Using Ochberg’s Counting Method as a Critical Element of Post-Traumatic Therapy – Frank Ochberg
The signature symptom of PTSD is the trauma memory that bursts into consciousness, whether it is as intense as a full-blown flashback or as insidious as the odor of a rapist’s aftershave. I prefer to establish a sense of collegiality and comfort before tackling the trauma memory, but sooner or later, survivor and therapist must look at the ghosts of the past together. One of my long term Vietnam vet PTSD patients, Terry, agreed to have several of our sessions filmed as we approached the end of treatment. The film, produced by Victor Yalom, runs over two hours and is available for purchase. I’ll show a short and a long excerpt, illustrating a general approach to treatment and a detailed discussion of “Ochberg’s Counting Method.” The Counting Method helps reduce the intensity and the frequency of unwanted, intrusive traumatic memory.
- Use The Counting Method to work with traumatic memory during therapy
- Use The Color Wheel of Positive Emotion to address anhedonia in victims of trauma
- Recognize and ameliorate impairment of spiritual sensation due to chronic PTSD
