David Grand
Emotional Healing at Warp Speed
:
The Power of EMDR
288 pages
2001
paperback: $24 US; $36 Can.
Emotional Healing at Warp Speed provides a popular introduction to a miraculous new psychotherapeutic method called EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing). In these pages psychotherapist David Grand, Ph.D., describes his own first encounter with EMDR, then recounts the dramatic results of bringing this new therapy into the lives of his patients. By alternately stimulating the left and right sides of the brain to clear psychological blocks and resolve trauma, EMDR helped Grand’s patients put the pieces of their emotionally shattered lives back together with a speed that exceeded his wildest dreams.
Grand’s use of EMDR has helped people from all walks of life, from railroad engineers reliving the nightmare of death on the tracks to mothers of children killed on the mean streets of America’s inner cities, from bomb victims in Belfast and Oklahoma City to Arabs and Israelis traumatized by decades of hatred and violence. His account of this work inspires and touches the reader’s heart as it reveals the healing power of a process that works as swiftly as thought itself.
Grand takes EMDR–developed by Francine Shapiro, M.D., only fourteen years ago–far beyond its initial use in healing trauma. In addition to turbo- charging breakthroughs in psychotherapy, Grand uses EMDR to clear away blocks to performance and creativity. Remarkable examples show athletes, actors, musicians, and artists improving their performance, and a self-use chapter describes practical ways readers can apply this remarkable method to resolve fear of public speaking, enhance creativity, enjoy deeper, more restful sleep, resolve stress and anxiety, and much more.
David Grand, Ph.D., a practicing psychotherapist since 1979, has changed the lives of thousands of men and women. His breakthrough work has been profiled internationally through such media as NBC, CNN, the New York Times, and the Washington Post. Grand lectures on EMDR around the world. He lives on Long Island, New York.
From Publishers Weekly
Crediting Francine Shapiro with originating the technique just 13 years ago, Long Island psychotherapist Grand explains eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) therapy for a popular audience. With 40,000 trained practitioners, this recent addition to the therapeutic arsenal has tremendous potential, he argues, for healing the effects of trauma, relieving depression, enhancing creativity and performance and improving studying and test taking. Focusing on a "target image" associated with a traumatic memory, the patient is led through a step-by-step process of recalling scenes, emotions and physical sensations while receiving "bilateral stimulation" through guided eye movements, alternating sounds in headphones or alternately receiving squeezes, massaging rubs or taps on the left and right sides of the body. According to Grand, one-time traumas (car accidents, bombings, hurricanes) can be released in one session, even in a few minutes, while deeper disturbances (repeated child abuse, war experiences) may take longer and may involve additional methods of therapy. He provides compelling anecdotal evidence of EMDR's effectiveness with train engineers traumatized by suicides and accidents on the tracks; survivors of the Oklahoma City bombing and Florida's Hurricane Andrew; mothers of slain children in Brooklyn; residents of Northern Ireland, Bosnia, Israel and the occupied territories; survivors of child abuse; and professional actors and athletes. While many readers may still find it doubtful that any one therapy could work on all patients, especially in such rapid time, Grand presents an intriguing case for his approach. (Aug. 21)Forecast: The claim of "warp speed" healing will attract deserved media scrutiny, while Grand's passion for his subject will help sell the book.
Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
From Booklist
The body-mind therapy called EMDR (eye movement desensitization reprocessing), invented less than 15 years ago by Francine Shapiro, is a controversial but inarguably effective way of treating psychological trauma. Using the unlikely procedure of guiding the eye through specific movements, the EMDR therapist creates a trancelike state in the client, who then vividly relives events that created lasting difficulties. In this reliving, the mind "reprocesses" the material, permitting the client to be released from its power. Practitioners and clients report that often just a few sessions--indeed, as few as one--relieve deep-rooted problems that have been resistant to more conventional therapies. (Such quick effectiveness is the source of the controversy about the therapy; critics maintain it can't possibly have such dramatic results.) Grand's engagingly written book documents his experiences as an EMDR specialist who has used the technique with clients as diverse as Oklahoma City bombing victims and artists seeking to unblock their creativity. An intriguing presentation of a promising new therapy. Patricia Monaghan
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“Brain-imaging studies in the Amen Clinics have shown that EDMR can actually heal brain function after trauma. I highly recommend Dr. David Grand’s new book on this subject. Unlike most books on psychology, it is beautifully and passionately written and easy to read. All therapists and anyone who has suffered emotional trauma (and those who love them) should read this book.”
-- Daniel G. Amen, M.D., psychiatrist and author of Change Your Brain, Change Your Life
“In this eloquent book, David Grand masterfully demonstrates both the technique and the theory of one of the most powerful new tools for psychotherapeutic treatment. While previous books on EMDR have tended to focus on pragmatics, Grand offers hope for those who suffer unremitting psychic pain or who are undergoing agonizingly slow recovery from major trauma. His dazzling stories of patient recovery are exciting to read. This book lies at the cutting edge of modern treatment for the mind.”
-- Andrew Solomon, author of Noonday Demon: An Atlas of Depression and New York Times contributing writer
“Dr. David Grand helps people heal from trauma and clear away negative patterns using simple steps to focus, clarify their perceptions, identify, and more important, release creative blocks. This book provides valuable insights into a powerful new tool for helping people to cut through mental clutter and learn to listen to their own inner wisdom.”
-- Johnnie L. Cochran, Jr., coauthor of Journey to Justice
“Dr. Grand’s successful use of the remarkable new technique, EMDR, to help athletes, actors, and musicians enhance performance and creativity extends the boundaries of performing art. I highly recommend it.”
-- Terrie Williams, president of the Terrie Williams Agency and author of The Personal Touch and Stay Strong: Simple Life Lessons for Teens
“I offered Dr. David Grand’s techniques to my voice, dialect, and acting students with astounding results. I believe ‘The Grand System’ will someday be as celebrated in the field of performance theory as ‘The Stanislavski System’ is today.”
-- Linda Brennan, chair, Voice & Speech Department, the American Academy of Dramatic Arts