Established in 2018, the EMDR Early Intervention (EEI) Fund is a dedicated research fund for those donors who want to direct their resources to support research exploring the long-term effectiveness of EEI and to evaluate whether it can prevent the eventual development of PTSD.
The incidence of crises, whether personal violence, political trauma, the impact of war, or natural disasters, are rampant and increasing in our world today. Experiencing or witnessing a traumatic event directly leads to an increase in human suffering, but also impacts communities and entire regions by reduced productivity, decrease in educational opportunities, and a potential increase in violence and renewed trauma.
Since EMDR therapy has been proven as an effective treatment for trauma, a number of specialized applications have been developed in the area of early intervention. There is a growing body of research suggesting that early intervention with EMDR-based procedures can help to provide stabilization, can mediate the impact of trauma, or even provide full trauma resolution.
These interventions can be offered within hours after exposure to a crisis, and typically within three months following an event. However, some researchers suggest that the early intervention procedures need not be limited by an arbitrary time-frame. There are protocols designed to treat groups as well as individuals. This greatly increases accessibility to treatment in communities, or in groups that have suffered a common traumatic event. Examples of positive results to date have included the use of EEI in groups of children following an earthquake, war refugees living in refugee camps, individuals and groups of women following sexual assault, victims of a geo-political crises, groups of women post-diagnoses of breast cancer, and children living in situation of ongoing violence.
For a current list of EEI research, please see the EMDR Early Intervention and Crises Response Toolkit
Click Here.
