Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR)has been used to treat child sexual abusers together with cognitive-behavioural therapy has been shown to be successful in preventing re-offending. EMDR is often used in the treatment of trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder and is therefore expecially suited to child abusers that were sexually abused themselves as children. Although how it works is a little bit complicated, I will try my best to explain it.
When somebody has a traumatic experience, the memory of it sometimes gets recorded in a separate random network in the brain that the person does not really have conscious access to. This is a bit like a document in the computer that gets saved improperly in a random file that you cannot access afterwards. However, this traumatic experience still affects the person's perceptions as well as their emotional, cognitive and physical reactions to present day situations. For example, an abuser who was sexually molested as a boy of seven might feel sexual aroused by a 7-year-old boy who reminds him of himself in the past. With EMRD, the therapist will ask the abuser to concentrate on a thought, image or feeling that causes the abuser distress and at the same time make him do some eye movements. This will usually trigger another thought, bodily sensation or feeling which will again be accompanied by a series of eye movements. The eye movements produce an altered mind-brain state that permits the abuser to slowly access and process the memory of past trauma. By doing this he will often realize the real feelings he experienced as a victim and allow him to have empathy for his own victims. It also makes him realize the link between his own experience of abuse and his present sexual behaviours towards children. With EMDR, the abuser's sexual attraction to children will decrease considerably. Therefore, this comes to show that with a some openness and patience from the professionals and some resources from governments, effective ways of treating perpetrators of child sexual abuse can be found. Rose Marie.
From Ricci, R. J., Clayton, C.A. & Shapiro, F. (2006. Some effect of EMDR on previously abused child molesters: Theoretical reviews and preliminary findings. r
