The Kiloby Center has been offering EMDR from the beginning through its Licensed Psychologist Kay Vogt. The Center is happy to announce a new addition to its staff – Kelly Lewallen, a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist who provides EMDR to clients at the Center along with Kay. Kelly also provides family counseling for the families of clients who come to the Center for addiction recovery and other issues.
Kelly is a successful, versatile and knowledgeable Marriage and Family Therapist. Scott Kiloby first became aware of Kelly’s work during a seminar Kelly gave at Hearthstone House in Palm Desert, California. Scott was impressed with her knowledge about trauma and how it relates to addiction and her skill as an EMDR facilitator. When the two met, Scott demonstrated his mindfulness approach, the Living Inquiries, for Kelly. Kelly demonstrated EMDR for Scott. Both realized that the Inquiries and EMDR complement each other very well. Within a matter of months, Scott asked Kelly to join the Center’s staff. Kelly is now working for the Center in addition to her private practice in Palm Desert.
EMDR stands for “Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing.” Kelly is a Level 2 EMDR facilitator. Level 1 training teaches the basic techniques of EMDR. A Level 1 facilitator is proficient enough to practice with clients with less complex symptoms (not dissociative, as an example). Level 2 practitioners have a greater depth of knowledge about how to use EMDR in a wider variety of cases. Level 2 practitioners are trained to work with complex trauma, a condition often seen at the Center and related to many addictive behaviors.
According to Kelly, bilateral stimulation is the key in EMDR. This includes the skillful use of eye movements, tapping and alternating sounds. The bilateral stimulation causes the prefrontal cortex of the brain to begin to “communicate” with the midbrain. According to trauma expert and researcher Bessel Vonderkalk, FMRI scans demonstrate this phenomenon. The Living Inquiries similarly create changes in communication between parts of the brain. Both the Living Inquiries and EMDR lessen relapse for those clients suffering with addiction. Like the Living Inquiries, EMDR is also effective with anxiety disorders, including phobias and OCD as well as depression and eating disorders. Scott has seen that a combination of these approaches at the Center is often quite effective.
For information about the Center and its various approaches, email info@kilobycenter.com.
