At The Empowerment Center, our recovery approach is to look at the whole of every woman who walks through our doors and treat the root causes of her addiction. For many, their addictions stem from past traumas – making EMDR an especially helpful treatment tool! For the past year, Karen McKinney, TEC’s full-time therapist, has been treating clients with EMDR. And it’s working.
Here’s what that looks like, and the results we’ve been seeing:
About EMDR
EMDR, or Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing Therapy, is an evidence-based therapeutic practice that helps people process trauma. It’s just one of the ways we’re helping women struggling with addiction better their lives. The idea behind EMDR is having one foot in the present, the other in the past. Eye movement, tapping, butterfly hugs, and other tools keep clients grounded in the right-now while they’re processing their histories.
During EMDR, clients don’t need to process every trauma and don’t need to share all the details with McKinney. When they target their most impactful memories, their bodies generalize to the broader memory network, desensitizing them to triggers.
EMDR is an accelerated treatment, which is key when women usually only have 5 months at The Empowerment Center and 2 months before they’ll be returning to the workforce. “The beauty of it, is how fast it works,” Karen shares.
EMDR Works for Addiction
“When we have PTSD, when we have anxiety, when we have depression – basically it’s the past that’s still present in us,” according to McKinney. “EMDR processes it out, puts the past in the past, and helps us move on.” With the help of EMDR, she’s seeing clients sleep through the night, pull themselves out of depression, and more. When before some of her clients struggled to feel their feelings, after as little as 2-3 sessions, they’re telling her how disappointed, sad, and hurt they’ve been.
One of Karen’s recent experiences with EMDR was with a woman processing grief. Her husband had passed away and she felt caught in her guilt, like she couldn’t go on. After EMDR, she didn’t feel the guilt anymore. Today, she’s been able to grieve her loss in a healthy way and is feeling good about moving on to a new romantic relationship.
About Karen McKinney
Karen McKinney is a licensed alcohol and drug counselor (LADC), as well as a licensed clinical social worker(LCSW). Her focus is trauma, because that’s mainly where addiction comes from. It’s something she understands all too well. Karen is 11 years sober. She earned her GED at 45, then kept going – obtaining a Bachelors in Social Work, a Masters in Social Work, and a minor in Addiction Treatment Services. She tells her clients, “When you get sober, you have choices. You can do anything you want.”
Before coming to The Empowerment Center in 2022, McKinney worked with victims of domestic violence at ACCS (American Comprehensive Counseling Services) and ran group therapy sessions for prisoners at the Washoe County Jail.
EMDR: Just one of our Wrap-Around Services
At least 90% of Empowerment Center clients have experienced trauma, according to McKinney. They’ve been sexually abused, neglected, physically abused, grown up in foster care, and have ruptured attachments. She recognizes, “addiction is a coping skill, and they’re looking for something to feel better.”
At The Empowerment Center, we’re addressing not just addiction, but everything that’s needed to help women turn their lives around. We’re treating their traumas, their co-occurring disorders, and their medical conditions. Then, we’re teaching them coping skills more suitable for leading successful and fulfilling lives. We’re helping our clients find work, build community, and – in the process – improve their self-esteem. Our approach is a full suite of wrap-around services designed to help them advance through the next stages of their lives. EMDR is just one piece of our toolbox, but a valuable one. We’re grateful for the benefits it’s had at our treatment center.