What is the Rewind Technique and how does it work?
Where it started
The Rewind Technique is a trauma processing technique that was originally created by Dr David Muss founder of IARTT. Peer reviewed research has recorded a similar effect size as other treatments such as CBT and EMDR, but in as little as 3 sessions. The technique has shown long term results in reducing distressing symptoms of trauma for many, but like any treatment it’s not 100% effective and it may not be effective for everyone.
Rewind Technique is a non-disclosure procedure
Unlike other trauma treatments, you won’t be asked to talk about the events of what happened. Sometimes this can cause re-traumatisation which can make things worse, other times it can bring up feelings of shame, embarrassment and a fear of judgement.
During the Rewind Technique, what happened can stay with you. After the treatment some people are happy to let what happened live in the past, while other people find themselves wanting to talk about it and try to make sense of it. Counselling can be a safe and judgement free space to do this and subject to availability, I may be able to support you with this.
Is it Trauma?
Often people define trauma as an event that happened to them, it can come with a lot of external and internal judgement about whether or not something was bad enough to be considered “Trauma.” Often people who have experienced trauma feel a lot of shame about:
- Not feeling they’re coping well enough
- Feeling like other people wouldn’t be as affected by it
- Feeling responsible for what happened
The truth is that trauma isn’t what happens to us, it’s how we process distressing experiences. Processed traumatic events don’t invade our every day lives like unprocessed trauma does.
A traumatic event is any event that overwhelms your nervous system and feels life threatening. Unprocessed trauma doesn’t complete the full process of coming back to feeling safe and knowing the event is over, so it stays surface level and regularly feels like the event is or is about to happen again.
How does unprocessed trauma show up?
If you’ve experienced one or more traumatic events, you might experience some of the following symptoms:
- Regular or recurring nightmares
- Difficulty getting to sleep because of anxious thoughts
- Jumpy or feeling like you’re hyper alert to danger
- Unwanted distressing memories of what happened
- Avoiding things, places, people or activities that remind you of what happened
- Depression and/or anxiety
- Feeling overwhelmed by the feelings or memories of what happened
- Avoid talking about what happened because it feels overwhelming
What Does a Traumatic Memory Feel Like?
When the memory is triggered, it can feel like it’s come out of nowhere and it can be overwhelming. You might feel:
- Like it’s happening all over again
- Panicked
- Overwhelmed
- Angry
- Scared
- Like you want to run away
- Frozen
- Like you’re not real
- Like the world isn’t real
Who can benefit from the Rewind Technique?
- Survivors – people who directly experienced a traumatic event
- Witnesses – people who saw a traumatic event in action but were not directly subjected to it
- Secondary Witnesses – People who arrived after the event and imagined how it unfolded (emergency workers, relatives, friends)
- Indirect Witnesses – People who heard about the events and vividly imagined what happened
- Therapists – Professionals who are experiencing vicarious trauma
- People who caused harm – People who caused harm (e.g. a road accident)
How does The Rewind Technique work?
The Rewind Technique asks you to visualise a movie which we’ll create together. The movie will have a safe and calm beginning, a difficult middle and a safe end.
I’ll ask you to imagine yourself watching the movie on screen, this allows you to view what happened without feeling overwhelmed by your emotions. At the end of the movie, we’ll rewind really fast back to the beginning.
While it sounds simple, in practice it almost always takes a few tries before we get it completely right. Once we’ve managed to get every piece in place, the process will be complete. Many people notice some difference within the next few hours and by two weeks you may feel very different.
What are the sessions like?
We will meet for a minimum of 3 sessions:
Session 1: We’ll run through a questionnaire to get a clear idea of how the memories are affecting you. I’ll ask a few questions about things like depression, anger, concentration etc
I’ll also explain in more detail what to expect from the technique and we’ll write our story so we can use all our time when we do the technique.
Session 2: We’ll do the technique, it often takes a few tries to get it right as there is quite a lot to remember to include. It’s really important that once we begin, we complete the technique, so I’ll stay as long as you need for us to get it just right.
We’ll have a break of at least two weeks to give things time to settle. Don’t try to do the technique on yourself this can undo what we’ve achieved and if it’s done badly, it can be much harder to get right in the future. Just go about your normal daily life.
Session 3: We’ll redo the questionnaire and check your new score against the first one to see if it’s worked. If needed, we can repeat the technique again and book another follow up session to review.
Next steps
If this has resonated with you and you’re interested in knowing more, you can send me a message via my contact form. We can book a short free call to make sure The Rewind technique is the right support for you.