Cognitive Behavioural Therapy.
EMDR Trauma Therapy.
Clinical Hypnotherapy. 
Buddhist Psychology.

First Layer.
Preparation  -  the getting ready.
In this first layer, we are learning to look after ourselves, to self-soothe. This is to prepare us for the challenging, sometimes arduous and upsetting treatment of emotional upset, whether that is to do with grief and bereavement, addiction or trauma.

It is often within this first phase that people are in a rush to get to the ‘challenging part’ of therapy and to get on with the healing. However if we rush the first phase then we can get overwhelmed very quickly, making the process of therapy unpleasant, which means that a person might not want to stay in therapy.

This phase enables a person to build and strengthen their internal resources to be able to cope with life, plus develop external resources such as healing relationships with other people, including the therapist.

This is also the point during which a person develops greater self-awareness and emotional management skills. Creating a safe place to exist both externally and internally in your Mind.

The timescales of this layer can vary between a couple of sessions/weeks to maybe even a couple of months dependent on the complexity of the situation.

 

Second Layer.
Un-integration  -  the controlled coming apart.
In this second layer we begin to gently dismantle all the coping strategies and protective behaviours that a person has developed, which have been allowing them to ‘cope’ but are often dysfunctional in nature and can be harmful. These behaviours served a role in enabling a person to exist and manage in their external environment, either through ‘masking’ or relying on distraction techniques and types of addiction.

Un-integration seems like an odd word, however, unlike disintegration which has a negative and destructive connotation, un-integration is gentle, and a way of taking apart, piece by piece, the jigsaw and this layer is totally dependent on the person in regards to how long we stay in this layer.

In the un-integration layer we slowly take apart the walls a person has created which have enabled them to cope. We carefully observe and label each block or brick and so the understanding of the ‘how’ and the ‘why’ begins.

This layer can be uncomfortable. For many people, they have filled their lives with distraction, whether that is work or a super busy social life to prevent them having to look more closely or deeply but if we have prepared ourselves thoroughly in the first layer then the upset is minimal and begins the process of clarity.

 

Third layer.
Identification  -  bringing meaning to your story.
When we experience trauma and emotional upset, the subsequent turmoil creates a fragmented memory. This means that the story of what actually happened can get distorted and often entwined with other life stories, bringing levels of upset and instability to a person’s entire life.

This layer enables a person to establish what happened, but just as importantly, to create a vision and goals of what a person wants their life to be like in the future. We use this stage of therapy to experiment with different language and ways of looking at and describing our story so hat we begin to feel comfortable in that space. This is a time for sorting so as we dismantle the blocks of the internal barriers and coping mechanisms, we sort, name and then enable a sense of where that sits and in the future where it needs to be. As part of this some of the blocks may no longer even be required as part of the new future You.

This layer is so much more about feelings than thoughts. Encouraging ourselves to look deeply, to become accepting of our feelings, emotions and sensations. Enabling a person to get a better awareness of all the triggers of their trauma or grief, learning to better manage those triggers.

 

Fourth Layer.
Integration  -  weaving the pieces back together.
In this stage of therapy, all aspects of the trauma are coming back together cohesively.

It is within this layer that all elements of the trauma, emotional upset or grief are understood.
“What did actually happen”, “What I did to survive – the coping strategies” and “What didn’t happen”

When we begin to examine ‘what didn’t happen’ we see a lack of something that because of the negative experience was prevented from taking place. This could be some form of emotional development, or relationship growth.

It is in this layer that the story, the feelings and the experience all merge to create clarity, understanding and a new beginning which enables the past to truly become the past and through new beginnings, enables the vision of the different, positive and contented future life.

 

Fifth Layer.
Consolidation  -  maintenance and stabilisation.
In this final layer the person allows all of their collective work across the previous layers to enable them to truly heal.

It is often this final and key layer that gets overlooked and as such causes therapy to be unsuccessful. Every person’s story is different. The journey through therapy will be unique in regards to what therapeutic techniques are used and when, the tools taught and practiced, the reframing necessary to create peace and calm and resolution. As such, diligent practice not only throughout all the layers, but also in this final layer are key. We need to think of this final layer as a life-long layer where the person learns to manage themselves successfully.