Being a clinical psychologist trained in emdr, I had a few contentions - 1. Prolonged exposure does not involve any relearning and is effective in animals and not humans because whenever we're faced with fear, we cognitively engage in coping mechanisms like perfectionist thinking, catastrophising and planning for the future. In exposure, we're simply doing exactly what we do when we're overthinking and are caught up in the default mode network. So we're not facing our fear or going to the very incident where conditioning took place. Prefrontal cortex does not lead to inhibition because it doesn't get activated here. 2. Though some studies have stated that re telling of the trauma narrative can lead to extinction and unlearning of the fear response, this seems oversimplified. Remember that our brain is making associations all the time. Being exposed to therapies like CPT and CBT which involves retelling of the traumatic incident can lead to further traumatisation. As the client is entering sympathetic nervous system mode and is in fight flight or freeze within the therapy session, the therapy room, the therapist's face or anything in the therapy context can get associated to the fear response, further providing a trigger WITHIN the therapy space for the client to be traumatised. Therefore it's essential to have several sessions of what we call 'resourcing' or 'stabilization' so the client has the ability to regulate their own nervous systems to some degree BEFORE the re telling of the traumatic incident is attempted. CPT and CBT do not involve thorough stabilization as in trauma therapies like EMDR and other somatic psychotherapies (ISP, SE, IFS, etc.) 3. Lastly, in EMDR there is a new narrative being formed unlike what you said. There is a separate phase for 'installation' where a positive cognition/meaning is linked with the target memory that led to the symptoms of trauma in the first place. In fact, it is prolonged exposure in which there is no alternative narrative being formed. To summarise, EMDR, SE and other bottom up approaches are more efficacious when it comes to single or multiple incident traumas as opposed to other top down therapies like CBT and prolonged exposure.
What about a fear you can’t relate to a specific event? Like, I have a deep fear of loneliness, being alone in a prolonged way or unsupported, etc. but I can’t associate that to any event I can remember. It’s very limiting and leads to clingy, anxious attachment etc and it’s something I really want to change in my life …
For facing fear of anxiety in public, embarrassment etc. paradoxical intention is best and I feel it's effective. According to Dr. Victor E Frankl saying "Fear is the mother of the event" which implies that when you are anxious about something like public speaking you reinforced that fear of embarassment and awkwardness by thinking you should be very careful and calculative when you go on the stage. This carefulness called hyper intention on something you want to bring out success out of something pressurised you to make more nervous and eventually to more mistakes. But if you do the opposite ,paradoxical intention you would be thinking like this ,I make 3 mistakes and now I would be making 7 more mistakes left to make. This thinking let you off the hook of pressure and have more focus on the event than on your unnecessary thoughts. This makes you feel "I don't care if I make mistakes" and it tends to make more less mistake and comes out right what you want to do.
EMDR changed my life!! After years of talking about my trauma, I felt like it wasn't helpful at all. I used EMDR for sexual assaults and abuse in my late 20s. The technique used was talking about my trauma until my body was in such a heightened state of stress that the feelings I felt while experiencing it were at the forefront of my emotions. It was then followed by focusing on that pain and stress with no talking while my therapist had me follow her fingers back and forth or tapping on my knees. It was extremely hard, both mentally and emotionally. After 9 months, I eventually stopped bc I couldn't handle the stress. But I do remember one morning I woke up and could immediately tell I had a shift in my thoughts. Instead of waking up in misery, I saw life and the beauty of it. Everything was so bright, and I felt hope for the first time in years. The benefits were absolutely worth it. I recently used EMDR last year, in my 40s, and the technique was completely different. I had to think of a painful traumatic event that I constantly thought of. I never talked about the traumatic event. I merely wrote a defining statement about it. I would tie a negative cognition and negative feelings followed by following a ball on a computer screen. I would gauge the pain on a scale from 0-7. I continued following the ball until I was at a zero. I would then follow up with a positive cognition and positive feeling, then repeat the process. This was the most powerful healing I've ever experienced. I now believe talk therapy isn't as effective. I am thankful for this shift in my mind. I am moving forward in my life and have even stopped drinking. I no longer crave alcohol as a coping mechanism. I truly believe people suffering from addiction should work on the causes first before even trying to stop using. The recent technique used came from Peter Walkers, book Complex PTSD. I used this for multiple traumas I lived through in my life, not just a single event. I hope someone reading this will feel encouraged to try it!
omg thank you so much! my EMDR sessions didn't help me at all. I thought the reason is that it usually helps with the regular PTSD, not with the complex one. Now I will try the technique you are talking about!
Thank you. I am going to try this in June. Though I totally respect what A.Huberman is stating. I love to hear contradicting views and to be well informed. Ironically, I'm supplementing with saffron and ashwaganda for nutritional reasons. But I must say they have significantly reduced my waking anxiety. I awake with a frying sensation in my brain and was inclined to think my blood pressure was off. Who knew it was actually anxiety from night terrors. I have disassociated quite effectively during the day awake. However, even after all these years, the night terrors still plague me.
THOUGH he talks about subjects that are specific he delivers the facts in a layman's terms , terms that if you don't understand he gives a positive & clear reference for you to refer to if you're not quite sure , such a positive & clear feeling if you listen to him maybe more than once at different times it becomes very motivating & worthy of investigating... Always reliable inviting us to explore subjects that are worthy to know about if you're maybe unsure what it may mean to\for you . Motivating & informative for all... Thank you
Dr. Hubermans podcasts on alcohol helped me quit back in march. The way he scientifically explained the adiction side of alcohol made me realize im prone to alcoholism. My life has changed tremendously since. Thanks Andrew for your sharing your knowledge in a way the general population to understand.
What did you do to quit besides that? I just came out of rehab and quit many drugs but alcohol is still such a problem for me and its more dangerous then ever due to my tolerance. I'll keep fighting but any tips and tricks will be appreciated
I had also started prescription adderall around the same time, I also abused weed too, and since then I had quit weed around last Thanksgiving for a good 3 months, recently decided adderall was too much for my adhd symptoms and that I covered up alot of responsibility and childhood trauma with drinking and weed. I very slowly re introduced weed back into my life and quit the adderall prescription. Just last week I had extreme anxiety after taking one hit of weed and I threw my stash and bowl away. All of these changes on top of doing a keto/carnivore diet have turned my life around for the better. My relationship with my wife improved, my relationship with my mother ended and I now feel like a better role model for my 3 year old son. We all deal with different things in life and need to experience life and struggles our own certain way, but at 33 years old I am certain I will never drink alcohol again and I never want to depend on a substance again. I would rather rely on a good whole food diet (currently carnivore) and practice being a responsible person. It's hard but life wasn't meant to be easy either. Hubermans own personal story was quite inspiring and listening to people like Jordan Peterson, Andrew Tate, and David Goggins have been strong motivation for me to deal with daily struggles without a crutch or a substance whether socially accepted or not. I never would understand what rehab would be like but I am balancing trying to own and figure out my self identity and it hasn't been easy, keep your head up and stay strong, you can do it!
When my husband died suddenly in front of me and I had to perform CPR the event itself was very traumatic. Once that event was over there was a cascade of other traumatic events that followed. Financial stress, health stress for my kids, genetic counsellor, cardiologists, coroners, funeral arrangements, seeing my husband dead at the hospital, lawyers and estate processes, becoming a solo mother etc etc. These cascading traumatic events continued to happen for around 9/10 months afterward. Very rarely are traumatic events one single event. Anxiety creeped up on me and I found myself having a panic attack one day thinking I was dying like my husband did. I didn’t know it was a panic attack at the time. My blood pressure is also through the roof and I cannot control it through diet and exercise so had to start taking medications. When someone you love, who is perfectly healthy, drops dead in front of you after having just made breakfast for the family it shakes your whole world view and identity.
That’s so sad to read, I can’t imagine how you must feel. Stoicism might help you, check out some Ryan Holiday stuff if you aren’t already familiar. Wishing you all the best
that is very hard long road.. my boyfriend 40ish had an argument with him mum about CSA and was after and on the phone with me. I spoke sympathy and kindness and he had a heart-attach and died. I heard his brother trying to bring him round.. I rang his Mum because she lived next door and I said over and over again hello hello hello and she didn't say a word. I found out it was her that answered.. it's traumatic and it takes a decade to get over when it should take one. Complex chronic stress is mental illness NEEDS addressing so much time can be wasted in chronic grief.
@@raisedonmetal7984 hey maybe you think your words to are empowering to @fembot but they sure lack empathy. Maybe you've never experienced what she has. Maybe youre wiring is different. Sounded a little judgy and moralistic of how she should get thru the ordeal and how grief should affect her. Empathy and holding space for someone helps because we have no true idea her internal thoughts or private matters despite what was shared. Just a thought eh? Hey @fembot its a horrible thing you experienced and are trying to navigate. You are doing the best you can I have no doubt with the hand that was dealt you. I am so sorry for your loss. Don't be hard on yourself for how or what you feel. Please reach out for support whenever you can. No, life will never be the same but hold on to hope and healing that in time the horizon holds more joy and less pain as each minute, hour, day, week and month goes by. EMDR THERAPY can help with the traumatic memory and body response. No it's not a magic wand as you no but any relief is welcomed in these terrifying grief stricken moments. I wish you comfort when you most need it and hope to you raise your head another day. Much love to you on the unwanted part of your journey @fembot
Emdr clinician here. In emdr, clients do replace the negative belief of the event with a positive (adaptive event) after the desensitization phase. Love the content. I reference these videos often when doing psycho educational groups.
I've done EMDR for over a year now. I can't say I've been challenged on my beliefs during my sessions, is that meant to an outcome consequential of that? I don't think I've been able to achieve that
Thank you!!! I do EMDR too and was going to comment on this exactly and the three pronged approach. Sounds like we need more research on EMDR and complex trauma, as I've anecdotally had a lot of success in using EMDR for complex trauma.
Huberman: The big brother , or cool uncle I never had and never knew I needed until he started dropping these gems into the world. Bravo my friend, you are giving us a master's level education in a way that's understandable and free. I'm a therapist is private practice and I use both EMDR and CBT - these videos are a beautiful resource for me and my clients -Thank you
@Marianne I second this. Turned 40 around 7 weeks ago and had psychodelic experience that left me with PTS, terror episodes and vast amount of anxiety. Things I've never knew until now. I'm glad there are therapist like Mason who help people like myself.
Between Dr Huberman and The medical medium Anthony William , they have single-handedly changed my life forever after been chronically sick with multiple illnesses both mentally and physically since i was 16. Now at 33, my life is only starting now. Thankyou so much.
Psychedelics are just an exceptional mental health breakthrough. It's quite fascinating how effective they are against depression and anxiety. Saved my life.
Can you help with the reliable source I would really appreciate it. Many people talk about mushrooms and psychedelics but nobody talks about where to get them. Very hard to get a reliable source here in Australia. Really need!
Yes, dr.sporesss. I have the same experience with anxiety, depression, PTSD and addiction and Mushrooms definitely made a huge huge difference to why am clean today.
I wish they were readily available in my place. Microdosing was my next plan of care for my husband. He is 59 & has so many mental health issues plus probable CTE & a TBI that left him in a coma 8 days. It's too late now I had to get a TPO as he's 6'6 300+ pound homicidal maniac. He's constantly talking about killing someone. He's violent. Anyone reading this Familiar w/ BPD know if it is common for an obsession with violence.
Trauma therapist here. There is absolutely an EMDR component that re-attaches a positive reward and relearning a new narrative. This is always the last stage of processing any trauma, and the beauty of it! It’s what we talk about as the transformational nature of trauma - basically what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. People naturally start to look at the same event and their strengths, ability to survive, and persist become known to them. So the person walks away not only with very little emotional reaction to the event, but looking at the event through a totally different lens, as we have worked to challenge the cognitive distortions related trauma. I was actually listening to this thinking the process you described (before you got to EMDR) is exactly why EMDR works. To your point, most of us look for many methods to enhance trauma work, so that’s why I am always on the hunt for more information about trauma and the brain. I have a few different methods I weave together for more effective treatment, especially complex PTSD. Great episode! Thank you!
I have always tried to understand EMDR and never once found it useful. I had three different therapists who have tried this technique and it was with absolutely no luck. I have been suffering from agoraphobia and panic disorder since I was 19 I'm now 40. I become frustrated with therapy because I don't understand what they are trying to do. I do have a past that probably sounds like it comes out of a horror story but have explained to the therapist that I don't care about my past nor do I fear anyone or anything I just want to know why I panic when I leave my home especially when I once loved being outside and now I fear it and no has an answer.
@@linnerellie209 I once had agoraphobia and monophobia too and that too despite NOT having any traumatic incidents related to it, I was so afraid of being seen or going out that I won't even sit near the window or go the gallery and I felt miserable then when my college started it was worse since I couldn't rely on my parents all the time for transportation and had to do things on my own so going put became a necessity and I tried "fake it till you make it" and lucky it worked at first it seemed useless but eventually as months passed it became my strength and now I'm so much better I still sometimes go out and be alert or aware of my surroundings so that nothing bad happens but it's not like how I used to be before, so maybe trying "fake it till you make it" might work for u
I am also an EMDR clinician and have had great results with CPTSD and PTSD. Have you considered interviewing Bessel Van Der Kolk (The Body Keeps the Score) for his input on trauma, PTSD, and EMDR? Love your work and share it with so many clients, friends and family. :)
I’ve recently concluded that trauma is what I need to work on. I cannot hold thought enough to comprehend. The consequences you can imagine. I need help. Maybe we can speak to see if you can help?
I used to have a huge trouble falling asleep (my sleep cycle was messed up because of that untill I was 25 years old), because I couldn't calm down my mind. It all ended when my first son was born and I started observing how he falls asleep. He was always laying on his back and scanning whole room by moving his eyes form side to side to the point when he couldn't keep his eyes open and suddenly fell into sleep. Amazed how easily he falls asleep I started to copycat him and it worked wonders. Now I fall asleep withing minutes, no matter how aroused I am before bedtime. My theory is that by scanning your surroundings and not finding any danger for some time you automatically stop being alert and fall asleep. There is a lot of wisdom you can learn from a child, who isn't affected by civilization yet. Same with animals, learned lots of wisdom from my cat and dog by carefully observing their behavior.
Interesting observation, I must try it, and yes watching young children and animals we can learn alot. When my son was about 3+ years old, and was socialising or listening to more adults using words he wasn't familiar with, I found it fascinating how his brain worked when I asked him what he thought a specific word or phrase meant. I don't remember anything in particular now, but I'd often ask him later when we weren't away from the from others so he wouldn't be shy or get embarrassed by his reply. I do remember how often what he thought was often kind of on the right track with clues from the conversation but keypoint not there. When I explained what was said or what it meant using his own experiences he'd often understand it immediately and use the word back to me in his own sentences, somethings for days afterwards, then it wouldn't be long before he was using that word in his general conversations, or explaining it to his little companions. I miss those days, he's in his 40's now.
That is really interesting :) I have a similar experience. When I am anxious, I usually would suppress showing it, i.e. letting my eyes dart around the room anxiously and maybe looking over my soulder, maybe making myself small. But I notice, that when I let myself do that (maybe in private, at home) and my eyes find no danger, the anxiety supsides. And the eyes relax. The same happens for me, when I am out in nature, and the eyes can relax into the distance, and there is no "visible danger". I guess maybe you are letting your body do, what it needs to do to feel safe.
I have experoenced an almost magical cure from trauma caused by the sudden death of my best friend at the time. When I started therapy the trauma had been ruling my life for 7 years. After 4 months of therapy I got my normal life back. The therapy was done by a very experienced trauma specialist with a mixed approach: EMDR, narrating (everything was recorded on tape which I had to listen to again and again), talking to the dead person to say goodbye etc. It was extremely exhausting and painful but worth the effort. Based on this experience I am convinced that trauma is just brain malfunction that can be retrained.
I have CPTSD, starting with early childhood trauma and continuing through early adulthood. I had EMDR combined with NARM therapy. It was incredibly helpful in many ways. I had somatic issues I realized I was causing myself as well as dissociation. It also helped with getting my anxiety and panic attacks under control. I also had cranial sacral therapy, which may seem kinda of hokey, but it helped me recognize and release emotions I was storing in my body. There are still things I struggle with, but I have a much better understanding and awareness of my physical and mental well being. I really enjoy all the helpful information you share, you’ve been incredibly helpful as well ❤
EMDR - in my personal experience, I was able to eliminate the stigma of the traumatic events and reframe or replace the "sticky" memory with a more peaceful one. Now when I reference that painful memory, I am able to visualize and feel the memory that replaced it. In my specific case and I don't mind mentioning specifics... as a child I got in the middle of a fight my parents were having and was hit. It was a memory that haunted me and I couldn't remember anything that happened before or after that. This painful memory and my response to it shaped my life in a way that I would never enter into any type of conflict, and was terrified of getting hit. It caused PTSD in my adult life as well. In an EMDR session I referenced the memory, felt all the painful and scary feelings, and then my therapist guided me to an after scenario that my brain basically made up. I imagined my mother comforting me and holding me after I was hit. Now I am unable to reference the painful memory of getting hit without simultaneously referencing the pleasant memory of being comforted. I am no longer afraid of conflict as well. The impact was huge and all without dissociating - which empowered me in a way that I am able to feel hard feelings and move on. The ability to tolerate pain or stressful situation in my personal and professional life has been pivotal. One thing to note was that the therapist that administered EMDR was my therapist for almost 2 years prior and we had a very special relationship. The type of EMDR we did was tapping on the hands so physical touch from a safe person was involved. I had my eyes closed but they did dart back and forth, faster in an intense emotion. The process does seem to have a crescendo of sorts when going through the most painful parts of your memory and I believe that having a safe person with you while you feel those intense feelings is one of the main keys to this process working. They say that this process does not often work with childhood trauma, but I disagree - although I think your therapist plays a huge part as does your personal journey of processing through the trauma. There is also therapy that you can do yourself with tapping. Peter Levine discusses it in "Healing Trauma" and Laurel Pharnell writes about it in "Tapping In".
Thanks for sharing your experience, Allison. I found it valuable and informative. I've done all kinds of pioneering therapy, starting in the early 1980's -- including some of Peter Levine's methods, Arthur Janov's, hypnotherapy, energy healing, and many others -- but haven't yet tried, specifically, EMDR. I've utilized Tapping / EMT, off and on for years, with marginal results. But, your info here has inspired me to look further into EMDR, and to check out Laurel Pharnell's 'Tapping In', as well. I haven't even listened to Huberman's video yet -- so, hopefully I'll be even more inspired by what he shares here. Personal stories can be so useful to others with similar traumas, and who continue to seek solutions to further 'disentanglement' from the detrimental, long term effects. So thank you, again, for outlining your journey to a transformation. 🌟☮🙏
This has been my experience with EMDR. Oftentimes, with chronic trauma, it can be traced to some key events that bring up other lesser events and it’s all tied up in a web. Deescalating those key events also helps deescalate those other ones, as well as your responses to future events.
Thank you for your comments. I could not find the right words as a foreigner. You described it so well I had also a strong safe relationship with the therapist and had prepared for the EMDR sessions over months but it only worked for the unique event of the death of my sister For my childhood it failed: there are/were 100 of events, sexual and emotional abuse and mobbing from the mother, at least 10 dreadful memories.. Here EMDR had been no way for me (now i know this is not a failure. I am no longer ashame!) My way is made of different meditative practices. A lifelong labor, that is in good progress. It has made me what I am. "Out of the mud flowers grow" as Thich Nath Hanh says, and "pain is a great teacher"
@@edwigcarol4888 I am so glad that it worked for that unique event and I am sorry for your loss. EMDR is so great at targeting specific events. I do think that working on these events will in a way reset your nervous system and the adoption of trauma memories. I am so glad that you have those meditative practices. If there are any resources you found helpful I would love to know more. In 2022 I want to get consistent with journaling and meditation.
I am an EMDR client and had what I would call , exceptional results. I spent 4 or 5 years bouncing around to different psychologists/therapists for my PTSD with no success. Finally I learned of EMDR and sought out the treatment. I was given 3 options for EMDR. I found the "eye light bar" too busy in conjunction with recalling the trauma. 2nd there was vibrating "handles" for lack of better words, that would alternate the vibration in each hand as I recalled the incident. This was very distracting for me. I found I was concentrating more on the handles then the recall of memories. I only tried these 2 methods for maybe 1-2 minutes each. I did not have to repeat the traumatic event several times. So then we tried the headphones!! Brilliant! The head phones alternated a tone sound back and forth from one ear to the other as I started to recall the negative and highly emotional event. EMDR was explained to me that these negative memories and responses are attached to one area of the brain and the EMDR will open up the channels to the other side of the brain as to allow to "neutralize" my negative thoughts/response. I did have a very foggy and relaxed state after both sessions..I did not even remember the drive home. (I did have 5-6 sessions before the actual EMDR started) There was no definitive moment where I said "I'm better now"...it was a gradual realization that "hey I was just in a typical trigger situation but I did not respond negatively". What a great feeling! I've continued to this day to have a literal neutral response to otherwise a typical trigger for me. I certainly recommend at least giving this therapy a try. I felt I had nothing to lose. For me...I got my life back!
Thank you for posting these videos. I suffered a traumatic event on July 12 and 13, 2006. I never recovered from this, but have made extreme efforts. I have "suffered" through some "therapists" who were NOT AT ALL helpful. As a result, I have sought DIY therapy from the web. YOU are so helpful to me, and have helped me more than my past counselors. THX for your videos.
There are a lot of therapists out there who are basically hacks. But just because you haven't recovered from it yet, doesn't mean you can't. Doesn't matter how long ago it happened, it's always possible to recover. Glad you are finding things that are helpful!
hi! how are you holding up? I have a similar thing as to what you described. I was on the receiving end of an armed robbery with a carving knife to my throat. He tried to kill me more than once as I struggled to escape with my life. That was 21 years ago now and i've had a recovery breakthrough about a year ago. If you want some advise, let me know
Yes! I’m looking for someone who went through DIY therapy (there isn’t good therapists where I live unfortunately) any tips? I disliked the fact the he brushed it off by saying (seek CBT or CPT therapists) as if we all have access to decent ones. I went through a singular event that caused me intense fear of performing sexually (I’m a male) years ago and it’s still affecting me
I am a post 9/11 US Marine Corps Veteran who did EMDR with my therapist from a non profit whom I was extremely close and very trusting of and in that process you mentioned no imputing of new narrative and in our sessions we did infact rewrite the traumas or do something until the effect of the traumas were not as disturbing to imagine than before. We also healed some childhood wounds and I am so appreciative of him as I don’t think I would be here if it weren’t for him. Keep up the great work!!! I love how you reference studies and try to differentiate between what has been proven scientifically and what is your opinion.
In response to the content about EMDR, my therapist and I use a tool called 'Future Template' after we complete the initial processing of the traumatic event. Essentially you use the same eye movements while you imagine going back into the scenario and visualize it going well or you being able to respond in a healthy way. You replace the negative cognition about yourself with a positive cognition. It has eased a lot of my social anxiety when public speaking, after a public humiliation experience in my childhood. Thanks for all you do!
I agree, in early sessions as an EMDR therapist, I may not have worked as hard on clarifying the future template and we should develop this aspect as much as all other phases of EMDR.
Fellow trauma survivors, here's what has really helped me~ Going through PTSD my body asks for those moments of hyperventilation naturally and I give in, but I need to take weeks off, I can't do it every single day, it goes in waves (my therapist recommended this too). I find that if I'm in a quiet and safe environment, this is usually followed by emotional expression like anger or crying (I use a pillow to not worry anyone if I'm angry), etc. Whatever your body tells you it needs, give it what it wants, it knows. Super helpful to have someone with you while you process, that feels really good and is so soothing, it feels like the crying is a question and the touch or emotional support is the answer to that question. In my personal experience, the hyperventilation is also accompanied by arousal movement like shaking the hands, pacing, sometimes I even go running until I feel the arousal begin to diminish. If I can't tap into the emotions or can't feel my body, touching someone else helps (like a hug or even touching hands), or, if no one else is around, I use music. I'm a professional musician so I kind of know what to look for to facilitate this, I've made a playlist of really good instrumental stuff (e.g. Max richter, Olafur Arnalds, those post-minimalist classical composers make the perfect music for emotional release). The right kind of music really helps to break down the walls of dissociation and helps you really process the feelings and feel your body again. Really good for anyone who struggles with numbness, I did for a very long time. If you're new to post-minimalism check out "On the Nature of Daylight" by Max Richter and let it guide you through your feelings. If you prefer lyrics, check out "To Build a Home" by the Cinematic Orchestra. My goal is to make music like this to help people process and heal. Last thing I want to say is that if you feel weird body sensations, tingling, pulsing, sensitive vision, stomach aches, a lack of stable emotional grounding, nausea, feelings of helplessness, depression, know that it's totally normal after what you'e gone through and you're not alone in those experiences. It will pass. Thank you, Dr. Huberman, for giving us names for all of the stuff, I know what all of those things feel like, I needed a name for "insula". :) You're really helping us. My question for you and other qualified people here is what if you were traumatized on one of these drugs like ketamine or MDMA, would they still be helpful or do you think it might reinforce trauma? (I know it probably varies with individual but I'm interested in the logic.)
I have found music is my therapy. I was a singer & pianist, until my ex husband abused me. I ended up in a coma & airway replacement. A traumatic brain injury. But your suggested music choices are very healing, and help me let go of my past abilities, and simply accept a way of enjoy ing I can still enjoy and heal through music. Thank you
I have never been able to hear Costello when listening to the podcast. I kind of liked the idea of him being there anyway. I enjoyed the joy in Dr. Hubermans voice when talking about him. /Pat *Gently pats Costello on the head*
Joe Rogan showed people are interested in long conversations about random topics. Lex Fridman showed people are interested in long conversations about scientific topics. Andrew Huberman showed people are interested in long deep discussions about scientific topics.
Rogan is an MMA commentator and a BJJ stoner who managed to land a podcast with right wing banter, controversy, and conspiracy theories. Huberman and Fridman are actual PHD level scientists who support their statements with peer reviewed science based literature. Rogan should be compared to people who actually opperate the same as he does. People like Alex Jones, Tucker Carlson ect ect.
@@TheDocbachyou've missed the point, the comparison is long conversations. Without his input podcasts would still be short on a single aspect of a given point, leaving the listener with more questions than answers. As for educational level, I've never been impressed to anyone that learned anything from books or what they're told vs real life experience. Sure, Joe is rough around the edges, some of his beliefs and guests are out there, however his interviews are relatable to many more people over a diverse spectrum of backgrounds.
This channel touches me in two ways. I'm a repeated trauma survivor (4th stage lynphoma, bone marrow transplant and double lung transplant in the last years) and gaining a Deep understanding of how my chemical, my brain and body work helps a lot in living with It. Second, I work as a coach in similar situations (help people deal with practical, game changing aspects of such diseases) and this is like a PhD in scientific explanation of what goes on through our bodies. No sufficient ways to thank the professor, this is pure gold. Gold for free.
I remember the first time I shared details about my trauma to a Gestalt therapist. I sobbed uncontrollably and my body was shaking so much. Today, after writing down and sharing my story so many times, in individual and group therapy, with other survivors, I talk about my trauma as if I were reading a news article and it genuinely feels as if it happened to someone else. Today I’m grateful for my experience because it forced me to learn about psychology, neural science and storytelling. I am able to empathize with other survivors and listening to their stories and seeing their relief of sharing their most traumatic experiences with me, gives my life so much more meaning. I would LOVE to watch an episode about BDNF, aerobic exercise and staving off dementia. If there is an episode about it, please forgive me, my time is limited as I care for a big family.
Thank you for sharing your story. So happy for you that you feel better :) Would you mind sharing the name/location of your therapist please? Thanks a lot!
Since you asked, I’m telling my expenses EMDR. I’ve been on it for about 2 months, once a week. It’s been helpful to me. My therapist actually makes me imagine the traumatic situation as if I were looking into a picture, and does the eye stimulation and then asks me what popped into my mind or what and where do I feel it in mi body. Then she does the same but this time she makes focus on those feelings, and we repeat this until the feelings or thought feel less intense (she applies a scale from 1-10). Then, as it goes down, she makes me focus on how I would have liked to do in such situation, by helping myself on the memory of that situation, or what I would’ve liked to be told or treated at that moment. Then, she makes me focus on that (probably already nice feeling), and as this though or emotion or physical feeling “engraves” in my brain…she does the stimulation slower and slower until I ALWAYS feel calmer. What’s nice about this therapy is that you don’t necessarily need to talk about the situation, you can just say general things about it and how it makes you feel, but not necessarily talk about it unless you do want to talk about it. Hope this helps!
Pretty similar for me… though mine asked me to start picturing the events/snapshots in black and white. The more I was able to watch it in black and white the less power it had.
Episodes I'd love to have you do: 1. SSRI drug education, how to successfully wean off therapies and timeline, research on long term usage, natural alternative options to test. 2. Optimizing digestion (eating schedule, digestive system education, healing gut 3. Fear of flying and heights
I'd Also love to hear about tapering, as I have many times before, but these Dr's Don't have the knowledge. Yet, anyways. I'm hoping for a podcast on that and also, a huge episode on Not just tapering off of SSRI's, BUTTT, Benzos. Sooo important.
@@denisealley9822 Yes. SSRI's destroy so many lives and doesnt really work for most people anyways. They are effective at masking certain symptoms for some, for the rest they get horrible side effects that doctors blame on emerging "mental illness".
I truly love your channel. Please include an interview with Dr. Bessel van der Kolk on how to heal complex PTSD. May your UA-cam channel soon double in its number of subscribers. 10M healed and healing people worldwide, in part through the priceless educational resource you provide here, may still be a mere drop in the vast ocean of hurting souls, but even if only less than 0.1% of the world's people pursue conscious healing, the world will somehow be much better off.
I suffered intense bullying in school as a kid then got into a very abusive relationship at 15 that lasted over 5 years. As a result I developed social and agora- phobia. I worked with a therapist and on my own to overcome and change the narrative around these feelings and thoughts of not being 'able' to socialize and was doing really well - in fact, doing things like travelling internationally and attending large public events. During Covid I lost my job for 10 months and was very isolated at home. Once the world opened up again I started feeling apprehension again about going out and being with people. During a birthday trip I planned, I had 2 severe panic attacks and since have reverted to the social anxiety and agoraphobia. I've been having such a hard time because I was doing so well and feel like I lost all that good work I'd put in for years. Thank you for this information. I am working with a therapist who uses Brain Spotting and I will do my best to attend social events again, even if Im scared to re-boot the healing process.
Hey man! Hope you're doing good. I was also kind of bullied and have the same thoughts. Can you explain the thetapy process a bit please? Would love to do it but can't go to actual therapy so would do it through journaling if possible.
Bullying was so overlooked and disregarded when I suffered through that trauma as well almost 45 years ago. Only upon assessing its effects throughout the decades have I become more cognizant of my almost continuous low grade social anxiety. You are not alone and best wishes for you to find solace and personal redemption. These podcasts indicate that we are at the right place for healing. Best wishes ❤
Ouch!! Okay, yeah I'm starting to see how the bullying at my last job had a huge impact on my self-esteem. I never looked at it from that angle before. It was seriously like being in high school all over again. That feels so good to release.
I'm an EMDR clinician and this therapy definitely follows the extinguish and replace model. I use CBT along with EMDR to replace the negative narrative with a new more positive and believable narrative. The great thing is they don't have to tell the story over and over like with prolonged exposure so it is a little less traumatic and exhausting for the client.
My therapist had the same profile as you. He helped me definitely. I got precious insights, a lot of useful tools and experiences to refer to. but the road is long and i go further on my own
@@RolfMuellerAu probably not as much lateral eye movement as in walking, right? more eyes straight ahead on the road. i could see how it would give some of those benefits, though
Could you elaborate on the part of replacing the narrative. How would that look like, by giving an easy example? That new narrative is positive feedback that this time you did it? Trough out exposure therapy? Or what does he actually is saying. Bit confused here
I was walked through EMDR for a single event trauma and the therapist went through a protocol where I changed the meaning and association with the trauma just like you described. I generated the new narrative and was walked through a path step by step to rewrite a resolution. Not only did it work but it worked immediately. Not exactly permanently but I continued the practice on my own and with repetition my triggers were greatly diminished. The clinician was trained in a group setting so this practice is happening!
I'm just curious, you say that your triggers were greatly diminished; does that mean that they're still there in some form, but you're still not "how you were before"?
Dr. Huberman, thank you very much for an amazing podcast! EMD"R", the R -- reprocessing, is a step that attaches positive feelings with a traumatic memory. EMDR is more than just fear distinction or eye movements. EMDR itself is an integrative approach with eight steps that contains some psychotherapy components (initial history taking), desensitization through eye movements, and reprocessing (attaching new feelings/mentality with the memory).
I was searching about the academic wrinting of doctor Huberman, and I was surprised, actually that "eye research" is his most proeminent academic work.
EMDR has been extremely helpful for my CPTSD. I’ve been doing it every week for the past month and am generally so much happier! My therapist says EMDR “opens up doors”. She says it keeps the entire brain online while accessing traumatic memories. And I believe it! I read in the “body keeps score” that EMDR is equally effective as Prozac for PTSD, anxiety symptoms. For long term traumas it just takes more sessions to process and release the fear. It has brought out lots of repressed emotions like anger, depression, anxiety, and that was really hard. But after multiple sessions, I am finally feeling relief! It’s paying off. Healing trauma really is one of those things that “gets worse before it gets better.” I also have been doing somatic processing, cranial sacral, journaling, meditation, breath work, yoga. As far as I’m aware, healing trauma includes incorporating the body in some way.
I needed to hear this from Prof. Huberman. It just struck me that I'm in dire need of therapy as I am currently trying to process how (trigger warning): my own parents have failed me and I am, even now, while fully supporting myself on my terms, living in the past and waking up in the morning with traumatic flashbacks pretty frequently. Going to seek therapy.
I've been learning about these things since 2019 when I had a complete anxiety breakdown. You have made it all sooo much easier to understand. I love how complete each podcast is. I can't believe you are so kind to make these available and I thank you from the bottom of my heart! God bless you!
I just started therapy and this episode is exactly what i needed to hear and learn about before my 2nd therapy session. I know it is going to be very difficult to retell my traumatic events ive gone through to my therapist but now i truly understand how important and crucial it is to eventually be fully open in my sessions. I dont know how i will do it but andrew has helped me see the magnitude of it. Thank you so much.
SO I have CPTSD and I did loads of EMDR, and since my ups an downs and flash backs have massively reduced, however, along side the EMDR I did exercise, meditation, Art and I found an mazing partner who emotionally supported me. it is really hard to separate these, but I believe after my EMDR session it became way more easier for me to face my fears and to handle my flash backs.
had years of therapy, lots of learning about my self, and nothing helped... I even got down to the very situation that traumatised me, but couldn't figure any problem with that situation out (a teacher basically constantly teasing me for two years for not doing my homework, but in return I'm actually gratefull for him doing that, as i wouldn't have learned english otherwise) ... It was only when i had regulary reocurring problems and fights with my boss, that kind of retraumatised me, eventhough i understood where it was coming from, and what a lot of my triggers where, that i realised, that it was the reality of no one standing up for me, or even backing me up by just saying, hey i feel for you going through that. exactly how my class all saw what was going on, and put their heads into cover. in the other way that can go for other people by beeing overprotected in certain situations... not beeing able to fully articulate the anger and heat, fear, whatever building up in them, cause they are constantly calmed down. So a lack of good reflection and beeing seen, and a lack of room to articualte also in unapropriate ways, leeds to underdeveloped skills in selfmanaging emotions, in a healthy way.
As someone who suffers from PTSD I read the title with the idea of passing on this weeks podcast. I certainly have done a lot of counseling and self work but have found that the high anxiety culture we are currently existing in right now has caused me to have a couple of meltdowns. I bring this up for a reason. One thing I have found that some event driven trauma is easily mastered. However, mine is wrapped up with grief for the loss of a loved one and I think it is often the case for many. These events are never forgotten and given the degree of trauma of the event and closeness of the relationship there is no reframing the event to a more positive event. I do believe in journaling, and talking through the events multiple times as it gives one a perspective on self blame and level of control for outcomes (which was no control). In my mind, because my PTSD is wrapped in my grief I was surprised that you had not touched on this as I believe many people experience this as well. The other thing is I have found that there is a human development component to PTSD and grief. I observed this in both my children and myself. So we had to revisit the event as my children have progressed to another stage of development or cognitive comprehension. I have found this in myself as well. So my questions in a nutshell; will you be doing a podcast on grief and include traumatic grief and do you know of studies done on PTSD, grief as part of human development? Also, my condolences to you about your beloved Costello. I did manage to listen to this weeks podcast and will be listening to it a few more times.
@@jedigirl5214 I am currently researching this protocol of therapy. I have found that I have had some unknown sneaker wave triggers that elicited my flight PTSD response. The last one was in Hawaii and was very upsetting for my adult children. I ended up hiding at the airport and had literally blacked out to the fact they had been trying to contact me until I looked at my phone when I got home and had slept for 12 hours. This is what gets me is that I cannot connect the trigger until after the fact. I do get that there is the stimulus and a space before one reacts. This has been the case for me but I could only identify it after it happened.
I've tried EMDR with a therapist to overcome my fear of dogs (i was attacked by dogs several times when i was a child), but it didn't help at all! For some reason it even made more anxious and i isolated myself at home for couple months because i was too afraid to meet a dog on the street. But talking about my negative expiriences with them and spending more time with a trained and friendly dogs helped me a lot to overcome the fear!
Thank you for all of your well researched details on neurological systems. There are a group of people who go through one minute events that damage their nervous system, without an actual break in the nerve pathway. A stroke victim can, with repetition and exercise, regain function. The toughest thing for them, however, is that their PT, OT, and physicians don’t share much hope on this possibility. It is only through their sharing their success with each other, over years, that they are able to be motivated to regain function. Too many give up and atrophy. I, and I know the 800,000 stroke victims a year, would greatly appreciate the neurological basis for regaining nerve stimulation and function between the brain and muscles.. I would greatly appreciate feedback on this topic.
This goes for neurotoxicity from psychiatric drugs as well. I'm currently suffering sexual and cognitive dysfunction because of a one week stint of methylphenidate...
I have no reason to say this other than felt prompted to because I don't know how it would help but I would look into feldenkraise technique. So, I just googled feldenkraise and stroke and it looks like it is used. I have not had stroke but have CPTSD, dissociative amnesia and ehlers danlos and feldenkraise has been one of the things with many things mentioned in this video that is giving me a life I've never had, truly feel like I'm a walking miracle. There are many practitioners on UA-cam that share their wisdom, techniques freely. One practitioner has course, each lesson about a hour or so, that's free that's worth more than every penny I've spent on any other body help technique and free.
@49 minutes: so glad you pointed that out, as most people imo, over rely on those meds, instead of truly fixing and curing the problem. And replacing it with something positive, as you describe.
Oh boy here I go again, putting on my shaman's hat and sending this to as many people as I possibly can. Thank you for your work, it means so much to have such a bright and gifted person spreading and systematizing this information for wider consumption. I really hope that one day we will all be so much better at knowing ourselves and each other.
As someone who goes to EMDR therapy weekly: I bring up the event, we identify how it feels in my body and what new thought I would like to attach to it. Then we go on and do 1 minute-ish eye moving and then I tell the new sensation/emotion. I go on until I feel neutral or positive about it two time in a row. Then we go back to the starting point and if (and most of the time there is) there is still tension in my body, I focus on that and that goes on and on until I am on a truly neutral level. Then comes the new association with a good feeling/phrase. We do the eye moving in a slower rhythms three times to "lock in" the new feeling/phrase. My brain then goes on to process it all, even after therapy. I hope that helps! Love your videos Andrew!
If knowledge is power, then your podcasts are nuclear energy (used for the good of humanity) and your Oppenheimer ! As a (financial) derivative trader , a stressful profession, a major loss can be a "traumatic" event ! It would be great to have an episode that shines light on the neuroscience of trading. I've listened/watched numerous episodes that a trader can extrapolate value ... Erasing fears(#49), How your brain works, Perfect Your Sleep, Improving Focus, Master Stress, Healing from Grief, Optimize & Leverage Dopamine, Gut Health, The Power of Play, Building Strong Habits, and my personal favorite Defeat Addiction w/ Anna Lembke ! Thank you so much for democratizing neuroscience and helping us understand how & why we sometimes do the things we do (instinctively or cognitively). You have definitely me increase my level of mindfulness... a prerequisite for being able to trade in a "flow" state ! 🙏🙏
Fascinating what you say about the role of narrative. You can't remove a memory but can create a new association. Same with habits and beliefs - you can't remove old ones, but you can create new ones that supercede them.
Can you do an episode on Depersonalization there's a lot of people in this generation suffering from it including myself and not a lot of well taught therapies or clear science, you're amazing keep up the great podcast it's definitely helped me in my life
I dissociate regularly as well. Oddly enough, the only thing that has helped is dissociative drugs like ketamine. Once a year or so, sometimes every few months. They're also nmda receptor antagonists, so those receptors have a massive role in ptsd, dissociation, depression. Also low doses of dxm can pull me out of depression instantly. Just the regular dosage on the bottle once.
@@lpslancelot05 behavioral therapy, accepting and grieving healthy way like Lance said, spend time in nature, stop masturbating, eat vegetables, do cardio,
Dr Huberman, thank you for providing, so lucidly and so generously, an understanding and practical guidance for dealing with oneself. You are offering an actual roadmap for breaking out of psychological and emotional problems . After years of immersion in the disciplines and philosophies of mindfulness and self-awareness, I find that your podcast is like a final culmination or summing up. I cannot thank you enough for the brilliance, and you must know that you are helping many people immeasurably. Thank you once again.
Your work has changed my life personally and professionally. Thank you. As far as EMDR, my experience with it as a PTSD patient was revolutionary and brought great breakthrough in my PTSD journey. It gave me the strength to participate in other complimentary therapies moving forward. Prior to EMDR I felt like I couldn’t even breathe or function. EMDR gave me a chance to catch my breath as my therapist and I moved forward with other modalities and worked on changing the framework for my future, etc.
🎯 Key Takeaways for quick navigation: 00:00 🎙️ Introduction to the podcast focusing on neuroscience of fear and trauma. 00:29 🧠 Recent advances in neuroscience have illuminated the neural circuits controlling fear and ways to alleviate it. 01:26 🤯 Counterintuitive finding: Exposure to stress can be used to combat fear and depressive symptoms. 02:22 🎓 The podcast aims to provide science-based information to the public. 04:18 💊 Sponsors: Athletic Greens, InsideTracker, and Helix Sleep introduced. 07:12 🧠 Fear as an emotion involving physiological and cognitive responses. 10:05 🧠 Defining trauma as activated or embedded fear within the nervous system. 13:12 🧠 Introduction to the HPA axis (Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal Axis) and stress hormones. 15:53 🤯 Stress response involving fast and slow components influencing brain and body. 18:08 🧠 Role of the amygdala in the threat reflex, not as a fear center but part of threat response. 20:15 🧠 The amygdaloid complex and how different experiences activate the threat reflex. 22:10 🧠 The amygdala is responsible for generating threat reflexes and integrates various types of information from memory and sensory systems (visual, auditory, touch, etc.). 23:34 ⚙️ The amygdala's outputs involve two main pathways: one activates primitive drives like sex, food, and thirst, while the other triggers freezing and arousal responses. 24:32 ❄️ The periaqueductal gray (PAG) in the brain controls the freeze response and releases endogenous opioids, acting as a natural analgesic against pain. 25:29 💡 The locus coeruleus activates arousal responses by releasing adrenaline, epinephrine, and norepinephrine, affecting alertness and attention. 26:26 🎯 The amygdala projects to the nucleus accumbens in the dopamine system, which is related to motivation, reward, and even addiction. 27:26 🌐 The prefrontal cortex's top-down processing helps control and suppress fear reflexes by attaching new narratives or meanings to experiences. 32:49 ⏳ Fear involves one-trial learning, where a single intense event or negative experience can lead to lasting fear responses. 38:38 🧠 Fear responses can be generalized or specific, attaching to broad decisions about places or specific fears about circumstances. 42:32 🔀 Neuroplasticity, particularly long-term potentiation, underlies fear learning by strengthening connections between neurons through mechanisms like NMDA receptors. 44:55 🧠 The NMDA receptor is involved in learning and forming associations in the nervous system. 45:22 🧪 Long-term potentiation (LTP) strengthens connections, making formerly innocuous events become scary or traumatic. 45:50 🔄 Long-term depression weakens connections, leading to unlearning fear and trauma. 46:19 🚫 Therapies must weaken connections to the threat reflex and replace them with positive experiences. 47:14 🧠 Eliminating fears involves attaching new positive experiences to traumatic memories. 48:16 💊 Common treatments like SSRIs and Benzodiazepines alleviate anxiety but don't directly target fear circuits. 50:12 🔄 Narrative therapy rewires fear circuits; Prolonged Exposure, CPT, and CBT are effective using language. 51:41 🗣️ Detailed retelling of trauma activates high anxiety, but repeated retelling reduces fear response. 55:04 🎭 Retelling traumatic narratives helps extinguish fear, followed by relearning new positive associations. 56:59 🏊 EMDR, involving lateral eye movements, inhibits fear circuitry, aiding trauma recovery. 01:09:35 🧠 EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) is becoming increasingly recognized in the psychiatric community for treating fear, trauma, and PTSD, particularly for single-event traumas. However, it mainly focuses on reducing the physiological response to old experiences rather than fully relearning new narratives and attaching rewards. 01:10:32 📝 EMDR is effective for single-event traumas but might not be as comprehensive for long-standing or complex traumas, as it doesn't necessarily address the complete process of extinguishing and relearning associated with fear and trauma. 01:14:21 💬 Social connection is crucial for addressing fear and trauma due to its impact on chemical systems and neural circuits related to them. Social isolation can exacerbate pre-existing traumas, while positive social connections can help reduce fear-related chemistry. 01:18:18 🧬 Transgenerational passage of trauma: Offspring may inherit a predisposition to trauma or fear, characterized by heightened responsiveness to fearful events. This predisposition is linked to specific genetic variations related to cortisol release and not necessarily to the specific trauma experiences of parents or grandparents. 01:26:28 💊 Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy involves dissociation and remapping of emotions to help extinguish old trauma responses and relearn new ones. It may offer relief, especially when coupled with depressive symptoms. 01:31:41 🚀 MDMA-Assisted Psychotherapy creates unique neurochemical conditions by simultaneously increasing Dopamine and Serotonin levels. It fosters profound feelings of connection and resonance with others and objects, facilitating therapeutic exploration of fear and trauma. 01:34:40 🧠 Oxytocin and Serotonin systems are linked; MDMA releases oxytocin, creating feelings of bonding and association. 01:35:09 📝 MDMA increases plasma oxytocin levels significantly, contributing to positive feelings during drug influence. 01:35:43 🎉 Dopamine leads to euphoria, Serotonin to safety and comfort during MDMA session. 01:36:12 💡 MDMA-assisted psychotherapy accelerates trauma treatment through quick relearning and narrative rewriting. 01:36:41 🔮 MDMA sessions compact trauma reduction process, performed at high intensity due to brain chemical changes. 01:37:11 💊 MDMA therapy is not a magic potion, rather it expedites the conventional trauma therapy process. 01:38:09 🌌 Positive MDMA experiences integrate into rewriting narratives due to high serotonin and oxytocin levels. 01:39:04 ⚠️ Legal clinical trials explore MDMA for trauma treatment, showing promise but not yet a universal solution. 01:39:34 🧐 Diagnosis of trauma involves more than external symptoms; internal interoception balance plays a role. 01:40:31 🧠 Insular cortex calibrates internal sensations with external world; important for assessing emotional responses. 01:41:00 📖 The insular cortex determines if internal sensations match external events, crucial for emotional regulation. 01:42:01 🐭 Study shows repeated short bouts of intense stress can reverse the effects of chronic stress in mice. 01:42:46 🌬️ Breathing protocols can influence stress responses: calming vs. hyperventilation, impacting emotional states. 01:44:12 🌀 Deliberate self-induced stress states can recalibrate fear and trauma responses, different from typical therapy. 01:55:11 🧪 Five-minute daily protocols of inducing heightened autonomic arousal could aid trauma relief and management. 01:58:03 🧬 Deliberate self-directed entry into acute stress states (e.g., cold exposure) may be promising for fear and trauma management. 01:59:02 🌊 Differentiate between healthy fear responses and trauma/PTSD based on duration and impact on daily life. 01:59:31 💤 Quality sleep, nutrition, social connection are foundational for mental and physical health, indirectly supporting trauma relief. 02:00:01 💬 Lifestyle factors, including nutrition and sleep, impact fear circuitry's function; quality sleep resets autonomic balance. 02:05:22 💊 Supplements like Saffron, Inositol, and Kava show potential for anxiety and stress reduction; consider logical use outside trauma sessions. 02:08:15 🛠️ Understand brain circuits underlying fear/trauma for personalized treatments; explore exposure therapy, self-directed practices, and support. 02:09:48 💡 Seek supportive therapies for trauma and fear relief; explore supplements with caution; prioritize high-quality options. 02:13:10 📚 Stay engaged with science through Huberman Lab's social media platforms and tutorials. 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This video has changed my life and given me breakthrough with my PTSD. Thank you. I look forward to the episode regarding OCD. I wanted to request that an episode be done on Dissociative Identity Disorder. The brain science behind this disorder would be extremely helpful.
Wonderful comprehensive discussion here. Thank you Andrew. As a Psychotherapist & Relationship Coach, for over 20 years, I now use a combination of Breath work, EMDR, CBT, NLP, inner child work, Gestalt chair work, visualisation (self hypnosis) and relaxation as a toolkit to help to overcome their blocks and create their personal freedom. Each one of us is so unique and complex, finding what fits an individual is so important. With reference to EMDR, I used EMDR on myself last year and found it helped specific memories to be reduced in terms of stress response but use a combination of tools to aid the desired internal response leading to the freedom of feeling relaxed and engaged in previously challenging situations. I am excited by the advancements we are making as a race. Thank you so much Andrew, for the work you do, sharing your knowledge, teaching us all. Warmest wishes, Marie-Louise
Dr. Andrew...I listened to this video this past week, and enjoyed it....but today in a session with my counselor, we did further EMDR, and we were indeed focusing on a specific negative event from my childhood. The thing my counselor had was knowledge about me and about positive things from my relationships that have supported who I am and who I want to be. Today, we decided to head back into the deepest, most painful stinging parts of a negative event that has plagued me. At one point, he asked me how I felt, and I said, "I felt like he flattened me...I was completely flattened by what that man did..." I was feeling all the deep stinging fear at that moment, it was intense. It was right at that point that my counselor said, "I want you to pause...and I want you to remember when you were affirmed just a few weeks ago by your coach. Remember what he said to you?" At that point, I called to mind the really cool thing that my boxing coach said to me just a couple weeks ago. He affirmed me, saying that I could become good enough to step into the ring and fight and win." My counselor reminded me about that, and I recalled the feeling I had from that affirmation. I felt strong and solid. My counselor then asked me to carry that solid feeling into the negative memory of what happened to me as a child. As I did....something incredible happened...it was like a bomb detonated...and from ground zero of that negative event, I began to see that I was not some helpless waif of a child....but that I was strong and able....more incredibly, I began to actually feel it. It was like a strength detonated and began to move outward in concentric circles. For the first time in my life...just today...I started seeing that I was not some helpless boy...but that I was a strong, sturdy little guy who had a bad thing happen from a predator. The broken, weak, helpless image has pervaded the fabric of my life...but today I realized that I am not that helpless weak boy. I am strong and sturdy...and I actually feel it and believe it. This is just a snapshot of what happened this morning...but I realized today that this huge negative was being replaced with something true and good. And in the moment that my counselor asked me to bring this strength into the memory of that terrible thing, I remembered what I heard here last week....and it was pretty incredible. I thought to myself, "ahhh...THIS is what Andrew was talking about...." And to be completely honest, I FEEL like something electrical and powerful has happened in my brain...my mind. I decided to write this here....since you asked for comments on EMDR. It's been incredible so far. My counselor doesn't use the eye movement with me...but uses these vibrating/pulsing pieces that fit into the palm of each hand. They simply alternate vibrations back and forth....a distraction while I am recounting the memory. It actually distracts my brain from the usual road blocks to the negative emotions....and allows me to go past the defenses down into the details of the memory. I hope this help you and others in some way. I'm glad I found this channel.
You have no idea how helpful you are. I have been terrified to have my daughter on any medications and listening to your videos is immensely helpful for me to understand how the brain works and the types of treatments both therapeutic and meditation. You have helped provide me with the courage through this difficult time my family faced and i am eternally grateful for you. Thank you doctor!
36 minutes in this episode, already shedding a lot of lights to my mind and mindset, how generous you are Andrew Huberman! I wish I could translate your material for my people in Iran so that they can benefit from your tremendous amount of knowledge and help
Thank you so much for your no comprising genuine human educational ability to communicate to the general public and the world. You are a guiding light that I hope your peers will follow.
i'm fortunate to have experienced great emdr sessions with my therapist. on a 1-10 scale we didnt start near the 8s 9s or 10s. starting with 4, 5, 6 we worked through a lot of past childhood traumas that were associated with fear and shame. The first half of the process was reliving the traumatic experience and letting all of the associated emotions surface. I placed my awareness in each area of the body i felt these emotions. Then there was a second half of the emdr session. I let myself take a moment when needed before moving onto the second part. The second part is the new narrative. Things i can tell myself that disconfirm my past experience. When dealing with shame i reminded myself of all the wonderful things i know to be true about myself. Each session eventually brought high intensity memories that were close to a 10 down to 2-4. I came here to comment and share this with everyone so that there is awareness that there are emdr practitioners that promote the new narratives.
This is an incredibly important topic for many people as trauma is often, unfortunately, a fact of life. I frequently tell clients to listen your podcast for homework, to expend their understanding of their brain and the mechanisms that govern their body and brain, but today after listening to this podcast, I felt there was something missing from the discussion of trauma recovery. You covered the top down approach to trauma recovery, but in my experience a bottom up approach is the way to go. Many people that develop post traumatic responses have a very disregulated nervous system and part of what happened in the traumatic event was that the survival response was prevented from successfully completed. As a result, individuals often experience freeze, dissociation and shut down paired with terror (fear). You are correct that dimishing fear is part of the resolution, and an important component you left out is the reprocessing of the event, includes completing the survival response. A key feature of PTSD many people experience as dehibilitating is being triggered and dissociating. As such when triggered, people cycle in and out of dissociative states and in what some call a trauma vortex. To help people resolve their systems, learning skills for staying present is required to process the trauma. This involves bottom up skills. As a neuroscientist, I thought you'd understand that processing is state dependent and that we want to work with the part of the brain that is concerned with safety and regulation first. I have seen other listeners request an interview with specialists in this area like Bessel Van Der Kolk or Dianne Pool Heller. I think another discussion with someone working in the field with nervous system regulation and trauma resolution would be incredibly helpful and inspiring.
I’m wondering if the step he discussed of processing the trauma narrative repeatedly until symptoms diminish was his way of addressing the importance of processing being state dependent. The point of repeatedly discussing the trauma narrative is to address the state of feelings of safety.
I agree. It is state dependent . Especially for patients who have FND ( functional neurological disorder /PNES it is important to bring the mind back from past trauma ( dissociation) to the present using mindfulness and ground skills. Both a top down and bottom up approach is useful and proven science for patients with FND in either a disassociate episode or functional seizure episode.
100%. He doesn’t understand trauma and I think he shouldn’t discuss it unless he has an actual trauma expert on the show. He’s way to top down and doesn’t understand the reverse, bottom up, is the most effective approach to resolving trauma. Bessel Van Der Kolk, Peter Levine, Stephen Porges, Pete Walker, Gabor Maté, Kathy Kane and so many others with 30+ years experience each have slightly different approaches but overwhelmingly bottom up.
Linking positive associations back to the original trauma has been the missing piece in my healing process of PTS. This podcast is an unbelievable gift on so many levels. Thank you! 3:02 pm EST
@@maritza1395 realizing the growth process through all of it. accept life, accept infinity, accept death. what at some point you were happy about, try focusing on this, give yourself a little tap in the back everytime you catch yourself talking bad with yourself. you are the master of your only destiny. the good starts NOW. chase positivity
When I was a child I believe you could be one of the 2 stereotypes available: intelligent, emphatic and weak or dumb, aggressive and strong. I wish I knew you then to show me another way is possible, thank you for you teachings. I really appreciate the way you have to explain everything cause I can understand it without any science background and being English as my second language. Muchas gracias from Europe.
Thank you Professor Huberman for your depth of knowledge on a subject that afflicts so many in our modern world. A spiritual perspective on fear can be found in the writings of Marshall Vian Summers. In his book Steps to Knowledge ---A Guide to Inner Knowing, Marshall states "Your life is not born of fear. Your Source is not born of fear. To be able to recognize your fear means that you must realize that you are part of something greater... If you have sufficient confidence in Knowledge [the deeper spiritual intelligence that lives within each person beyond the realm of the intellect] based upon actual experience, this will give you a certainty and a faith in life that will counteract all fear that is unnecessary.... Much of the fear that you experience moment to moment is simply a matter of your own creation, your own negative imagination... This you must learn to counteract, for it is an inappropriate use of your mind. Here you create an experience for yourself, experience it and then call it reality. Meanwhile, you have not been present with life at all. You have merely been in fantasy within yourself. Negative imagination drains you emotionally, physically and mentally. It can be escalated to such heights that it can dominate your thinking altogether. For how else can you be separate in the universe except in your own thoughts? You cannot actually be separate from God. You cannot actually be separate from Knowledge." (Steps to Knowledge, Marshall Vian Summers)
Speaking from my own personal experience and talking to as many people as I can, with depression, anxiety, border line personality disorder, psychosis, schizophrenia, same pattern pops up, all these are due to trauma, now the British nhs approach to mental health is absolutely shocking, if you choose to work while battling any of these conditions I’m afraid the path is long, hard, and the system that is supposed to help will cause you more stress, the whole system is controlled by protocol which makes your personal battle even harder, my personal stance is I’ve ditched all the nhs so called help, I’m fighting this alone, it’s even pushed me to do self help UA-cam videos for men struggling with mental health, putting the content together as we speak, I wish any one struggling with their mental health the very best, you will beat this.
Thank you so much Andrew, i could never express how thankful i am. I won't go into what im processing right now, but by god am i processing it. I've cried so hard and genuinely just now, still am, i haven't cried like this since forever. instead i would ruminate on "solutions" to conflicts, or avoid things altogether through escapism and eventually through getting high. i was dead set on working on my future, which was the one big thing preventing me from having a future. now i'm set free and have all the space and time in the world to heal.
Thank you. Fear does terrible things to the mind, body and soul. Taking control of the mind controls the body. Its so hard! I'm needing all the help i can get. I love all your pod casts as I've learn so much from them. They have empowered me to a better life. Thank you
Dr Huberman, I love your podcasts and very grateful for your work. I started EMDR last year. My work with my practitioner involves sound instead of eye movement (my preference). My sessions have both components you mentioned - extinguishing and relearning. I was skeptical at first but every session has helped me deal with my anxiety and trauma.
I love how substances like mdma and psychedelics are being investigated for the use in psychotherapy, BUT I would strongly recommend to also shed some light on the potential risks of using these substances (especially in a non controlled environment). Great power comes with great responsibility and these substances are powerful.
I am an EMDR certified therapist and want to make sure you understand that this therapy is 8 pronged. It includes a targeting phase where clients safely share the traumatic experiences a desensitization phase where fear is extinguished as well as a installation phase where new positive cognitions are installed to replace the past negative beliefs about oneself. This is done by an experienced clinician in a safe setting. I think your podcast is powerful and I wanted to be sure you were properly informed about the whole of EMDR so as not to spread false information. I also offer CBT and many other types of therapy, however EMDR has been the most effective for treating all aspects of trauma in my clients of all populations.
EMDR changed my life for one incident. 10 years after a miscarriage I still couldn't discuss without intense physical sadness. The relief was instant. Now practice EMDR within my counselling sessions if it suits the situation. These days we include a positive reframe with reward being 'motivated' calm. The reward usually being clients feeling empowered to transition through traumatic experience without intense sympathetic reaction, then transition into calm, gentle, positivity all by themselves. Most are astounded. Thank you for your videos!
Dr. Huberman - would you consider doing an episode on memories? I would like to know more detail about what they are physically and how they are encoded. Thank you for the awesome work!
Thank you for the invitation to speak about EMDR. I have been undergoing it for 6 months and it has changed my life. I have PTSD as well as type 1 bi-polar with mixed mania and psychotic features. So it complicates things. All the things you say about how to go deeply into the details, extinguish and create new narratives and attach reward are present in the therapy, at least with my therapist. This "short circuiting" to reduce amplitude is necessary for me and many others considering recalling certain events has an amplitude so high I instantly vomit and have a massive panic attack and sometimes full blown flashbacks, and then am unable to function at all for days. Forget trying to work through a narrative at that point. Even with the short circuiting, the amplitude is plenty high. I and many other patients that I have met while inpatient wouldn't be able to do it at all unless we can get the amplitude of the fear response down to a level that doesn't scatter our minds to the wind and spark anything from highly manic episodes to a full blown psychotic episode.
Thank you Andrew, your videos are allowing me understand how my brain works, and is enabling me to actively work on it, more so than any counseling I’ve had, any medication I’ve taken, your words and knowledge are helping me, I woke up this morning without the adrenaline, my core feels calm, I’ve been in such a fear state for decades from an abusive father, since then I’ve placed fear on EVERYTHING and EVERYBODY, ruined countless relationships and friendships. I feel strongly that you can’t fix yourself without knowing how your brain is working. Similarly you can’t fix a car without knowledge or tools. I’m rambling but you are slowly changing my life and quality of life, simply by speaking and me having the will to want different. Thank you for your time and knowledge.
I'm from Papua New Guinea and I've been experiencing anxiety for 2 months. I fear everything I do during the past two months, but watching your podcast changed my mindset. I've been having fearful thoughts that are not real. I'm so thankful that I've found you podcast, it helped me realized that.
I believe that a better definition for trauma is overwhelm: the imprint left in the autonomic nervous system following an event that is larger than our ability to cope or deal with it. Or, perhaps we did get through it, but it was too big for us to really emotionally hold or process. Not all trauma is fear; some of it involves anger. Yet more of it involves the freeze response: numbing, brain fog, low motivation, etc. At Somatic Experiencing training, I learned that this imprint or residue relates to incomplete defensive responses and incompletely metabolized emotions. This stuff is subcortical; we can’t think our way out of it. As Peter Levine says, thinking our way out of it is the futile seduction of trauma. Thank you for doing these podcasts; they are amazing. I’ve just discovered them this year and I love them. NOTE: nothing I wrote here constitutes therapeutic advice.
This makes so much sense. I had an uber traumatic childhood... I would find myself talking about my trauma to strangers on a bus or plane... random people that I knew I would never see again (this was before smart phones). I thought it was all about getting different perspectives that helped and it probably did a bit... but I also think the retelling over and over again of the especially heinous parts helped me recover from the trauma effects. There are other areas that I still feel too much shame or can't talk about for other reasons and those still bring about the PTSD reactions. It's so interesting that talk therapy is just as much about boring yourself with the story as it is working through the issue itself. Thank you so much for this.
Thank you for putting the time and effort into your videos! So helpful! I'm a licensed therapist certified in EMDR. It can be a life-changing therapy. EMDR is all about changing your belief systems/narrative around the trauma(s). It involves bilateral stimulation to help individuals process distressing memories or belief systems to reduce the emotional charge of traumatic memories, allowing individuals to integrate them into their life narrative in a healthier way. I've had so many clients successfully change their lives with EMDR.
Can this work for anxiety ? Like irrational fears, for example fear of not sleeping, fear of developing a mental illness because you hear ringing in ears? …You know the “what if” type of fear that keep bombarding you with recurrent thought that scares you and makes you believe that it will manifest if you continue thinking about it.
I cannot stress how much I appreciate the information you share with us through this platform. A lot of my plans seem to be paralleled with a lot of your content so I am truely grateful. Perhaps one day I will have the pleasure of crossing paths or even working with/ interviewing you. Thank you again!
Hi Andrew, EMDR clinician here. If we stick to the fidelity of the model by Dr. Shapiro, it is a 3 prong approach. We do past traumas, present triggers (desensitizing to them) as well as a future template where the client imagines "conquering" a specific situation, which would be a type of rewriting the narrative. Also, part of the desensitization involves a negative cognition (usually this is the trauma talking) and then a positive cognition (it's usually something like "I am safe" "I survived" "it wasn't my fault" etc.) which I think also indirectly addresses the narrative piece and the story the client is telling themselves about the trauma. In other words, using the full protocol should have more elements than just desensitization.
EMDR practioner here too. I think that Andrew would benefit from becoming familiar with the protocols the practice of EMDR utilize. I am not sure his summary of EMDR reflects an understanding of how EMDR is done.
Totally agree but as an integrstive psychologist I am finding EMDR is old hat despite the clinical focus NICE in my country). There are many new techniques emerging which remove the trauma/ associated memories but also address the underlying beliefs, archetypes and oter unpinning structures which risk re-triggering. In my experience you need to collapse the whole edifice to really solve the issue. Techniques that clear beliefs can also be used to quickly build new beliefs and positive qualities.
This is amazing. Thank you so much for your insight. I have passed this on to a couple of friends of mine that are really struggling with loss. Ironically, I have adapted the practices from 46:00-1:05 throughout my 50 years. However, I had no idea why I handled fear and trauma this way until this podcast. One of the most difficult times I have had in my life was losing a best friend in a plane wreck. The day before he died he was presented with legal documents that contained accusations of possible inappropriate sexual contact with minors. I have no idea if he wrecked his plane on accident or committed suicide. I will never know. Looking back and listening to this podcast I realize why I struggled to heal. He was a best friend since 6th grade and I wanted to talk about him and what a great person he was to me, but because of the possible accusations, I was unable to discuss my loss or "tell my story" publicly. Anyhow, I look forward to your podcasts every week. Thank you for all you hard work.
EMDR actually does install a "relearned new narrative". That's part 2 of the standard session. Also, the part 1 (extinction) can often evoke a high amplitude experience.
I was diagnosed as suffering from PTSD and Major Recurring Depression during court ordered drug treatment for multiple substance addictions in 1998-99 . It's been a slow but steady advance to wellness trying most all the techniques and drug therapies you have discussed. I attended our community college in 2012 to obtain an associate degree a required course was public speaking and our first speech subject was about ourselves. For me it meant speaking about my life and the events that led to my diagnosis and ending on an optimistic and positive vision for my future. We were coached in breathing and deeply exhaling before presenting our speech as well as scanning the classroom from side to side making contact with the many faces in the class. I rehearsed the speech with different friends before the class to make sure I stayed within our allotted time. I received an A and applause afterwards, but I felt so free inside. I can't recall how long it's been since my last panic attack. I think that speech finally set those demons free.
Andrew, I am astonished at how well you read my mind. I've recently started dealing with eliminating my aversion to opening up to strangers (eg. starting a conversation with someone at the park/coffee shop/whatever) despite knowing that I can handle myself in the actual social interaction itself. I just seem to "lock up" when I even think about approaching someone I don't know. I suspect it is due to the many traumatic social experiences and ostracization from my childhood. I'm looking forward to listening to this episode and hope I'll walk away with tools to help deal with this over time! Thanks for all that you do!
EMDR definitely changed my life for the better. In my case, the saying "it has to get worse before it gets better" was true. EMDR was extremely challenging for me since I had to solely face the traumatic event consciously. As stated in the video, EMDR itself doesn't re-write/change the experience without support outside of the session. I had a very supportive and active therapist who would help me during and after these sessions. I would become flooded with emotions and new emotions came out because I repressed the stressful event that happened to me for years. When I first started therapy, I was terrified of emotions and would numb them. As time went by and we put in the work I learned how to navigate them appropriately and in a healthy manner, I'm still a work in progress and that's ok. She knew how I managed my emotions and the existing coping mechanisms and how I functioned as a person overall before I jumped into EMDR. I can definitely see how EMDR can make traumas worse if you are not fully guided or supported properly. If you do seek EMDR, I highly recommend doing it with someone who has specialized in EMDR therapy.
I'm so glad you have a skilled and compassionate therapist.Thank you for sharing your story. Would you mind sharing the details of your therapist please? I'm looking for one. thanks a lot :)
I had excellent results with EMDR and it includied a new narrative and attaching reward. I think it is practioner dependent and patient commitment to the process.
It's the same with EFT. Trauma is best worked through with a good practitioner and someone who can instigate the creation of a new narrative, as this is something that we naturally avoid ourselves. Very easy to get stuck in a trauma loop. Glad to hear you had great results with EMDR - energy psychology techniques really do work!
Great video. I was reprogramming patients in one of the ways described about 15 years ago as part of my hypnotherapy treatments. I never know why people won't acknowledge where the majority of effective therapies actually originate from. Good to hear the Neuroscience behind what Hypnotherapy has been using for decades.
So informative and real. I had nocturnal hypertension and been to emergency two times going over 200/106. Since I wrote out my past traumas and focused on them, i considered the raise in blood pressure to the inner child. I used to go in panic mode warning me each evening and night that things are not right and there is danger in the family and house (this was the past). Now i hug my inner child when it comes to warn me and tell him all is ok things have changed and we are both safe so now lets be happy together. My blood pressure leveled out and my nocturnal hypertension dissapeared. No doctor told me that and just increased my medication everytime. Dont know how to thank you so much for this knowledge leading to healing.
It says in Wilhelm's translation notes on the I Ching, "the best way to combat evil is to make vigorous progress in the good". Was reminded of that listening to this.
Listening Andrew Huberman and practising mindfulness meditation has tremendous positive effect on my mind. Thank you very much!!
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I was amazed when I tried EMDR, after years trying different techniques this is the easiest amd more direct way to get into a pre-calm state and helped me sleep. I have to say... Playing FPS games you kind of train to do the opposite thing (train concentration on one point with a big arousal) and when you introduced me to this, that was a game changer! (Now I play more relaxed games with eye movement involved)
Interesting. So you are saying gaming could be a bad thing on your stress system? But after EMDR you could game in a more relaxed state? What was your traumatic event then?
As a Life Coach, and a CBT practitioner, this podcast I found to be immensely powerful, at many levels kind of a revision to the book -The Body keeps the score, which goes on to explain the same process of our mind ( the deep limbic system embedded). The best part is, even though I never was formally trained in these concepts, I have been using them for my clients and helping them build resilience and rebound from setbacks, listening to info like this just reiterated my confidence and conviction level to another , thank you @AndrewHuberman
You've single handedly changed me & my mindset since I found your channel just over a month ago. Thank you for your amazing videos.
Wow I’d dint know you watched this teeqo😂😂did you like the hormones and sleep ones?
I second this statement 🙏
he has two hands.
@Teeqo go to University get a better education , hope Huberman inspired you.
Fear for ones life and being scared to death will affect the appendix and lungs.
Being a clinical psychologist trained in emdr, I had a few contentions -
1. Prolonged exposure does not involve any relearning and is effective in animals and not humans because whenever we're faced with fear, we cognitively engage in coping mechanisms like perfectionist thinking, catastrophising and planning for the future. In exposure, we're simply doing exactly what we do when we're overthinking and are caught up in the default mode network. So we're not facing our fear or going to the very incident where conditioning took place. Prefrontal cortex does not lead to inhibition because it doesn't get activated here.
2. Though some studies have stated that re telling of the trauma narrative can lead to extinction and unlearning of the fear response, this seems oversimplified. Remember that our brain is making associations all the time. Being exposed to therapies like CPT and CBT which involves retelling of the traumatic incident can lead to further traumatisation. As the client is entering sympathetic nervous system mode and is in fight flight or freeze within the therapy session, the therapy room, the therapist's face or anything in the therapy context can get associated to the fear response, further providing a trigger WITHIN the therapy space for the client to be traumatised. Therefore it's essential to have several sessions of what we call 'resourcing' or 'stabilization' so the client has the ability to regulate their own nervous systems to some degree BEFORE the re telling of the traumatic incident is attempted. CPT and CBT do not involve thorough stabilization as in trauma therapies like EMDR and other somatic psychotherapies (ISP, SE, IFS, etc.)
3. Lastly, in EMDR there is a new narrative being formed unlike what you said. There is a separate phase for 'installation' where a positive cognition/meaning is linked with the target memory that led to the symptoms of trauma in the first place. In fact, it is prolonged exposure in which there is no alternative narrative being formed.
To summarise, EMDR, SE and other bottom up approaches are more efficacious when it comes to single or multiple incident traumas as opposed to other top down therapies like CBT and prolonged exposure.
What about a fear you can’t relate to a specific event? Like, I have a deep fear of loneliness, being alone in a prolonged way or unsupported, etc. but I can’t associate that to any event I can remember. It’s very limiting and leads to clingy, anxious attachment etc and it’s something I really want to change in my life …
Yes! Its stored in the body! I am an SEP
Working with the felt sense is essential.
Well stated
For facing fear of anxiety in public, embarrassment etc. paradoxical intention is best and I feel it's effective. According to Dr. Victor E Frankl saying "Fear is the mother of the event" which implies that when you are anxious about something like public speaking you reinforced that fear of embarassment and awkwardness by thinking you should be very careful and calculative when you go on the stage. This carefulness called hyper intention on something you want to bring out success out of something pressurised you to make more nervous and eventually to more mistakes. But if you do the opposite ,paradoxical intention you would be thinking like this ,I make 3 mistakes and now I would be making 7 more mistakes left to make. This thinking let you off the hook of pressure and have more focus on the event than on your unnecessary thoughts. This makes you feel "I don't care if I make mistakes" and it tends to make more less mistake and comes out right what you want to do.
@@patriciadeoliveira4126Look up CPTSD and Pete Walker's books on it. Check on youtube first before you spend any money.
EMDR changed my life!! After years of talking about my trauma, I felt like it wasn't helpful at all. I used EMDR for sexual assaults and abuse in my late 20s. The technique used was talking about my trauma until my body was in such a heightened state of stress that the feelings I felt while experiencing it were at the forefront of my emotions. It was then followed by focusing on that pain and stress with no talking while my therapist had me follow her fingers back and forth or tapping on my knees. It was extremely hard, both mentally and emotionally. After 9 months, I eventually stopped bc I couldn't handle the stress. But I do remember one morning I woke up and could immediately tell I had a shift in my thoughts. Instead of waking up in misery, I saw life and the beauty of it. Everything was so bright, and I felt hope for the first time in years. The benefits were absolutely worth it. I recently used EMDR last year, in my 40s, and the technique was completely different. I had to think of a painful traumatic event that I constantly thought of. I never talked about the traumatic event. I merely wrote a defining statement about it. I would tie a negative cognition and negative feelings followed by following a ball on a computer screen. I would gauge the pain on a scale from 0-7. I continued following the ball until I was at a zero. I would then follow up with a positive cognition and positive feeling, then repeat the process. This was the most powerful healing I've ever experienced. I now believe talk therapy isn't as effective. I am thankful for this shift in my mind. I am moving forward in my life and have even stopped drinking. I no longer crave alcohol as a coping mechanism. I truly believe people suffering from addiction should work on the causes first before even trying to stop using. The recent technique used came from Peter Walkers, book Complex PTSD. I used this for multiple traumas I lived through in my life, not just a single event. I hope someone reading this will feel encouraged to try it!
An amazing story! I hope you are doing well.
omg thank you so much! my EMDR sessions didn't help me at all. I thought the reason is that it usually helps with the regular PTSD, not with the complex one. Now I will try the technique you are talking about!
Thank you so much for sharing ❤️
Thank you for this. Could you please share in which chapter can I find this technique?
Thank you. I am going to try this in June. Though I totally respect what A.Huberman is stating. I love to hear contradicting views and to be well informed. Ironically, I'm supplementing with saffron and ashwaganda for nutritional reasons. But I must say they have significantly reduced my waking anxiety. I awake with a frying sensation in my brain and was inclined to think my blood pressure was off. Who knew it was actually anxiety from night terrors. I have disassociated quite effectively during the day awake. However, even after all these years, the night terrors still plague me.
Look at all the people you are lifting up, Andrew Huberman. Every podcast is a treasure. We appreciate you.
Well said
My IQ went up 15 points after finding Dr. Huberman last year! ❤
THOUGH he talks about subjects that are specific he delivers the facts in a layman's terms , terms that if you don't understand he gives a positive & clear reference for you to refer to if you're not quite sure , such a positive & clear feeling if you listen to him maybe more than once at different times it becomes very motivating & worthy of investigating...
Always reliable inviting us to explore subjects that are worthy to know about if you're maybe unsure what it may mean to\for you . Motivating & informative for all... Thank you
And then we will pass along this info, and others will learn, ad infanitum!
He just wants you to buy the products he advertises - he's been debunked for many of his claims on his podcast.
Dr. Hubermans podcasts on alcohol helped me quit back in march. The way he scientifically explained the adiction side of alcohol made me realize im prone to alcoholism. My life has changed tremendously since. Thanks Andrew for your sharing your knowledge in a way the general population to understand.
What did you do to quit besides that? I just came out of rehab and quit many drugs but alcohol is still such a problem for me and its more dangerous then ever due to my tolerance.
I'll keep fighting but any tips and tricks will be appreciated
I had also started prescription adderall around the same time, I also abused weed too, and since then I had quit weed around last Thanksgiving for a good 3 months, recently decided adderall was too much for my adhd symptoms and that I covered up alot of responsibility and childhood trauma with drinking and weed. I very slowly re introduced weed back into my life and quit the adderall prescription. Just last week I had extreme anxiety after taking one hit of weed and I threw my stash and bowl away. All of these changes on top of doing a keto/carnivore diet have turned my life around for the better. My relationship with my wife improved, my relationship with my mother ended and I now feel like a better role model for my 3 year old son. We all deal with different things in life and need to experience life and struggles our own certain way, but at 33 years old I am certain I will never drink alcohol again and I never want to depend on a substance again. I would rather rely on a good whole food diet (currently carnivore) and practice being a responsible person. It's hard but life wasn't meant to be easy either. Hubermans own personal story was quite inspiring and listening to people like Jordan Peterson, Andrew Tate, and David Goggins have been strong motivation for me to deal with daily struggles without a crutch or a substance whether socially accepted or not. I never would understand what rehab would be like but I am balancing trying to own and figure out my self identity and it hasn't been easy, keep your head up and stay strong, you can do it!
When my husband died suddenly in front of me and I had to perform CPR the event itself was very traumatic. Once that event was over there was a cascade of other traumatic events that followed. Financial stress, health stress for my kids, genetic counsellor, cardiologists, coroners, funeral arrangements, seeing my husband dead at the hospital, lawyers and estate processes, becoming a solo mother etc etc. These cascading traumatic events continued to happen for around 9/10 months afterward. Very rarely are traumatic events one single event. Anxiety creeped up on me and I found myself having a panic attack one day thinking I was dying like my husband did. I didn’t know it was a panic attack at the time. My blood pressure is also through the roof and I cannot control it through diet and exercise so had to start taking medications. When someone you love, who is perfectly healthy, drops dead in front of you after having just made breakfast for the family it shakes your whole world view and identity.
Sending you lots of love Mrs Fembot
That’s so sad to read, I can’t imagine how you must feel. Stoicism might help you, check out some Ryan Holiday stuff if you aren’t already familiar. Wishing you all the best
that is very hard long road.. my boyfriend 40ish had an argument with him mum about CSA and was after and on the phone with me. I spoke sympathy and kindness and he had a heart-attach and died. I heard his brother trying to bring him round.. I rang his Mum because she lived next door and I said over and over again hello hello hello and she didn't say a word. I found out it was her that answered.. it's traumatic and it takes a decade to get over when it should take one. Complex chronic stress is mental illness NEEDS addressing so much time can be wasted in chronic grief.
glad you found some support. though not as intense, my life has shifted for the better. sometimes a wise person is just what we need.
@@raisedonmetal7984 hey maybe you think your words to are empowering to @fembot but they sure lack empathy. Maybe you've never experienced what she has. Maybe youre wiring is different. Sounded a little judgy and moralistic of how she should get thru the ordeal and how grief should affect her. Empathy and holding space for someone helps because we have no true idea her internal thoughts or private matters despite what was shared. Just a thought eh?
Hey @fembot its a horrible thing you experienced and are trying to navigate. You are doing the best you can I have no doubt with the hand that was dealt you. I am so sorry for your loss. Don't be hard on yourself for how or what you feel. Please reach out for support whenever you can. No, life will never be the same but hold on to hope and healing that in time the horizon holds more joy and less pain as each minute, hour, day, week and month goes by. EMDR THERAPY can help with the traumatic memory and body response. No it's not a magic wand as you no but any relief is welcomed in these terrifying grief stricken moments. I wish you comfort when you most need it and hope to you raise your head another day. Much love to you on the unwanted part of your journey @fembot
Emdr clinician here. In emdr, clients do replace the negative belief of the event with a positive (adaptive event) after the desensitization phase. Love the content. I reference these videos often when doing psycho educational groups.
Thank you. For this comment and for the work you do!
Former EMDR client here, and yes!
I need this! 😩
I've done EMDR for over a year now. I can't say I've been challenged on my beliefs during my sessions, is that meant to an outcome consequential of that? I don't think I've been able to achieve that
Thank you!!! I do EMDR too and was going to comment on this exactly and the three pronged approach. Sounds like we need more research on EMDR and complex trauma, as I've anecdotally had a lot of success in using EMDR for complex trauma.
Huberman: The big brother , or cool uncle I never had and never knew I needed until he started dropping these gems into the world. Bravo my friend, you are giving us a master's level education in a way that's understandable and free. I'm a therapist is private practice and I use both EMDR and CBT - these videos are a beautiful resource for me and my clients -Thank you
I call him the husband I never knew I wanted!! 😁
@Marianne Thank you Marianne for taking the time and for your kindness. You made my day. Here's to a happy and peaceful 2022 - best wishes.
@Marianne I second this. Turned 40 around 7 weeks ago and had psychodelic experience that left me with PTS, terror episodes and vast amount of anxiety. Things I've never knew until now. I'm glad there are therapist like Mason who help people like myself.
@Marianne p
@@alexandrafriedman8119 I meant uncle. Oooh, Are you trying to say I look old? That is subtle and funny
Between Dr Huberman and The medical medium Anthony William , they have single-handedly changed my life forever after been chronically sick with multiple illnesses both mentally and physically since i was 16. Now at 33, my life is only starting now. Thankyou so much.
Psychedelics are just an exceptional mental health breakthrough. It's quite fascinating how effective they are against depression and anxiety. Saved my life.
Can you help with the reliable source I would really appreciate it. Many people talk about mushrooms and psychedelics but nobody talks about where to get them. Very hard to get a reliable source here in Australia. Really need!
Yes, dr.sporesss. I have the same experience with anxiety, depression, PTSD and addiction and Mushrooms definitely made a huge huge difference to why am clean today.
I wish they were readily available in my place.
Microdosing was my next plan of care for my husband. He is 59 & has so many mental health issues plus probable CTE & a TBI that left him in a coma 8 days. It's too late now I had to get a TPO as he's 6'6 300+ pound homicidal maniac.
He's constantly talking about killing someone.
He's violent. Anyone reading this Familiar w/ BPD know if it is common for an obsession with violence.
Is he on instagram?
Yes he is. dr.sporesss
Trauma therapist here. There is absolutely an EMDR component that re-attaches a positive reward and relearning a new narrative. This is always the last stage of processing any trauma, and the beauty of it! It’s what we talk about as the transformational nature of trauma - basically what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. People naturally start to look at the same event and their strengths, ability to survive, and persist become known to them. So the person walks away not only with very little emotional reaction to the event, but looking at the event through a totally different lens, as we have worked to challenge the cognitive distortions related trauma. I was actually listening to this thinking the process you described (before you got to EMDR) is exactly why EMDR works. To your point, most of us look for many methods to enhance trauma work, so that’s why I am always on the hunt for more information about trauma and the brain. I have a few different methods I weave together for more effective treatment, especially complex PTSD. Great episode! Thank you!
I agree with your comment. This has been my experience too with patients
I have always tried to understand EMDR and never once found it useful. I had three different therapists who have tried this technique and it was with absolutely no luck. I have been suffering from agoraphobia and panic disorder since I was 19 I'm now 40. I become frustrated with therapy because I don't understand what they are trying to do. I do have a past that probably sounds like it comes out of a horror story but have explained to the therapist that I don't care about my past nor do I fear anyone or anything I just want to know why I panic when I leave my home especially when I once loved being outside and now I fear it and no has an answer.
@@linnerellie209 I once had agoraphobia and monophobia too and that too despite NOT having any traumatic incidents related to it, I was so afraid of being seen or going out that I won't even sit near the window or go the gallery and I felt miserable then when my college started it was worse since I couldn't rely on my parents all the time for transportation and had to do things on my own so going put became a necessity and I tried "fake it till you make it" and lucky it worked at first it seemed useless but eventually as months passed it became my strength and now I'm so much better I still sometimes go out and be alert or aware of my surroundings so that nothing bad happens but it's not like how I used to be before, so maybe trying "fake it till you make it" might work for u
@sarahpalladino6045 where do I find doctors like you? Does insurance cover this, or do I need to save thousands?
@sarahpalladino6045 what about someone who has trauma from a bad drug episode?
I am also an EMDR clinician and have had great results with CPTSD and PTSD. Have you considered interviewing Bessel Van Der Kolk (The Body Keeps the Score) for his input on trauma, PTSD, and EMDR? Love your work and share it with so many clients, friends and family. :)
@Dr. Huberman - I second the "have a conversation with Dr. Van Der Kolk" idea!
I would love that! Hopefully he will consider him
Thirded.
I’ve recently concluded that trauma is what I need to work on. I cannot hold thought enough to comprehend. The consequences you can imagine. I need help. Maybe we can speak to see if you can help?
YES
I used to have a huge trouble falling asleep (my sleep cycle was messed up because of that untill I was 25 years old), because I couldn't calm down my mind. It all ended when my first son was born and I started observing how he falls asleep. He was always laying on his back and scanning whole room by moving his eyes form side to side to the point when he couldn't keep his eyes open and suddenly fell into sleep. Amazed how easily he falls asleep I started to copycat him and it worked wonders. Now I fall asleep withing minutes, no matter how aroused I am before bedtime. My theory is that by scanning your surroundings and not finding any danger for some time you automatically stop being alert and fall asleep.
There is a lot of wisdom you can learn from a child, who isn't affected by civilization yet. Same with animals, learned lots of wisdom from my cat and dog by carefully observing their behavior.
Interesting observation, I must try it, and yes watching young children and animals we can learn alot.
When my son was about 3+ years old, and was socialising or listening to more adults using words he wasn't familiar with, I found it fascinating how his brain worked when I asked him what he thought a specific word or phrase meant.
I don't remember anything in particular now, but
I'd often ask him later when we weren't away from the from others so he wouldn't be shy or get embarrassed by his reply.
I do remember how often what he thought was often kind of on the right track with clues from the conversation but keypoint not there.
When I explained what was said or what it meant using his own experiences he'd often understand it immediately and use the word back to me in his own sentences, somethings for days afterwards, then it wouldn't be long before he was using that word in his general conversations, or explaining it to his little companions.
I miss those days, he's in his 40's now.
That is really interesting :) I have a similar experience. When I am anxious, I usually would suppress showing it, i.e. letting my eyes dart around the room anxiously and maybe looking over my soulder, maybe making myself small.
But I notice, that when I let myself do that (maybe in private, at home) and my eyes find no danger, the anxiety supsides. And the eyes relax. The same happens for me, when I am out in nature, and the eyes can relax into the distance, and there is no "visible danger".
I guess maybe you are letting your body do, what it needs to do to feel safe.
I have experoenced an almost magical cure from trauma caused by the sudden death of my best friend at the time. When I started therapy the trauma had been ruling my life for 7 years. After 4 months of therapy I got my normal life back. The therapy was done by a very experienced trauma specialist with a mixed approach: EMDR, narrating (everything was recorded on tape which I had to listen to again and again), talking to the dead person to say goodbye etc. It was extremely exhausting and painful but worth the effort.
Based on this experience I am convinced that trauma is just brain malfunction that can be retrained.
I have CPTSD, starting with early childhood trauma and continuing through early adulthood. I had EMDR combined with NARM therapy. It was incredibly helpful in many ways. I had somatic issues I realized I was causing myself as well as dissociation. It also helped with getting my anxiety and panic attacks under control. I also had cranial sacral therapy, which may seem kinda of hokey, but it helped me recognize and release emotions I was storing in my body. There are still things I struggle with, but I have a much better understanding and awareness of my physical and mental well being. I really enjoy all the helpful information you share, you’ve been incredibly helpful as well ❤
I have chronic pain, what somatic issues you had?
EMDR - in my personal experience, I was able to eliminate the stigma of the traumatic events and reframe or replace the "sticky" memory with a more peaceful one. Now when I reference that painful memory, I am able to visualize and feel the memory that replaced it. In my specific case and I don't mind mentioning specifics... as a child I got in the middle of a fight my parents were having and was hit. It was a memory that haunted me and I couldn't remember anything that happened before or after that. This painful memory and my response to it shaped my life in a way that I would never enter into any type of conflict, and was terrified of getting hit. It caused PTSD in my adult life as well. In an EMDR session I referenced the memory, felt all the painful and scary feelings, and then my therapist guided me to an after scenario that my brain basically made up. I imagined my mother comforting me and holding me after I was hit. Now I am unable to reference the painful memory of getting hit without simultaneously referencing the pleasant memory of being comforted. I am no longer afraid of conflict as well. The impact was huge and all without dissociating - which empowered me in a way that I am able to feel hard feelings and move on. The ability to tolerate pain or stressful situation in my personal and professional life has been pivotal. One thing to note was that the therapist that administered EMDR was my therapist for almost 2 years prior and we had a very special relationship. The type of EMDR we did was tapping on the hands so physical touch from a safe person was involved. I had my eyes closed but they did dart back and forth, faster in an intense emotion. The process does seem to have a crescendo of sorts when going through the most painful parts of your memory and I believe that having a safe person with you while you feel those intense feelings is one of the main keys to this process working. They say that this process does not often work with childhood trauma, but I disagree - although I think your therapist plays a huge part as does your personal journey of processing through the trauma. There is also therapy that you can do yourself with tapping. Peter Levine discusses it in "Healing Trauma" and Laurel Pharnell writes about it in "Tapping In".
Thanks for sharing your experience, Allison. I found it valuable and informative. I've done all kinds of pioneering therapy, starting in the early 1980's -- including some of Peter Levine's methods, Arthur Janov's, hypnotherapy, energy healing, and many others -- but haven't yet tried, specifically, EMDR. I've utilized Tapping / EMT, off and on for years, with marginal results. But, your info here has inspired me to look further into EMDR, and to check out Laurel Pharnell's 'Tapping In', as well. I haven't even listened to Huberman's video yet -- so, hopefully I'll be even more inspired by what he shares here. Personal stories can be so useful to others with similar traumas, and who continue to seek solutions to further 'disentanglement' from the detrimental, long term effects. So thank you, again, for outlining your journey to a transformation. 🌟☮🙏
This has been my experience with EMDR. Oftentimes, with chronic trauma, it can be traced to some key events that bring up other lesser events and it’s all tied up in a web. Deescalating those key events also helps deescalate those other ones, as well as your responses to future events.
Thank you for your comments. I could not find the right words as a foreigner. You described it so well
I had also a strong safe relationship with the therapist and had prepared for the EMDR sessions over months but it only worked for the unique event of the death of my sister
For my childhood it failed: there are/were 100 of events, sexual and emotional abuse and mobbing from the mother, at least 10 dreadful memories.. Here EMDR had been no way for me (now i know this is not a failure. I am no longer ashame!)
My way is made of different meditative practices. A lifelong labor, that is in good progress. It has made me what I am. "Out of the mud flowers grow" as Thich Nath Hanh says, and "pain is a great teacher"
@@katejmendoza I totally agree! You said it perfectly. Deescalating this one key event helped me reframe other memories and traumas.
@@edwigcarol4888 I am so glad that it worked for that unique event and I am sorry for your loss. EMDR is so great at targeting specific events. I do think that working on these events will in a way reset your nervous system and the adoption of trauma memories. I am so glad that you have those meditative practices. If there are any resources you found helpful I would love to know more. In 2022 I want to get consistent with journaling and meditation.
I am an EMDR client and had what I would call , exceptional results. I spent 4 or 5 years bouncing around to different psychologists/therapists for my PTSD with no success. Finally I learned of EMDR and sought out the treatment.
I was given 3 options for EMDR. I found the "eye light bar" too busy in conjunction with recalling the trauma. 2nd there was vibrating "handles" for lack of better words, that would alternate the vibration in each hand as I recalled the incident. This was very distracting for me. I found I was concentrating more on the handles then the recall of memories. I only tried these 2 methods for maybe 1-2 minutes each. I did not have to repeat the traumatic event several times.
So then we tried the headphones!! Brilliant! The head phones alternated a tone sound back and forth from one ear to the other as I started to recall the negative and highly emotional event.
EMDR was explained to me that these negative memories and responses are attached to one area of the brain and the EMDR will open up the channels to the other side of the brain as to allow to "neutralize" my negative thoughts/response.
I did have a very foggy and relaxed state after both sessions..I did not even remember the drive home. (I did have 5-6 sessions before the actual EMDR started) There was no definitive moment where I said "I'm better now"...it was a gradual realization that "hey I was just in a typical trigger situation but I did not respond negatively". What a great feeling! I've continued to this day to have a literal neutral response to otherwise a typical trigger for me.
I certainly recommend at least giving this therapy a try. I felt I had nothing to lose. For me...I got my life back!
Thank you for posting these videos. I suffered a traumatic event on July 12 and 13, 2006. I never recovered from this, but have made extreme efforts. I have "suffered" through some "therapists" who were NOT AT ALL helpful. As a result, I have sought DIY therapy from the web. YOU are so helpful to me, and have helped me more than my past counselors. THX for your videos.
I can relate to the high value of lucid, thorough, educational podcasts - and even Tik-Tok - in comparison to unhelpful, meandering therapy sessions.
There are a lot of therapists out there who are basically hacks. But just because you haven't recovered from it yet, doesn't mean you can't. Doesn't matter how long ago it happened, it's always possible to recover. Glad you are finding things that are helpful!
hi!
how are you holding up?
I have a similar thing as to what you described. I was on the receiving end of an armed robbery with a carving knife to my throat. He tried to kill me more than once as I struggled to escape with my life. That was 21 years ago now and i've had a recovery breakthrough about a year ago. If you want some advise, let me know
Yes! I’m looking for someone who went through DIY therapy (there isn’t good therapists where I live unfortunately) any tips? I disliked the fact the he brushed it off by saying (seek CBT or CPT therapists) as if we all have access to decent ones. I went through a singular event that caused me intense fear of performing sexually (I’m a male) years ago and it’s still affecting me
@@joeyripswell please share!
I am a post 9/11 US Marine Corps Veteran who did EMDR with my therapist from a non profit whom I was extremely close and very trusting of and in that process you mentioned no imputing of new narrative and in our sessions we did infact rewrite the traumas or do something until the effect of the traumas were not as disturbing to imagine than before. We also healed some childhood wounds and I am so appreciative of him as I don’t think I would be here if it weren’t for him. Keep up the great work!!! I love how you reference studies and try to differentiate between what has been proven scientifically and what is your opinion.
So great to hear. Yea the later phases in EMDR are where the new narrative or positive cognition get out in. So glad you got support and help.
Thank you for your service (I’m Dutch)
You are my hero and I love you
In response to the content about EMDR, my therapist and I use a tool called 'Future Template' after we complete the initial processing of the traumatic event. Essentially you use the same eye movements while you imagine going back into the scenario and visualize it going well or you being able to respond in a healthy way. You replace the negative cognition about yourself with a positive cognition. It has eased a lot of my social anxiety when public speaking, after a public humiliation experience in my childhood. Thanks for all you do!
I agree, in early sessions as an EMDR therapist, I may not have worked as hard on clarifying the future template and we should develop this aspect as much as all other phases of EMDR.
Interresting, I am looking for something like that, thank you
Fellow trauma survivors, here's what has really helped me~ Going through PTSD my body asks for those moments of hyperventilation naturally and I give in, but I need to take weeks off, I can't do it every single day, it goes in waves (my therapist recommended this too). I find that if I'm in a quiet and safe environment, this is usually followed by emotional expression like anger or crying (I use a pillow to not worry anyone if I'm angry), etc. Whatever your body tells you it needs, give it what it wants, it knows. Super helpful to have someone with you while you process, that feels really good and is so soothing, it feels like the crying is a question and the touch or emotional support is the answer to that question. In my personal experience, the hyperventilation is also accompanied by arousal movement like shaking the hands, pacing, sometimes I even go running until I feel the arousal begin to diminish. If I can't tap into the emotions or can't feel my body, touching someone else helps (like a hug or even touching hands), or, if no one else is around, I use music. I'm a professional musician so I kind of know what to look for to facilitate this, I've made a playlist of really good instrumental stuff (e.g. Max richter, Olafur Arnalds, those post-minimalist classical composers make the perfect music for emotional release). The right kind of music really helps to break down the walls of dissociation and helps you really process the feelings and feel your body again. Really good for anyone who struggles with numbness, I did for a very long time. If you're new to post-minimalism check out "On the Nature of Daylight" by Max Richter and let it guide you through your feelings. If you prefer lyrics, check out "To Build a Home" by the Cinematic Orchestra. My goal is to make music like this to help people process and heal. Last thing I want to say is that if you feel weird body sensations, tingling, pulsing, sensitive vision, stomach aches, a lack of stable emotional grounding, nausea, feelings of helplessness, depression, know that it's totally normal after what you'e gone through and you're not alone in those experiences. It will pass.
Thank you, Dr. Huberman, for giving us names for all of the stuff, I know what all of those things feel like, I needed a name for "insula". :) You're really helping us.
My question for you and other qualified people here is what if you were traumatized on one of these drugs like ketamine or MDMA, would they still be helpful or do you think it might reinforce trauma? (I know it probably varies with individual but I'm interested in the logic.)
I use medication and I think that it is a bad idea to take those mids exept if there is no other way of dealing with your health problems.
Thanks for sharing this.
I have found music is my therapy. I was a singer & pianist, until my ex husband abused me. I ended up in a coma & airway replacement. A traumatic brain injury. But your suggested music choices are very healing, and help me let go of my past abilities, and simply accept a way of enjoy ing I can still enjoy and heal through music. Thank you
@@jodirowe2996 Love be with you. Bob Marley is excellent too to find the natural rhythm of life
This is my exact experience and I want to thank you so much for sharing this with me and letting me know I’m not alone
1:44:55 RIP Costello. You have taught all of us a lot and you've been an indispensable companion and friend.
I have never been able to hear Costello when listening to the podcast. I kind of liked the idea of him being there anyway. I enjoyed the joy in Dr. Hubermans voice when talking about him.
/Pat
*Gently pats Costello on the head*
😓😓😓😓😓
I was really shocked when I Heared about this 😪😪😪😪😪. Many greetings from Germany.
Oh no! :(
Rest with angels Costello
Joe Rogan showed people are interested in long conversations about random topics.
Lex Fridman showed people are interested in long conversations about scientific topics.
Andrew Huberman showed people are interested in long deep discussions about scientific topics.
Indeed. Well said!
Amen!
Omg dont put rogan in this.. Wtf man yall so gay for Joe. Relax. He was lucky
Rogan is an MMA commentator and a BJJ stoner who managed to land a podcast with right wing banter, controversy, and conspiracy theories.
Huberman and Fridman are actual PHD level scientists who support their statements with peer reviewed science based literature.
Rogan should be compared to people who actually opperate the same as he does. People like Alex Jones, Tucker Carlson ect ect.
@@TheDocbachyou've missed the point, the comparison is long conversations. Without his input podcasts would still be short on a single aspect of a given point, leaving the listener with more questions than answers.
As for educational level, I've never been impressed to anyone that learned anything from books or what they're told vs real life experience.
Sure, Joe is rough around the edges, some of his beliefs and guests are out there, however his interviews are relatable to many more people over a diverse spectrum of backgrounds.
This channel touches me in two ways. I'm a repeated trauma survivor (4th stage lynphoma, bone marrow transplant and double lung transplant in the last years) and gaining a Deep understanding of how my chemical, my brain and body work helps a lot in living with It. Second, I work as a coach in similar situations (help people deal with practical, game changing aspects of such diseases) and this is like a PhD in scientific explanation of what goes on through our bodies. No sufficient ways to thank the professor, this is pure gold. Gold for free.
My house burned to the ground two days before Christmas. This video was incredibly helpful aiding in my healing process. Thank you for doing this.
I i
I remember the first time I shared details about my trauma to a Gestalt therapist. I sobbed uncontrollably and my body was shaking so much. Today, after writing down and sharing my story so many times, in individual and group therapy, with other survivors, I talk about my trauma as if I were reading a news article and it genuinely feels as if it happened to someone else. Today I’m grateful for my experience because it forced me to learn about psychology, neural science and storytelling. I am able to empathize with other survivors and listening to their stories and seeing their relief of sharing their most traumatic experiences with me, gives my life so much more meaning. I would LOVE to watch an episode about BDNF, aerobic exercise and staving off dementia. If there is an episode about it, please forgive me, my time is limited as I care for a big family.
Thank you for sharing your story. So happy for you that you feel better :) Would you mind sharing the name/location of your therapist please? Thanks a lot!
Since you asked, I’m telling my expenses EMDR. I’ve been on it for about 2 months, once a week. It’s been helpful to me. My therapist actually makes me imagine the traumatic situation as if I were looking into a picture, and does the eye stimulation and then asks me what popped into my mind or what and where do I feel it in mi body. Then she does the same but this time she makes focus on those feelings, and we repeat this until the feelings or thought feel less intense (she applies a scale from 1-10). Then, as it goes down, she makes me focus on how I would have liked to do in such situation, by helping myself on the memory of that situation, or what I would’ve liked to be told or treated at that moment. Then, she makes me focus on that (probably already nice feeling), and as this though or emotion or physical feeling “engraves” in my brain…she does the stimulation slower and slower until I ALWAYS feel calmer. What’s nice about this therapy is that you don’t necessarily need to talk about the situation, you can just say general things about it and how it makes you feel, but not necessarily talk about it unless you do want to talk about it. Hope this helps!
Pretty similar for me… though mine asked me to start picturing the events/snapshots in black and white. The more I was able to watch it in black and white the less power it had.
Episodes I'd love to have you do: 1. SSRI drug education, how to successfully wean off therapies and timeline, research on long term usage, natural alternative options to test. 2. Optimizing digestion (eating schedule, digestive system education, healing gut 3. Fear of flying and heights
See episodes on intermittent fasting, or episode with Samer Hattar for food intake timing, sleep
Absolutely #1!!
I'd Also love to hear about tapering, as I have many times before, but these Dr's Don't have the knowledge. Yet, anyways. I'm hoping for a podcast on that and also, a huge episode on Not just tapering off of SSRI's, BUTTT, Benzos. Sooo important.
@@denisealley9822 Yes. SSRI's destroy so many lives and doesnt really work for most people anyways. They are effective at masking certain symptoms for some, for the rest they get horrible side effects that doctors blame on emerging "mental illness".
YES! Please do an episode about weaning from SSRIs ...especially after being on one for decades.
I truly love your channel. Please include an interview with Dr. Bessel van der Kolk on how to heal complex PTSD. May your UA-cam channel soon double in its number of subscribers. 10M healed and healing people worldwide, in part through the priceless educational resource you provide here, may still be a mere drop in the vast ocean of hurting souls, but even if only less than 0.1% of the world's people pursue conscious healing, the world will somehow be much better off.
I suffered intense bullying in school as a kid then got into a very abusive relationship at 15 that lasted over 5 years. As a result I developed social and agora- phobia. I worked with a therapist and on my own to overcome and change the narrative around these feelings and thoughts of not being 'able' to socialize and was doing really well - in fact, doing things like travelling internationally and attending large public events. During Covid I lost my job for 10 months and was very isolated at home. Once the world opened up again I started feeling apprehension again about going out and being with people. During a birthday trip I planned, I had 2 severe panic attacks and since have reverted to the social anxiety and agoraphobia. I've been having such a hard time because I was doing so well and feel like I lost all that good work I'd put in for years. Thank you for this information. I am working with a therapist who uses Brain Spotting and I will do my best to attend social events again, even if Im scared to re-boot the healing process.
When you make it through and change yourself it's going to be so rewarding 🙏
Sending you lots of love! You’ll make it! Keep going!!!!! In so proud of how you are putting yourself out there !
Hey man! Hope you're doing good. I was also kind of bullied and have the same thoughts. Can you explain the thetapy process a bit please? Would love to do it but can't go to actual therapy so would do it through journaling if possible.
Bullying was so overlooked and disregarded when I suffered through that trauma as well almost 45 years ago. Only upon assessing its effects throughout the decades have I become more cognizant of my almost continuous low grade social anxiety.
You are not alone and best wishes for you to find solace and personal redemption. These podcasts indicate that we are at the right place for healing.
Best wishes ❤
Ouch!! Okay, yeah I'm starting to see how the bullying at my last job had a huge impact on my self-esteem. I never looked at it from that angle before. It was seriously like being in high school all over again. That feels so good to release.
I'm an EMDR clinician and this therapy definitely follows the extinguish and replace model. I use CBT along with EMDR to replace the negative narrative with a new more positive and believable narrative. The great thing is they don't have to tell the story over and over like with prolonged exposure so it is a little less traumatic and exhausting for the client.
Is there any relation between EMDR and motorcycling?
My therapist had the same profile as you.
He helped me definitely. I got precious insights, a lot of useful tools and experiences to refer to.
but the road is long and i go further on my own
@@RolfMuellerAu probably not as much lateral eye movement as in walking, right? more eyes straight ahead on the road. i could see how it would give some of those benefits, though
Could you elaborate on the part of replacing the narrative. How would that look like, by giving an easy example?
That new narrative is positive feedback that this time you did it? Trough out exposure therapy? Or what does he actually is saying. Bit confused here
I was walked through EMDR for a single event trauma and the therapist went through a protocol where I changed the meaning and association with the trauma just like you described. I generated the new narrative and was walked through a path step by step to rewrite a resolution. Not only did it work but it worked immediately. Not exactly permanently but I continued the practice on my own and with repetition my triggers were greatly diminished. The clinician was trained in a group setting so this practice is happening!
Could explain how that new narrative looked like and how you practiced it? If you want to tell ofcourse
I'm just curious, you say that your triggers were greatly diminished; does that mean that they're still there in some form, but you're still not "how you were before"?
Dr. Huberman, thank you very much for an amazing podcast! EMD"R", the R -- reprocessing, is a step that attaches positive feelings with a traumatic memory. EMDR is more than just fear distinction or eye movements. EMDR itself is an integrative approach with eight steps that contains some psychotherapy components (initial history taking), desensitization through eye movements, and reprocessing (attaching new feelings/mentality with the memory).
I was searching about the academic wrinting of doctor Huberman, and I was surprised, actually that "eye research" is his most proeminent academic work.
EMDR changed my life for the better. I just completed 3 months worth of therapy with EMDR sessions. It was the best decision I ever made.
EMDR has been extremely helpful for my CPTSD. I’ve been doing it every week for the past month and am generally so much happier! My therapist says EMDR “opens up doors”. She says it keeps the entire brain online while accessing traumatic memories. And I believe it! I read in the “body keeps score” that EMDR is equally effective as Prozac for PTSD, anxiety symptoms. For long term traumas it just takes more sessions to process and release the fear. It has brought out lots of repressed emotions like anger, depression, anxiety, and that was really hard. But after multiple sessions, I am finally feeling relief! It’s paying off. Healing trauma really is one of those things that “gets worse before it gets better.” I also have been doing somatic processing, cranial sacral, journaling, meditation, breath work, yoga. As far as I’m aware, healing trauma includes incorporating the body in some way.
Seriously Dr. Huberman, you’re giving us the blueprint on how to live in our new world. Thank you.
I needed to hear this from Prof. Huberman. It just struck me that I'm in dire need of therapy as I am currently trying to process how (trigger warning):
my own parents have failed me and I am, even now, while fully supporting myself on my terms, living in the past and waking up in the morning with traumatic flashbacks pretty frequently. Going to seek therapy.
I've been learning about these things since 2019 when I had a complete anxiety breakdown. You have made it all sooo much easier to understand. I love how complete each podcast is. I can't believe you are so kind to make these available and I thank you from the bottom of my heart! God bless you!
😢 words cannot express my gratitude for your content Andrew Huberman.
Thank you.
Same
Dr.Huberman incredible human love all his work such a great Man leading the way forwards for us all.
I just started therapy and this episode is exactly what i needed to hear and learn about before my 2nd therapy session. I know it is going to be very difficult to retell my traumatic events ive gone through to my therapist but now i truly understand how important and crucial it is to eventually be fully open in my sessions. I dont know how i will do it but andrew has helped me see the magnitude of it. Thank you so much.
SO I have CPTSD and I did loads of EMDR, and since my ups an downs and flash backs have massively reduced, however, along side the EMDR I did exercise, meditation, Art and I found an mazing partner who emotionally supported me. it is really hard to separate these, but I believe after my EMDR session it became way more easier for me to face my fears and to handle my flash backs.
had years of therapy, lots of learning about my self, and nothing helped... I even got down to the very situation that traumatised me, but couldn't figure any problem with that situation out (a teacher basically constantly teasing me for two years for not doing my homework, but in return I'm actually gratefull for him doing that, as i wouldn't have learned english otherwise) ... It was only when i had regulary reocurring problems and fights with my boss, that kind of retraumatised me, eventhough i understood where it was coming from, and what a lot of my triggers where, that i realised, that it was the reality of no one standing up for me, or even backing me up by just saying, hey i feel for you going through that.
exactly how my class all saw what was going on, and put their heads into cover.
in the other way that can go for other people by beeing overprotected in certain situations... not beeing able to fully articulate the anger and heat, fear, whatever building up in them, cause they are constantly calmed down.
So a lack of good reflection and beeing seen, and a lack of room to articualte also in unapropriate ways, leeds to underdeveloped skills in selfmanaging emotions, in a healthy way.
As someone who suffers from PTSD I read the title with the idea of passing on this weeks podcast. I certainly have done a lot of counseling and self work but have found that the high anxiety culture we are currently existing in right now has caused me to have a couple of meltdowns. I bring this up for a reason. One thing I have found that some event driven trauma is easily mastered. However, mine is wrapped up with grief for the loss of a loved one and I think it is often the case for many. These events are never forgotten and given the degree of trauma of the event and closeness of the relationship there is no reframing the event to a more positive event. I do believe in journaling, and talking through the events multiple times as it gives one a perspective on self blame and level of control for outcomes (which was no control). In my mind, because my PTSD is wrapped in my grief I was surprised that you had not touched on this as I believe many people experience this as well. The other thing is I have found that there is a human development component to PTSD and grief. I observed this in both my children and myself. So we had to revisit the event as my children have progressed to another stage of development or cognitive comprehension. I have found this in myself as well. So my questions in a nutshell; will you be doing a podcast on grief and include traumatic grief and do you know of studies done on PTSD, grief as part of human development? Also, my condolences to you about your beloved Costello. I did manage to listen to this weeks podcast and will be listening to it a few more times.
Have you tried bwrt
@@jedigirl5214 I am currently researching this protocol of therapy. I have found that I have had some unknown sneaker wave triggers that elicited my flight PTSD response. The last one was in Hawaii and was very upsetting for my adult children. I ended up hiding at the airport and had literally blacked out to the fact they had been trying to contact me until I looked at my phone when I got home and had slept for 12 hours. This is what gets me is that I cannot connect the trigger until after the fact. I do get that there is the stimulus and a space before one reacts. This has been the case for me but I could only identify it after it happened.
I've tried EMDR with a therapist to overcome my fear of dogs (i was attacked by dogs several times when i was a child), but it didn't help at all! For some reason it even made more anxious and i isolated myself at home for couple months because i was too afraid to meet a dog on the street. But talking about my negative expiriences with them and spending more time with a trained and friendly dogs helped me a lot to overcome the fear!
Thank you for all of your well researched details on neurological systems. There are a group of people who go through one minute events that damage their nervous system, without an actual break in the nerve pathway. A stroke victim can, with repetition and exercise, regain function. The toughest thing for them, however, is that their PT, OT, and physicians don’t share much hope on this possibility. It is only through their sharing their success with each other, over years, that they are able to be motivated to regain function. Too many give up and atrophy. I, and I know the 800,000 stroke victims a year, would greatly appreciate the neurological basis for regaining nerve stimulation and function between the brain and muscles.. I would greatly appreciate feedback on this topic.
This goes for neurotoxicity from psychiatric drugs as well. I'm currently suffering sexual and cognitive dysfunction because of a one week stint of methylphenidate...
I have no reason to say this other than felt prompted to because I don't know how it would help but I would look into feldenkraise technique. So, I just googled feldenkraise and stroke and it looks like it is used. I have not had stroke but have CPTSD, dissociative amnesia and ehlers danlos and feldenkraise has been one of the things with many things mentioned in this video that is giving me a life I've never had, truly feel like I'm a walking miracle. There are many practitioners on UA-cam that share their wisdom, techniques freely. One practitioner has course, each lesson about a hour or so, that's free that's worth more than every penny I've spent on any other body help technique and free.
@49 minutes: so glad you pointed that out, as most people imo, over rely on those meds, instead of truly fixing and curing the problem. And replacing it with something positive, as you describe.
Oh boy here I go again, putting on my shaman's hat and sending this to as many people as I possibly can.
Thank you for your work, it means so much to have such a bright and gifted person spreading and systematizing this information for wider consumption. I really hope that one day we will all be so much better at knowing ourselves and each other.
When I hear somebody sigh, ‘Life is hard,’ I am always tempted to ask, ‘Compared to what?’
- Sydney J. Harris
Cowbless is a cool name.
"If you think life is hard, try organic chemistry."
- Joo C. Leak
@@TruTube.1. The difference is that messenger boys served a useful function.
@@cameron2538 Thanks, I'm really excited to have come up with it too xd
This man is single-handedly doing gods work!
As someone who goes to EMDR therapy weekly: I bring up the event, we identify how it feels in my body and what new thought I would like to attach to it. Then we go on and do 1 minute-ish eye moving and then I tell the new sensation/emotion. I go on until I feel neutral or positive about it two time in a row. Then we go back to the starting point and if (and most of the time there is) there is still tension in my body, I focus on that and that goes on and on until I am on a truly neutral level.
Then comes the new association with a good feeling/phrase. We do the eye moving in a slower rhythms three times to "lock in" the new feeling/phrase. My brain then goes on to process it all, even after therapy.
I hope that helps! Love your videos Andrew!
If knowledge is power, then your podcasts are nuclear energy (used for the good of humanity) and your Oppenheimer !
As a (financial) derivative trader , a stressful profession, a major loss can be a "traumatic" event ! It would be great to have an episode that shines light on the neuroscience of trading. I've listened/watched numerous episodes that a trader can extrapolate value ... Erasing fears(#49), How your brain works, Perfect Your Sleep, Improving Focus, Master Stress, Healing from Grief, Optimize & Leverage Dopamine, Gut Health, The Power of Play, Building Strong Habits, and my personal favorite Defeat Addiction w/ Anna Lembke !
Thank you so much for democratizing neuroscience and helping us understand how & why we sometimes do the things we do (instinctively or cognitively). You have definitely me increase my level of mindfulness... a prerequisite for being able to trade in a "flow" state !
🙏🙏
Fascinating what you say about the role of narrative. You can't remove a memory but can create a new association.
Same with habits and beliefs - you can't remove old ones, but you can create new ones that supercede them.
Can you do an episode on Depersonalization there's a lot of people in this generation suffering from it including myself and not a lot of well taught therapies or clear science, you're amazing keep up the great podcast it's definitely helped me in my life
I dissociate regularly as well. Oddly enough, the only thing that has helped is dissociative drugs like ketamine. Once a year or so, sometimes every few months. They're also nmda receptor antagonists, so those receptors have a massive role in ptsd, dissociation, depression. Also low doses of dxm can pull me out of depression instantly. Just the regular dosage on the bottle once.
@@calebmikkelsen5963 look into healing your nervous system. i no longer dissociate.
@@7one11 how
@@IJvillalba93 what worked for me was accepting grieving the loss of whatever happened. Forgiving, and acceptance.
@@lpslancelot05 behavioral therapy, accepting and grieving healthy way like Lance said, spend time in nature, stop masturbating, eat vegetables, do cardio,
Dr Huberman, thank you for providing, so lucidly and so generously, an understanding and practical guidance for dealing with oneself. You are offering an actual roadmap for breaking out of psychological and emotional problems . After years of immersion in the disciplines and philosophies of mindfulness and self-awareness, I find that your podcast is like a final culmination or summing up. I cannot thank you enough for the brilliance, and you must know that you are helping many people immeasurably. Thank you once again.
Your work has changed my life personally and professionally. Thank you. As far as EMDR, my experience with it as a PTSD patient was revolutionary and brought great breakthrough in my PTSD journey. It gave me the strength to participate in other complimentary therapies moving forward. Prior to EMDR I felt like I couldn’t even breathe or function. EMDR gave me a chance to catch my breath as my therapist and I moved forward with other modalities and worked on changing the framework for my future, etc.
🎯 Key Takeaways for quick navigation:
00:00 🎙️ Introduction to the podcast focusing on neuroscience of fear and trauma.
00:29 🧠 Recent advances in neuroscience have illuminated the neural circuits controlling fear and ways to alleviate it.
01:26 🤯 Counterintuitive finding: Exposure to stress can be used to combat fear and depressive symptoms.
02:22 🎓 The podcast aims to provide science-based information to the public.
04:18 💊 Sponsors: Athletic Greens, InsideTracker, and Helix Sleep introduced.
07:12 🧠 Fear as an emotion involving physiological and cognitive responses.
10:05 🧠 Defining trauma as activated or embedded fear within the nervous system.
13:12 🧠 Introduction to the HPA axis (Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal Axis) and stress hormones.
15:53 🤯 Stress response involving fast and slow components influencing brain and body.
18:08 🧠 Role of the amygdala in the threat reflex, not as a fear center but part of threat response.
20:15 🧠 The amygdaloid complex and how different experiences activate the threat reflex.
22:10 🧠 The amygdala is responsible for generating threat reflexes and integrates various types of information from memory and sensory systems (visual, auditory, touch, etc.).
23:34 ⚙️ The amygdala's outputs involve two main pathways: one activates primitive drives like sex, food, and thirst, while the other triggers freezing and arousal responses.
24:32 ❄️ The periaqueductal gray (PAG) in the brain controls the freeze response and releases endogenous opioids, acting as a natural analgesic against pain.
25:29 💡 The locus coeruleus activates arousal responses by releasing adrenaline, epinephrine, and norepinephrine, affecting alertness and attention.
26:26 🎯 The amygdala projects to the nucleus accumbens in the dopamine system, which is related to motivation, reward, and even addiction.
27:26 🌐 The prefrontal cortex's top-down processing helps control and suppress fear reflexes by attaching new narratives or meanings to experiences.
32:49 ⏳ Fear involves one-trial learning, where a single intense event or negative experience can lead to lasting fear responses.
38:38 🧠 Fear responses can be generalized or specific, attaching to broad decisions about places or specific fears about circumstances.
42:32 🔀 Neuroplasticity, particularly long-term potentiation, underlies fear learning by strengthening connections between neurons through mechanisms like NMDA receptors.
44:55 🧠 The NMDA receptor is involved in learning and forming associations in the nervous system.
45:22 🧪 Long-term potentiation (LTP) strengthens connections, making formerly innocuous events become scary or traumatic.
45:50 🔄 Long-term depression weakens connections, leading to unlearning fear and trauma.
46:19 🚫 Therapies must weaken connections to the threat reflex and replace them with positive experiences.
47:14 🧠 Eliminating fears involves attaching new positive experiences to traumatic memories.
48:16 💊 Common treatments like SSRIs and Benzodiazepines alleviate anxiety but don't directly target fear circuits.
50:12 🔄 Narrative therapy rewires fear circuits; Prolonged Exposure, CPT, and CBT are effective using language.
51:41 🗣️ Detailed retelling of trauma activates high anxiety, but repeated retelling reduces fear response.
55:04 🎭 Retelling traumatic narratives helps extinguish fear, followed by relearning new positive associations.
56:59 🏊 EMDR, involving lateral eye movements, inhibits fear circuitry, aiding trauma recovery.
01:09:35 🧠 EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) is becoming increasingly recognized in the psychiatric community for treating fear, trauma, and PTSD, particularly for single-event traumas. However, it mainly focuses on reducing the physiological response to old experiences rather than fully relearning new narratives and attaching rewards.
01:10:32 📝 EMDR is effective for single-event traumas but might not be as comprehensive for long-standing or complex traumas, as it doesn't necessarily address the complete process of extinguishing and relearning associated with fear and trauma.
01:14:21 💬 Social connection is crucial for addressing fear and trauma due to its impact on chemical systems and neural circuits related to them. Social isolation can exacerbate pre-existing traumas, while positive social connections can help reduce fear-related chemistry.
01:18:18 🧬 Transgenerational passage of trauma: Offspring may inherit a predisposition to trauma or fear, characterized by heightened responsiveness to fearful events. This predisposition is linked to specific genetic variations related to cortisol release and not necessarily to the specific trauma experiences of parents or grandparents.
01:26:28 💊 Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy involves dissociation and remapping of emotions to help extinguish old trauma responses and relearn new ones. It may offer relief, especially when coupled with depressive symptoms.
01:31:41 🚀 MDMA-Assisted Psychotherapy creates unique neurochemical conditions by simultaneously increasing Dopamine and Serotonin levels. It fosters profound feelings of connection and resonance with others and objects, facilitating therapeutic exploration of fear and trauma.
01:34:40 🧠 Oxytocin and Serotonin systems are linked; MDMA releases oxytocin, creating feelings of bonding and association.
01:35:09 📝 MDMA increases plasma oxytocin levels significantly, contributing to positive feelings during drug influence.
01:35:43 🎉 Dopamine leads to euphoria, Serotonin to safety and comfort during MDMA session.
01:36:12 💡 MDMA-assisted psychotherapy accelerates trauma treatment through quick relearning and narrative rewriting.
01:36:41 🔮 MDMA sessions compact trauma reduction process, performed at high intensity due to brain chemical changes.
01:37:11 💊 MDMA therapy is not a magic potion, rather it expedites the conventional trauma therapy process.
01:38:09 🌌 Positive MDMA experiences integrate into rewriting narratives due to high serotonin and oxytocin levels.
01:39:04 ⚠️ Legal clinical trials explore MDMA for trauma treatment, showing promise but not yet a universal solution.
01:39:34 🧐 Diagnosis of trauma involves more than external symptoms; internal interoception balance plays a role.
01:40:31 🧠 Insular cortex calibrates internal sensations with external world; important for assessing emotional responses.
01:41:00 📖 The insular cortex determines if internal sensations match external events, crucial for emotional regulation.
01:42:01 🐭 Study shows repeated short bouts of intense stress can reverse the effects of chronic stress in mice.
01:42:46 🌬️ Breathing protocols can influence stress responses: calming vs. hyperventilation, impacting emotional states.
01:44:12 🌀 Deliberate self-induced stress states can recalibrate fear and trauma responses, different from typical therapy.
01:55:11 🧪 Five-minute daily protocols of inducing heightened autonomic arousal could aid trauma relief and management.
01:58:03 🧬 Deliberate self-directed entry into acute stress states (e.g., cold exposure) may be promising for fear and trauma management.
01:59:02 🌊 Differentiate between healthy fear responses and trauma/PTSD based on duration and impact on daily life.
01:59:31 💤 Quality sleep, nutrition, social connection are foundational for mental and physical health, indirectly supporting trauma relief.
02:00:01 💬 Lifestyle factors, including nutrition and sleep, impact fear circuitry's function; quality sleep resets autonomic balance.
02:05:22 💊 Supplements like Saffron, Inositol, and Kava show potential for anxiety and stress reduction; consider logical use outside trauma sessions.
02:08:15 🛠️ Understand brain circuits underlying fear/trauma for personalized treatments; explore exposure therapy, self-directed practices, and support.
02:09:48 💡 Seek supportive therapies for trauma and fear relief; explore supplements with caution; prioritize high-quality options.
02:13:10 📚 Stay engaged with science through Huberman Lab's social media platforms and tutorials.
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quite extensive
Thanks so much!
This video has changed my life and given me breakthrough with my PTSD. Thank you. I look forward to the episode regarding OCD. I wanted to request that an episode be done on Dissociative Identity Disorder. The brain science behind this disorder would be extremely helpful.
Wonderful comprehensive discussion here. Thank you Andrew. As a Psychotherapist & Relationship Coach, for over 20 years, I now use a combination of Breath work, EMDR, CBT, NLP, inner child work, Gestalt chair work, visualisation (self hypnosis) and relaxation as a toolkit to help to overcome their blocks and create their personal freedom. Each one of us is so unique and complex, finding what fits an individual is so important. With reference to EMDR, I used EMDR on myself last year and found it helped specific memories to be reduced in terms of stress response but use a combination of tools to aid the desired internal response leading to the freedom of feeling relaxed and engaged in previously challenging situations. I am excited by the advancements we are making as a race. Thank you so much Andrew, for the work you do, sharing your knowledge, teaching us all. Warmest wishes, Marie-Louise
Dr. Andrew...I listened to this video this past week, and enjoyed it....but today in a session with my counselor, we did further EMDR, and we were indeed focusing on a specific negative event from my childhood. The thing my counselor had was knowledge about me and about positive things from my relationships that have supported who I am and who I want to be. Today, we decided to head back into the deepest, most painful stinging parts of a negative event that has plagued me. At one point, he asked me how I felt, and I said, "I felt like he flattened me...I was completely flattened by what that man did..." I was feeling all the deep stinging fear at that moment, it was intense. It was right at that point that my counselor said, "I want you to pause...and I want you to remember when you were affirmed just a few weeks ago by your coach. Remember what he said to you?"
At that point, I called to mind the really cool thing that my boxing coach said to me just a couple weeks ago. He affirmed me, saying that I could become good enough to step into the ring and fight and win." My counselor reminded me about that, and I recalled the feeling I had from that affirmation. I felt strong and solid. My counselor then asked me to carry that solid feeling into the negative memory of what happened to me as a child. As I did....something incredible happened...it was like a bomb detonated...and from ground zero of that negative event, I began to see that I was not some helpless waif of a child....but that I was strong and able....more incredibly, I began to actually feel it. It was like a strength detonated and began to move outward in concentric circles.
For the first time in my life...just today...I started seeing that I was not some helpless boy...but that I was a strong, sturdy little guy who had a bad thing happen from a predator. The broken, weak, helpless image has pervaded the fabric of my life...but today I realized that I am not that helpless weak boy. I am strong and sturdy...and I actually feel it and believe it.
This is just a snapshot of what happened this morning...but I realized today that this huge negative was being replaced with something true and good. And in the moment that my counselor asked me to bring this strength into the memory of that terrible thing, I remembered what I heard here last week....and it was pretty incredible. I thought to myself, "ahhh...THIS is what Andrew was talking about...." And to be completely honest, I FEEL like something electrical and powerful has happened in my brain...my mind.
I decided to write this here....since you asked for comments on EMDR. It's been incredible so far. My counselor doesn't use the eye movement with me...but uses these vibrating/pulsing pieces that fit into the palm of each hand. They simply alternate vibrations back and forth....a distraction while I am recounting the memory. It actually distracts my brain from the usual road blocks to the negative emotions....and allows me to go past the defenses down into the details of the memory.
I hope this help you and others in some way. I'm glad I found this channel.
You have no idea how helpful you are. I have been terrified to have my daughter on any medications and listening to your videos is immensely helpful for me to understand how the brain works and the types of treatments both therapeutic and meditation. You have helped provide me with the courage through this difficult time my family faced and i am eternally grateful for you. Thank you doctor!
36 minutes in this episode, already shedding a lot of lights to my mind and mindset, how generous you are Andrew Huberman! I wish I could translate your material for my people in Iran so that they can benefit from your tremendous amount of knowledge and help
Thank you so much for your no comprising genuine human educational ability to communicate to the general public and the world. You are a guiding light that I hope your peers will follow.
i'm fortunate to have experienced great emdr sessions with my therapist. on a 1-10 scale we didnt start near the 8s 9s or 10s. starting with 4, 5, 6 we worked through a lot of past childhood traumas that were associated with fear and shame. The first half of the process was reliving the traumatic experience and letting all of the associated emotions surface. I placed my awareness in each area of the body i felt these emotions. Then there was a second half of the emdr session. I let myself take a moment when needed before moving onto the second part. The second part is the new narrative. Things i can tell myself that disconfirm my past experience. When dealing with shame i reminded myself of all the wonderful things i know to be true about myself. Each session eventually brought high intensity memories that were close to a 10 down to 2-4. I came here to comment and share this with everyone so that there is awareness that there are emdr practitioners that promote the new narratives.
This is an incredibly important topic for many people as trauma is often, unfortunately, a fact of life. I frequently tell clients to listen your podcast for homework, to expend their understanding of their brain and the mechanisms that govern their body and brain, but today after listening to this podcast, I felt there was something missing from the discussion of trauma recovery. You covered the top down approach to trauma recovery, but in my experience a bottom up approach is the way to go. Many people that develop post traumatic responses have a very disregulated nervous system and part of what happened in the traumatic event was that the survival response was prevented from successfully completed. As a result, individuals often experience freeze, dissociation and shut down paired with terror (fear). You are correct that dimishing fear is part of the resolution, and an important component you left out is the reprocessing of the event, includes completing the survival response. A key feature of PTSD many people experience as dehibilitating is being triggered and dissociating. As such when triggered, people cycle in and out of dissociative states and in what some call a trauma vortex. To help people resolve their systems, learning skills for staying present is required to process the trauma. This involves bottom up skills. As a neuroscientist, I thought you'd understand that processing is state dependent and that we want to work with the part of the brain that is concerned with safety and regulation first. I have seen other listeners request an interview with specialists in this area like Bessel Van Der Kolk or Dianne Pool Heller. I think another discussion with someone working in the field with nervous system regulation and trauma resolution would be incredibly helpful and inspiring.
I’m wondering if the step he discussed of processing the trauma narrative repeatedly until symptoms diminish was his way of addressing the importance of processing being state dependent. The point of repeatedly discussing the trauma narrative is to address the state of feelings of safety.
I agree. It is state dependent . Especially for patients who have FND ( functional neurological disorder /PNES it is important to bring the mind back from past trauma ( dissociation) to the present using mindfulness and ground skills.
Both a top down and bottom up approach is useful and proven science for patients with FND in either a disassociate episode or functional seizure episode.
100%. He doesn’t understand trauma and I think he shouldn’t discuss it unless he has an actual trauma expert on the show. He’s way to top down and doesn’t understand the reverse, bottom up, is the most effective approach to resolving trauma. Bessel Van Der Kolk, Peter Levine, Stephen Porges, Pete Walker, Gabor Maté, Kathy Kane and so many others with 30+ years experience each have slightly different approaches but overwhelmingly bottom up.
Im a scientist based in Europe however, since i stumble across Huberman lab, its been an appetite for knowledge and its indeed power!
Linking positive associations back to the original trauma has been the missing piece in my healing process of PTS. This podcast is an unbelievable gift on so many levels. Thank you! 3:02 pm EST
I don't see how could I possibly have a positive association from it ...
@@maritza1395 realizing the growth process through all of it. accept life, accept infinity, accept death. what at some point you were happy about, try focusing on this, give yourself a little tap in the back everytime you catch yourself talking bad with yourself. you are the master of your only destiny. the good starts NOW. chase positivity
When I was a child I believe you could be one of the 2 stereotypes available: intelligent, emphatic and weak or dumb, aggressive and strong. I wish I knew you then to show me another way is possible, thank you for you teachings. I really appreciate the way you have to explain everything cause I can understand it without any science background and being English as my second language. Muchas gracias from Europe.
Thank you Professor Huberman for your depth of knowledge on a subject that afflicts so many in our modern world. A spiritual perspective on fear can be found in the writings of Marshall Vian Summers. In his book Steps to Knowledge ---A Guide to Inner Knowing, Marshall states "Your life is not born of fear. Your Source is not born of fear. To be able to recognize your fear means that you must realize that you are part of something greater... If you have sufficient confidence in Knowledge [the deeper spiritual intelligence that lives within each person beyond the realm of the intellect] based upon actual experience, this will give you a certainty and a faith in life that will counteract all fear that is unnecessary.... Much of the fear that you experience moment to moment is simply a matter of your own creation, your own negative imagination... This you must learn to counteract, for it is an inappropriate use of your mind. Here you create an experience for yourself, experience it and then call it reality. Meanwhile, you have not been present with life at all. You have merely been in fantasy within yourself. Negative imagination drains you emotionally, physically and mentally. It can be escalated to such heights that it can dominate your thinking altogether. For how else can you be separate in the universe except in your own thoughts? You cannot actually be separate from God. You cannot actually be separate from Knowledge." (Steps to Knowledge, Marshall Vian Summers)
Thank you, Janice.
Thank you for sharing
Speaking from my own personal experience and talking to as many people as I can, with depression, anxiety, border line personality disorder, psychosis, schizophrenia, same pattern pops up, all these are due to trauma, now the British nhs approach to mental health is absolutely shocking, if you choose to work while battling any of these conditions I’m afraid the path is long, hard, and the system that is supposed to help will cause you more stress, the whole system is controlled by protocol which makes your personal battle even harder, my personal stance is I’ve ditched all the nhs so called help, I’m fighting this alone, it’s even pushed me to do self help UA-cam videos for men struggling with mental health, putting the content together as we speak, I wish any one struggling with their mental health the very best, you will beat this.
Thank you so much Andrew, i could never express how thankful i am. I won't go into what im processing right now, but by god am i processing it. I've cried so hard and genuinely just now, still am, i haven't cried like this since forever. instead i would ruminate on "solutions" to conflicts, or avoid things altogether through escapism and eventually through getting high. i was dead set on working on my future, which was the one big thing preventing me from having a future. now i'm set free and have all the space and time in the world to heal.
Thank you. Fear does terrible things to the mind, body and soul. Taking control of the mind controls the body. Its so hard! I'm needing all the help i can get. I love all your pod casts as I've learn so much from them. They have empowered me to a better life. Thank you
Dr Huberman,
I love your podcasts and very grateful for your work. I started EMDR last year. My work with my practitioner involves sound instead of eye movement (my preference). My sessions have both components you mentioned - extinguishing and relearning. I was skeptical at first but every session has helped me deal with my anxiety and trauma.
Long awaited episode on PTSD. Thank you so much for sharing!
I love how substances like mdma and psychedelics are being investigated for the use in psychotherapy, BUT I would strongly recommend to also shed some light on the potential risks of using these substances (especially in a non controlled environment). Great power comes with great responsibility and these substances are powerful.
@@christenlovelyhair Yup, I was walking through hell for 5 years and met many people on my way with very similar stories.
I am an EMDR certified therapist and want to make sure you understand that this therapy is 8 pronged. It includes a targeting phase where clients safely share the traumatic experiences a desensitization phase where fear is extinguished as well as a installation phase where new positive cognitions are installed to replace the past negative beliefs about oneself. This is done by an experienced clinician in a safe setting. I think your podcast is powerful and I wanted to be sure you were properly informed about the whole of EMDR so as not to spread false information. I also offer CBT and many other types of therapy, however EMDR has been the most effective for treating all aspects of trauma in my clients of all populations.
EMDR changed my life for one incident. 10 years after a miscarriage I still couldn't discuss without intense physical sadness. The relief was instant. Now practice EMDR within my counselling sessions if it suits the situation. These days we include a positive reframe with reward being 'motivated' calm. The reward usually being clients feeling empowered to transition through traumatic experience without intense sympathetic reaction, then transition into calm, gentle, positivity all by themselves. Most are astounded. Thank you for your videos!
Dr. Huberman - would you consider doing an episode on memories? I would like to know more detail about what they are physically and how they are encoded. Thank you for the awesome work!
Great topic 👍🏾
I would absolutely love this as well.
Good suggestion!
Love that idea!
David Talbot - The Holographic Universe
Thank you for the invitation to speak about EMDR. I have been undergoing it for 6 months and it has changed my life. I have PTSD as well as type 1 bi-polar with mixed mania and psychotic features. So it complicates things. All the things you say about how to go deeply into the details, extinguish and create new narratives and attach reward are present in the therapy, at least with my therapist. This "short circuiting" to reduce amplitude is necessary for me and many others considering recalling certain events has an amplitude so high I instantly vomit and have a massive panic attack and sometimes full blown flashbacks, and then am unable to function at all for days. Forget trying to work through a narrative at that point. Even with the short circuiting, the amplitude is plenty high. I and many other patients that I have met while inpatient wouldn't be able to do it at all unless we can get the amplitude of the fear response down to a level that doesn't scatter our minds to the wind and spark anything from highly manic episodes to a full blown psychotic episode.
Once again, he takes us to where I've never been before. Thank you!!!!!
Thank you Andrew, your videos are allowing me understand how my brain works, and is enabling me to actively work on it, more so than any counseling I’ve had, any medication I’ve taken, your words and knowledge are helping me, I woke up this morning without the adrenaline, my core feels calm, I’ve been in such a fear state for decades from an abusive father, since then I’ve placed fear on EVERYTHING and EVERYBODY, ruined countless relationships and friendships. I feel strongly that you can’t fix yourself without knowing how your brain is working. Similarly you can’t fix a car without knowledge or tools. I’m rambling but you are slowly changing my life and quality of life, simply by speaking and me having the will to want different. Thank you for your time and knowledge.
I'm from Papua New Guinea and I've been experiencing anxiety for 2 months. I fear everything I do during the past two months, but watching your podcast changed my mindset. I've been having fearful thoughts that are not real. I'm so thankful that I've found you podcast, it helped me realized that.
I believe that a better definition for trauma is overwhelm: the imprint left in the autonomic nervous system following an event that is larger than our ability to cope or deal with it. Or, perhaps we did get through it, but it was too big for us to really emotionally hold or process. Not all trauma is fear; some of it involves anger. Yet more of it involves the freeze response: numbing, brain fog, low motivation, etc. At Somatic Experiencing training, I learned that this imprint or residue relates to incomplete defensive responses and incompletely metabolized emotions. This stuff is subcortical; we can’t think our way out of it. As Peter Levine says, thinking our way out of it is the futile seduction of trauma. Thank you for doing these podcasts; they are amazing. I’ve just discovered them this year and I love them. NOTE: nothing I wrote here constitutes therapeutic advice.
The best podcast on youtube! Thank you for actually bringing science into masses!
you can't fathom how grateful i am for this podcast, this podcast is going to have a positive lifelong effect on me
This makes so much sense. I had an uber traumatic childhood... I would find myself talking about my trauma to strangers on a bus or plane... random people that I knew I would never see again (this was before smart phones). I thought it was all about getting different perspectives that helped and it probably did a bit... but I also think the retelling over and over again of the especially heinous parts helped me recover from the trauma effects. There are other areas that I still feel too much shame or can't talk about for other reasons and those still bring about the PTSD reactions. It's so interesting that talk therapy is just as much about boring yourself with the story as it is working through the issue itself. Thank you so much for this.
Thank you for putting the time and effort into your videos! So helpful! I'm a licensed therapist certified in EMDR. It can be a life-changing therapy. EMDR is all about changing your belief systems/narrative around the trauma(s). It involves bilateral stimulation to help individuals process distressing memories or belief systems to reduce the emotional charge of traumatic memories, allowing individuals to integrate them into their life narrative in a healthier way. I've had so many clients successfully change their lives with EMDR.
Can this work for anxiety ? Like irrational fears, for example fear of not sleeping, fear of developing a mental illness because you hear ringing in ears? …You know the “what if” type of fear that keep bombarding you with recurrent thought that scares you and makes you believe that it will manifest if you continue thinking about it.
@@radooche Yes!
I cannot stress how much I appreciate the information you share with us through this platform. A lot of my plans seem to be paralleled with a lot of your content so I am truely grateful. Perhaps one day I will have the pleasure of crossing paths or even working with/ interviewing you. Thank you again!
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Hi Andrew, EMDR clinician here. If we stick to the fidelity of the model by Dr. Shapiro, it is a 3 prong approach. We do past traumas, present triggers (desensitizing to them) as well as a future template where the client imagines "conquering" a specific situation, which would be a type of rewriting the narrative. Also, part of the desensitization involves a negative cognition (usually this is the trauma talking) and then a positive cognition (it's usually something like "I am safe" "I survived" "it wasn't my fault" etc.) which I think also indirectly addresses the narrative piece and the story the client is telling themselves about the trauma. In other words, using the full protocol should have more elements than just desensitization.
EMDR practioner here too. I think that Andrew would benefit from becoming familiar with the protocols the practice of EMDR utilize. I am not sure his summary of EMDR reflects an understanding of how EMDR is done.
Totally agree but as an integrstive psychologist I am finding EMDR is old hat despite the clinical focus NICE in my country). There are many new techniques emerging which remove the trauma/ associated memories but also address the underlying beliefs, archetypes and oter unpinning structures which risk re-triggering. In my experience you need to collapse the whole edifice to really solve the issue. Techniques that clear beliefs can also be used to quickly build new beliefs and positive qualities.
Would EMDR work on intrusive thoughts?
@@fair98fair it can, yes.
@@heatherpost6067 cheers. I know my psychologist can do it so hopefully we can do it soon
This is amazing. Thank you so much for your insight. I have passed this on to a couple of friends of mine that are really struggling with loss. Ironically, I have adapted the practices from 46:00-1:05 throughout my 50 years. However, I had no idea why I handled fear and trauma this way until this podcast. One of the most difficult times I have had in my life was losing a best friend in a plane wreck. The day before he died he was presented with legal documents that contained accusations of possible inappropriate sexual contact with minors. I have no idea if he wrecked his plane on accident or committed suicide. I will never know. Looking back and listening to this podcast I realize why I struggled to heal. He was a best friend since 6th grade and I wanted to talk about him and what a great person he was to me, but because of the possible accusations, I was unable to discuss my loss or "tell my story" publicly. Anyhow, I look forward to your podcasts every week. Thank you for all you hard work.
Sorry for your loss
EMDR actually does install a "relearned new narrative". That's part 2 of the standard session.
Also, the part 1 (extinction) can often evoke a high amplitude experience.
I was diagnosed as suffering from PTSD and Major Recurring Depression during court ordered drug treatment for multiple substance addictions in 1998-99 . It's been a slow but steady advance to wellness trying most all the techniques and drug therapies you have discussed. I attended our community college in 2012 to obtain an associate degree a required course was public speaking and our first speech subject was about ourselves. For me it meant speaking about my life and the events that led to my diagnosis and ending on an optimistic and positive vision for my future. We were coached in breathing and deeply exhaling before presenting our speech as well as scanning the classroom from side to side making contact with the many faces in the class. I rehearsed the speech with different friends before the class to make sure I stayed within our allotted time. I received an A and applause afterwards, but I felt so free inside. I can't recall how long it's been since my last panic attack. I think that speech finally set those demons free.
Andrew, I am astonished at how well you read my mind. I've recently started dealing with eliminating my aversion to opening up to strangers (eg. starting a conversation with someone at the park/coffee shop/whatever) despite knowing that I can handle myself in the actual social interaction itself. I just seem to "lock up" when I even think about approaching someone I don't know. I suspect it is due to the many traumatic social experiences and ostracization from my childhood.
I'm looking forward to listening to this episode and hope I'll walk away with tools to help deal with this over time! Thanks for all that you do!
Dude! I’m in the exact sane scenario haha, I definitely have the trauma from childhood too hope it all works out for you.
EMDR definitely changed my life for the better. In my case, the saying "it has to get worse before it gets better" was true. EMDR was extremely challenging for me since I had to solely face the traumatic event consciously. As stated in the video, EMDR itself doesn't re-write/change the experience without support outside of the session. I had a very supportive and active therapist who would help me during and after these sessions. I would become flooded with emotions and new emotions came out because I repressed the stressful event that happened to me for years. When I first started therapy, I was terrified of emotions and would numb them. As time went by and we put in the work I learned how to navigate them appropriately and in a healthy manner, I'm still a work in progress and that's ok. She knew how I managed my emotions and the existing coping mechanisms and how I functioned as a person overall before I jumped into EMDR. I can definitely see how EMDR can make traumas worse if you are not fully guided or supported properly. If you do seek EMDR, I highly recommend doing it with someone who has specialized in EMDR therapy.
I'm so glad you have a skilled and compassionate therapist.Thank you for sharing your story. Would you mind sharing the details of your therapist please? I'm looking for one. thanks a lot :)
I had excellent results with EMDR and it includied a new narrative and attaching reward. I think it is practioner dependent and patient commitment to the process.
It's the same with EFT. Trauma is best worked through with a good practitioner and someone who can instigate the creation of a new narrative, as this is something that we naturally avoid ourselves. Very easy to get stuck in a trauma loop. Glad to hear you had great results with EMDR - energy psychology techniques really do work!
What do you mean by "attaching reward"?
@@NothingByHalves What's your experience with EFT been?
Great video. I was reprogramming patients in one of the ways described about 15 years ago as part of my hypnotherapy treatments. I never know why people won't acknowledge where the majority of effective therapies actually originate from. Good to hear the Neuroscience behind what Hypnotherapy has been using for decades.
So informative and real. I had nocturnal hypertension and been to emergency two times going over 200/106. Since I wrote out my past traumas and focused on them, i considered the raise in blood pressure to the inner child. I used to go in panic mode warning me each evening and night that things are not right and there is danger in the family and house (this was the past). Now i hug my inner child when it comes to warn me and tell him all is ok things have changed and we are both safe so now lets be happy together. My blood pressure leveled out and my nocturnal hypertension dissapeared. No doctor told me that and just increased my medication everytime. Dont know how to thank you so much for this knowledge leading to healing.
It says in Wilhelm's translation notes on the I Ching, "the best way to combat evil is to make vigorous progress in the good". Was reminded of that listening to this.
Listening Andrew Huberman and practising mindfulness meditation has tremendous positive effect on my mind.
Thank you very much!!
I was amazed when I tried EMDR, after years trying different techniques this is the easiest amd more direct way to get into a pre-calm state and helped me sleep. I have to say... Playing FPS games you kind of train to do the opposite thing (train concentration on one point with a big arousal) and when you introduced me to this, that was a game changer! (Now I play more relaxed games with eye movement involved)
interesting thanks for sharing
Interesting. So you are saying gaming could be a bad thing on your stress system?
But after EMDR you could game in a more relaxed state? What was your traumatic event then?
As a Life Coach, and a CBT practitioner, this podcast I found to be immensely powerful, at many levels kind of a revision to the book -The Body keeps the score, which goes on to explain the same process of our mind ( the deep limbic system embedded). The best part is, even though I never was formally trained in these concepts, I have been using them for my clients and helping them build resilience and rebound from setbacks, listening to info like this just reiterated my confidence and conviction level to another , thank you @AndrewHuberman
There is a reason why this is my favorite podcast. Thank you for your interest in sharing your knowledge based on science.