Healing Dream - Natural EMDR
Last night I had a breakthrough dream. After 46 years I had my first good dream with my parents in it. This is what I have always felt is the power of Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR) and Brainspotting; truly it is using God's method of dreaming to help process and reprogram the thoughts and feelings in the brain.
Tonight God allowed me to process in a dream spending quality time with my father; something I have never done in real life. I lived my entire childhood in fear. Since he was so violent and unpredictable I could never be unguarded and enjoy being with him. I never knew what I might say or do to trigger his vicious temper and warped, raging behavior.
The dream I had tonight was totally different. We were in a city, not a real city that I could identify, but a quaint city with public transportation, friendly people, nice shops and restaurants. I spend the 'day' with my father. We would get on the bus and drive a few blocks. In a few stops, we'd step out of the bus to enjoy the people, unique stores and have something little to eat.
The details of the city were not important. What was important is that I was connecting in an appropriate way with my father as a daughter should. I felt safe in his presence. I could speak knowing I was not going to be abused for saying something that didn't sound right to him. All this is nice but not the total purpose of the dream.
The underlying reason I was allowed this dream was 1) it confirms a drastic internal change in my soul (confirming to my heart that real healing is in the completion stage and 2) to reconnect and process the parts of my brain needed for attachment. The feelings of safety, care, appreciation and relationship permeated the essence of the dream. My childhood totally lacked attachment, a sense of belonging, relational love to another. Attunement is a gaping missing part of my childhood.
A child needs times (frequent, continual times) of lovingly relating to her parent to develop the neurotransmitters in the brain. The brain is continually developing a network of connectors. Think a vine growing up the side of a building often it crosses paths with different branches interconnecting forming a webbed-network.
The brain is similar. In order for the chemicals to release and get where they need to go the brain nerve networks needs to be developed. This helps to create patterns of feelings, responses to events, and builds trusting bond with important people in our life. The flow of these chemicals are essential to mental health.
In a child that never has opportunity to develop attachment during pruning ages (there are several periods of pruning during our lifetime, mostly through childhood) the unused brain branched are cut back to give other parts of the brain opportunity to grow and so the brain functions more efficient in the areas that are needed (or used).
Detrimentally, attachment connections are so needed in life, but in an abusive or neglected environment the brain does not develop normally. This may be a way the brain protects the child who is not in a loving environment. Without the attachment network developed, possibly deeper damage to the soul is prevented while the child is still in the abusive place.
While this is a quite simplified neurological explanation (very layperson in terms), I feels it is important to share for this one point: my dream last night awakened parts of my brain that had not been developed and I was able to begin sensing attachment bonds connecting. These bonds enable us to relate in a more stable, trusting way to our own children, spouse, and dear friends.
I am sure I do not understand all the depth of what God allowed to take place last night and I am certain some spiritual victories have been won! Ground stolen has begun to be retaken.
We have to remember that everything that takes place in our life is spiritual, physical, emotional and mental in varying levels. Our beings are internally interconnected in these ways. What occurs on one level effects all the others. It would be easy to see how dreams cross all these areas, and thankfully in the victory side of healing God can use our dreams to restore the years the 'locus have stolen'! I continue to be grateful and amazed at the steps of healing.
Tonight God allowed me to process in a dream spending quality time with my father; something I have never done in real life. I lived my entire childhood in fear. Since he was so violent and unpredictable I could never be unguarded and enjoy being with him. I never knew what I might say or do to trigger his vicious temper and warped, raging behavior.
The dream I had tonight was totally different. We were in a city, not a real city that I could identify, but a quaint city with public transportation, friendly people, nice shops and restaurants. I spend the 'day' with my father. We would get on the bus and drive a few blocks. In a few stops, we'd step out of the bus to enjoy the people, unique stores and have something little to eat.
The details of the city were not important. What was important is that I was connecting in an appropriate way with my father as a daughter should. I felt safe in his presence. I could speak knowing I was not going to be abused for saying something that didn't sound right to him. All this is nice but not the total purpose of the dream.
The underlying reason I was allowed this dream was 1) it confirms a drastic internal change in my soul (confirming to my heart that real healing is in the completion stage and 2) to reconnect and process the parts of my brain needed for attachment. The feelings of safety, care, appreciation and relationship permeated the essence of the dream. My childhood totally lacked attachment, a sense of belonging, relational love to another. Attunement is a gaping missing part of my childhood.
A child needs times (frequent, continual times) of lovingly relating to her parent to develop the neurotransmitters in the brain. The brain is continually developing a network of connectors. Think a vine growing up the side of a building often it crosses paths with different branches interconnecting forming a webbed-network.
The brain is similar. In order for the chemicals to release and get where they need to go the brain nerve networks needs to be developed. This helps to create patterns of feelings, responses to events, and builds trusting bond with important people in our life. The flow of these chemicals are essential to mental health.In a child that never has opportunity to develop attachment during pruning ages (there are several periods of pruning during our lifetime, mostly through childhood) the unused brain branched are cut back to give other parts of the brain opportunity to grow and so the brain functions more efficient in the areas that are needed (or used).
Detrimentally, attachment connections are so needed in life, but in an abusive or neglected environment the brain does not develop normally. This may be a way the brain protects the child who is not in a loving environment. Without the attachment network developed, possibly deeper damage to the soul is prevented while the child is still in the abusive place.
While this is a quite simplified neurological explanation (very layperson in terms), I feels it is important to share for this one point: my dream last night awakened parts of my brain that had not been developed and I was able to begin sensing attachment bonds connecting. These bonds enable us to relate in a more stable, trusting way to our own children, spouse, and dear friends.
I am sure I do not understand all the depth of what God allowed to take place last night and I am certain some spiritual victories have been won! Ground stolen has begun to be retaken.
We have to remember that everything that takes place in our life is spiritual, physical, emotional and mental in varying levels. Our beings are internally interconnected in these ways. What occurs on one level effects all the others. It would be easy to see how dreams cross all these areas, and thankfully in the victory side of healing God can use our dreams to restore the years the 'locus have stolen'! I continue to be grateful and amazed at the steps of healing.
Comments
Hugs,
Cheri
Beckie