Through the Eyes of a Child

Children are different and any clinician who works with children in trauma will want to encorporate the tools and techniques in this book, written by giants in EMDR treatment in designing treatment planning. Used in conjunction with the standard protocols, and proper training, the treatment modifications suggested in this work will enhance the competency of clinicians who work with children in distress.

Physical abuse. Sexual abuse. Chronic neglect. Domestic violence. Auto accidents. School shootings. Unfortunately, there is no shortage of ways for children to be traumatized. Just as unfortunately, research into children's trauma and the development of treatment methods often lag behaind adult counterparts. Filling a major gap in the eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) literature, veteran therapists Robert Tinker and Sandra Wilson are making available, in compellingly readable form, the techniques they have used successfully with children from Oklahoma City to Rwanda. Geared equally to the child clinician interested in adding this powerful modality and to the experienced EMDR practtioner, "Through the Eyes of a Child" cuts through the mystery to illuminate the method. "It's like you took a magic wand, and said 'Bing! You can live now!" --The mother of a six-year-old who had been severely sexually abused when she was 18 months old. Clinical examples and session transcripts demonstrate EMDR at work with children and teenagers who have experienced a range of acute and ongoing traumas, from molestation by a sibling to the suicide of a parent, from near-death in a lightning storm to the emotional upheaval of a bitter custody battle. (Additional cases show its efficacy in dealing with problems that may not necessarily be trauma-related, among them ADHD, simple phobias, attachment disorder, and learning disabilities.) Tinker and Wilson make important comparisons between pediatric and adult applications of the method at the diagnostic and assessment levels, and modify the treatment protocol to fit youngsters at various stages of development. The standard eye movements, for example, are inappropriate for most children under age five, but they respond well to other forms of left-right stimulation. To keep therapeutic goals clearly in sight, direct, concerte language is usually preferable to the metaphoric language commonly accompanying desensitization. The authors are acutely aware of some EMDR therapists' reservations about working with children, and they have included plenty of guidelines so that readers can accuaratly guage young clients' reactions, minimize the possibility of dissociation, and--most importantly--avoid retraumatization. (One rule that can't be overemphasized: establish a "safe place" that can be returned to when necessary.) Clinical and legal caveats, suggestions for combining EMDR with other forms of therapy, and ideas for involving parents are included as well. With clients this young, significant results often come at an accelerated pace. This can be surprising to clinicians used to conducting adult-length sessions, but as one seven-year-old described the effect of EMDR on his nightmares, "[They] just cleared out of my brain."

Despite the child focus, I believe this book is essential reading for all who either use or intend to use EMDR, especially with children. Due to the inevitable developmental influence of much of adult trauma it is an important reference text for all to consider. Any criticism is perhaps only because the general standard is so high that one expects this work to be the fountain of all knowledge when in essence it is a brilliant text about EMDR with children containing a wealth of knowledge. The book is blended like a fine, smooth malt whisky. It has a unique combination of evidence based fact, neurobiological overview, exellent clinical case description, instruction and anecdote based on many years of skilled experience with a rare style that makes it extremely palatable, with continued satisfaction when you resample it. The hallmarks of true expertise were met by the authors' conversion of complexity to simplicity with minimal loss of data. Tinker & Wilson are a rare hybrid of 'gifted researcher and compassionate, effective clinician' who have given generously of their time to fellow professionals and patients. I will unreservedly recommend the book to all.