely produce enough moisture to spit the sand from her mouth. She arrives at
the same beautiful fountain overflowing with water with bottles of cold
drinking water lining its edge. Connelly asks the participant what each woman is
thinking and feeling as she sees the fountain brimming with water at the end of
her journey. He suggests that the second woman can more deeply appreciate the
water in ways that the first woman cannot because of the intense suffering she
experienced on her journey.
According to Connelly, "Connection is a magnet the
psychotherapist can use to affect the participant's energy level, mood, and
outlook. In order to build connection, the psychotherapist should demonstrate
her interest in understanding the participant's experience. In addition, she
should clarify and demonstrate this understanding while being positive,
interesting, appreciative, and incorporating appropriate humor." Finally,
Connelly suggests that the psychotherapist "provide the experience of connection
while staying in the light." His
use of metaphor allows him to create an uplifting and transformative experience
in session for the participant without minimizing her experience of the
traumatic event. |
     |
Certified Practitioner Tara Dickherber |
|
 Client Statement"My name is Mindy. I am 39-years old. I have lived all my
life being a very emotional person. Even as a child my feelings were hurt
easily, and it didn't matter what emotion I was feeling whether it was anger or
sadness, I would break down in tears. When I was 26-years old my husband of
eight years was killed in a wreck. I was left with a 9-year old son and 3-year
old daughter to raise on my own. After 13 years, it is still hard to trust
anyone for fear of being left alone again. I recently got involved with a man
who was going through a divorce, and I thought he was everything any woman
could want. I believed in him and trusted him. His wife had left him for
another man. After about four months of a wonderful relationship, one I didn't
think was possible for me, he took his wife back and left me.
Not only was I
dealing with that, but I started reliving all the feelings I had gone through
when my husband was killed. It was extremely hard to get through a day of work
without having a breakdown and crying. All of these uncontrollable emotions
were coming over me, and it was affecting every aspect of my life. My sister
had been to see Tara after a horrible relationship and had miraculous results,
so I thought it couldn't hurt. I spent two 2-hour sessions with Tara and got
rid of a lifetime of emotions that were holding me back from having a happy and
normal life.
During the first session, I walked in the door a crying emotional
mess. When I walked out the door I was ready to celebrate life. Her RRT
techniques provided instant relief from my lifetime of emotional stress. I felt
like a new person. I only wish I had gone to her years ago. I then had more
issues with the man that had left me and other life issues going on and I went
to Tara again. I am now able to better deal with my relationship problems, my
job, my family and anything else that causes me stress in life. I have become a
stronger person in all areas of my life, thanks to Tara."
Mindy is wonderful and a great supporter of Rapid Resolution
Therapy!
Be well, Be happy - Tara Tara S. D Certified Rapid Resolution Therapist 573-754-0348 2081 Collier Corporate Parkway St. Charles, MO 63303 |
|
Certified Practitioner Spotlight: Michele Gustafson |
|
|
An
Unexpected Result of Clearing Anxiety with RRT
by Michele J Gustafson, LMSW, DCSW Because
Rapid Resolution Therapy so quickly and thoroughly alleviates symptoms, several
of my clients have had previously undiagnosed medical problems come to
light. This has resulted from being able
to rule out anxiety or panic as the cause of their symptoms. What follows is the experience of one of
those clients.
"Well, I
have asthma," the young woman seated across from me announced with a bit of a
smile. I had seen Jennifer previously
for panic attacks and anxiety, and we had successfully resolved her symptoms,
going from daily attacks to no panic episodes in months and no
longer experiencing anxiety symptoms.
"You do?" I
responded, curious about her reason for announcing this to me.
"You won't
believe how I found out," she continued.
"I was still having the shortness of breath, even after being done with
the anxiety." She explained that she had
gone to see her primary care physician because of the shortness of breath. Her doctor had listened to her and basically
dismissed her complaint, saying it was due to anxiety. She then described having told her doctor,
"No, I no longer have anxiety, so that can't be what's causing the shortness of
breath." Her doctor dismissed her
complaint a second time, saying that since she had treated her for anxiety with
medication for a year and had referred her to therapy for anxiety, the
shortness of breath was almost certainly a symptom of anxiety.
Jennifer
then declared to me, "So, I got a new doctor."
She explained that she went to see her new primary care physician and
told her in detail what had occurred.
She informed her new physician that she had been experiencing panic and
anxiety symptoms for over a year, had been treated with several medications
with very limited results and had successfully resolved the symptoms with
therapy, but that she was still having shortness of breath. She told me her new doctor listened to her
carefully and then did an examination that included listening to her breathe
with the stethoscope, a chest x-ray and a lung function test. The doctor then announced to her, "My dear,
you have asthma." Jennifer said, in that
moment, "it all made sense."
She knew why
she was continuing to have the shortness of breath even after having resolved
the anxiety. She said the breathing
treatment her doctor gave her right then and there made a huge difference, and
she breathed more easily than she had in weeks.
She expressed how pleased she was to finally have her symptom diagnosed
and treated effectively. Additionally,
the diagnosis validated what she knew to be true; that is, that her anxiety was
resolved and the shortness of breath was not a symptom of anxiety.
As noted in
my introduction, this is one of several clients who have been able to clearly
indicate to their physician that a physical symptom was not related to anxiety
because their anxiety had been alleviated and was no longer a problem. In my more than 25 years of treating clients for
panic and anxiety, no other therapy technique or medication has consistently
yielded this level of symptom resolution and confidence in clients. I continue to be amazed and delighted with
the results of Rapid Resolution Therapy.
 Michele
Gustafson, LMSW, DCSW, practices in Grand Blanc and
Fenton, Michigan. She received her BA and MSW from the
University of Michigan where she has taught Psychology and Social Work.
You can visit her on her website at www.michelegustafson.com, or you can reach her at info@michelegustafson.com. |
|
Upcoming Trainings |
|
 Level I Trainings:
April 15 - 17, San Antonio, TX
June 3 - 5, Chicago, IL
June 24 - 26, Denver, CO
July 15 - 17, Tampa, FL
Sept. 9 - 11, New Orleans, LA
Sept. 23 - 25, Atlanta, GA
|
|
IRRT Updates |
|
|
Certified Practitioner Dr. Laura Bokar Featured on ABC7 News Chicago
Dr. Laura L. Bokar, LCP
 C, LMFT, ACS, was recently featured in a special segment
for ABC7 News Chicago entitled Hope and Help for Veterans. As a Certified Rapid
Resolution Therapist, Laura spoke on the healing effects that veterans can
experience by engaging in Rapid Resolution Therapy.To watch this video and others, please click here. If you would like to reach Dr. Laura, please visit her website at Fox Valley Institute. |
|
Dr. Jon Connelly, Ph. D., LCSW |
|
|
He has over 30 years of experience working with individuals and training professionals as well as board certification in psychotherapy, sex therapy, hypnotherapy, behavioral medicine, clinical social work and chemical dependency counseling. Dr. Connelly directs the Trauma Resolution Program at Palm Partners Residential Treatment facility for individuals in recovery from alcohol and drug dependency. He was appointed to the Clinical Faculty for the social work program at the State University of New York at Stony Brook and hosted a popular radio talk show on mental health issues. Dr. Connelly has also conducted seminars in hospitals throughout the country on advanced methods of stress management and mind body healing sponsored by the United States Veterans Administration. |
|
| For more information please visit www.cleartrauma.com or call 800-587-2623 | |
ickherber, M.Ed, LPC
Dr. Jon Connelly is the founder and developer of Rapid Resolution Therapy, a revolutionary psychotherapeutic approach to emotional and behavioral difficulties. He is the author of Life Changing Conversations - The Power of Transformational Communication, which demonstrates that dramatic therapeutic breakthroughs can be facilitated in a single psychotherapy session. Dr. Connelly is the founder of The Institute for Survivors of Sexual Violence, a non-profit (501C3) organization providing mental health professionals with state-of-the-art training in advanced clinical methods of eliminating the negative influence of trauma.