EMDR storytelling, originated by Joan Lovett (1999) and elaborated later by several EMDR
C&A trainers and specialists, is an adaptation of the standard protocol. It is a procedure,
created to make EMDR therapy possible for children and adults with mental retardation who
have symptoms related to exposure to traumatic events in the preverbal phase or for those
who have no verbal access to relevant memories. They cannot activate these memories
directly because they have no narrative. Therefore, their symptom-related unprocessed
memories are activated and desensitized via a narrative of the parents/caregivers.
The first part of the workshop will cover the meaning and function of the narrative in several
therapy-forms and compare these. Some criteria will be proposed which can be helpful to
coach parents/caregivers in writing an adequate story for EMDR therapy of their child.
In the second part, the focus will be on ‘lessons learned’ from research findings regarding
the efficacy of EMDR in young children (aged 0-8 years). Results of a new study will be
presented, using EMDR-storytelling in young children with PTSD, aged 1.5-8 years old.
In the third part of the workshop specifics of the use of EMDR storytelling in combination
with the standard protocol for children aged 4-18 year with symptoms related to preverbal
memories, will be discussed and practiced