Video 076 (pt1) Three useful inquiry interweaves

Use this solution

When the client is blocking or looping.  Try non-interweave interventions and if these fail use interweaves such as the inquiry interweaves shown here.

Originator:

Shapiro, F. (2001). Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing: Basic Principles, Protocols, and Procedures (2nd edition). New York: Guilford Press.

Video production

Matthew Davies Media Ltd, Llanidloes, Powys. www.matthewmedia.com

What this covers

This video demonstrates the use of three different types of questions designed to overcome blocking and looping in EMDR processing. They are designed to uncover material already held in the client’s memory likely to ‘jump start’ the process.  The questions deliberately link to the cognitive domains of responsibility, safety, choice and shame – these four domains are relevant to clients’ stuckness.  The fourth domain was added to Shapiro’s original domains by Laurel Parnell

How long

7.21 minutes

Related videos

See Video 070 for a comprehensive overview of both non-interweave and interweave interventions.

Go to ‘Take-away’?

For the Aide mémoire to use in a client session


Take-Away Section

+ Aide Mémoire

You can copy and paste this material into a Word document, edit it, and add further information that you think may be of help to you.

  • Notice when the client becomes stuck or when the processing is looping back through the same material and not becoming more adaptive.
  • Try changing the methods of process interweaves such as changing the type or speed of bilateral stimulation or dual attention stimulation before introducing cognitive information
  • Notice when the processing hasn’t changed with two consecutive sets of bilateral or dual attention stimulation or the SUDS are failing to drop or when the SUDs drop then return to the original high levels
  • Consider which cognitive domain the client is working in
  • The inquiry interweave introduces new perspectives or a new direction by asking a question
  • Think of a question related to that domain that will help the client’s processing to become more adaptive or help the client to overcome the block in their processing
  • At the end of a set of bilateral stimulation, introduce the question and ‘go with that’
  • It is usual for one interweave to ‘kick start’ processing
  • If one interweave doesn’t work, consider the domain and check to see that the negative cognition hasn’t changed
  • If there has been a shift in the processing domain, then try with an inquiry interweave in the newly emerging domain.

More Inquiry interweave suggestions:


Safety domain Is the danger happening right now? Are you in danger right now? Were you able to keep yourself safe as a very young child? I’m curious, was it reasonable for your mum to expect you to keep yourself safe as a baby? Are you safe now?

Choice domain I’m confused, did the 6 year old have choice? Did you, as a young child have more power than your dad? As an adult, can you choose now? If this was your child, would you expect them to make that choice?

Responsibility domain What makes you think it’s your fault? I’m curious about that, how could a 5 year old have done more? I’m confused, how does that make you a bad person? What skills would you have needed to be able to do that? Whose responsibility is that? If this was your friend …………….? How much responsibility is yours and how much is his / hers?

Shame domain How much guilt do you need to hold on to and how much can you let go of? Was it the child’s fault or the adults’? If this was your child, what would you expect?

+ Wrap Up

  • Inquiry interweaves can be useful when the processing has become stuck. Stuckness is identified when the information emerging in processing hasn’t changed for two consecutive sets of bilateral stimulation (Shapiro, 2001)
  • The inquiry interweave can also be used when processing does not generalise to other targets despite processing to calmness in the current target or if there is extreme emotional distress
  • Questions can also be used when there is time pressure and the client has a strong abreaction with no time to process it.
  • Inquiry interweaves are usually introduced during the desensitisation phase of the EMDR protocol when the processing is stuck or is looping back to the same series of thoughts or responses.
  • Inquiry interweaves are not random questions however. They are carefully crafted to fit with the cognitive domain relevant to the client’s processing. They usually fit into one of four different domains: responsibility, safety, choice or shame. In the aide memoire we give a selection of different inquiry interweaves that can be used in the different domains as a springboard to you finding your own, wider and more creative selection.
  • It is helpful to remember that you can think of inquiry interweaves before a session as well as coming up with them during the session. Sometimes a client is prone to blocking or becoming stuck so we can think of possible questions ahead of time or use supervision to discuss interweaves that might help the processing to become more adaptive.