The Most Magical Thing I Do as a Therapist

We make positive changes to the lives of the people we work with – it’s one of the main reasons we do what we do.

The one technique I use which is quick and easy and makes the biggest difference is resolving ‘stuck’ trauma images. Trauma images can be of anything, but death images are common and can block good memories from the past which is especially distressing.

The Synesthesia technique offers a quick and easy way to resolve trauma images which have got stuck. It only works for images, not films or movie memories. It is something which you can do for yourself, or can do for other people. I particularly like techniques which I can pass on to clients. You do not need to know the content of a synesthesia to work with it.

Brain response to trauma

Our brains constantly process our experience, and file away memories. Our primitive part of the brain has a survival strategy when we encounter serious threats, and danger. It does not process and file them, but holds them where we can’t forget them. It is doing the best it can to keep us safe. This may be useful to protect us from tigers in the future, but can be distressing when a trauma image refuses to go away. The primitive part of the brain does not respond to rational thinking. After a trauma the image, feelings, sounds, smells can all become ‘stuck’ together. As soon as we are not distracted by everyday life, it can ‘zoom in’ as strong as the initial experience, and feel shocking and re-traumatising. Many synesthesias resolve themselves in the few weeks after a trauma. Some stay for years unless resolved and processed.

Synesthesia technique

Before starting, always check that it is a still image, not a film. Some people have several, if so start on the worst; some of the lesser ones may resolve themselves.

• Trauma images can be easily resolved by putting the picture/feelings/sounds where they normally go.
• Ask them about the ‘stuck’ picture. Where is it? How big? How far away? What is in it as well as the picture? Feelings? Sounds? Self-talk? Smells etc? Ask which one they want moving first.
• Very slowly, using your hands move each part from the image to where it goes. Talk through exactly what you are doing as you do it.

Where to put stuff (as if you are sitting opposite, looking at them)

• Made up pictures (high left)
• Remembered pictures (above the head, to the right)
• Made up sounds/smells (left side)
• Remembered sounds/mells (right side)
• Feelings (by their right foot)
• Self-talk (by their left foot)

Check each time that it is in the right place and comfortable. (If not, move it) Just as there are right handed and left handed people, some people will store their ‘stuff’ the opposite way. If you put something in the ‘wrong’ place, it will just spring back.

• At the end, check there’s nothing left where the synesthesia used to be.
• Reassure them that they don’t need to do anything, it will now stay ‘processed’ as that is more comfortable.

Whenever they want to access the memory in the future, they can.