Deal with the past; live in the present; build a better future
Whether due to past emotional trauma or athletic failure, fear and trauma hold the brain hostage. They force you to relive moments from the past in the present, without your consent. These re-experienced memories keep the trauma alive and available to be retriggered.
Because the memories have not yet been processed, they stimulate the same body responses experienced during the trauma, e.g., increased adrenaline release, increased heart rate, muscle tension, sweating, and/or freeze causing the body and mind to feel shut down. After trauma, a victim can also have their fear response triggered by emotions and sensations similar to those experienced during the original traumatic episode. And after trauma, core beliefs either reinforced by, or borne out of that experience, e.g. ‘I’m not good enough’, ‘I don’t deserve to win’, ‘it’s my fault’, continue to drive behavior that is counterproductive.
Because the brain is built for survival, fear and panic contact the brain at lightning speed, outside of conscious awareness. When the brain doesn’t recognize that the traumatic events are in the past, survival responses associated with the original trauma are activated despite the fact that they are neither necessary nor productive. These disruptive responses can only be alleviated when the disturbing memories, along with their thoughts, sensations and emotions, are processed. Both EMDR and Brainspotting help clients to process fear states and the beliefs that support them. Then clients can move from surviving to thriving. Athletes can rebound from slumps to success.