SEND Tutoring chats to Naomi Fisher about EMDR Therapy and Trauma

Today on SEND Tutoring’s Podcast we have Dr Naomi Fisher who is a clinical psychologist and author.  She specialises in autism, trauma, and alternative approaches to education.  She applies a psychological lens to the education system and the way that we raise our children. She uses a type of trauma therapy called EMDR and is an accredited EMDR-Europe trainer. Welcome, Naomi.

Her books, Changing Our Minds and A Different Way to Learn are about self-directed education, and A Different Way to Learn is specifically about neurodiversity. You can see her work on her Substack (www.naomicfisher.substack.com) as well as her Facebook page (Dr Naomi Fisher).  She runs regular webinars for parents and professionals on topics such as understanding demand avoidance and helping autistic children with anxiety.  To be the first to hear about them, please sign up for her mailing list here. www.naomifisher.co.uk.

The questions:

1. What is an EMDR trainer and how does this help your work helping autistic children and their families?

2. What kind of professional trains in trauma and why is that important?

3. You have written two books on self-directed education, do you have firsthand experience of self-directed study and who are your books aimed at?

Naomi spoke about what Eye movement desensitisation and reprocessing EMDR is; it’s used as a mental health technique. The method involves moving your eyes in a specific way or tapping whilst you process traumatic memories. She spoke about having three strands to her career; a longstanding interest in autism and an interest in alternative education when she had her own children. As a clinician, she has mostly worked in the trauma world. All of her experiences, interests, and training have come together. She uses the lens of a trauma therapist in everything she talks about.

In question two she talked about having particular training in mental health and how important it is to help people help themselves and how therapy can really work. She talked about a case of an autistic child who had been involved in a car accident and using the EMDR technique whilst talking about the incident helps the child come to terms with the situation.

In question three Naomi spoke about self-directed study and if the learner wants to do it rather than being made to do it far more success can happen. If you know that you don’t have to do it is very different from having to do it. Her books were self-directed, it’s hard to write a book, people know your stories, it’s very personal, they know your voice and she doesn’t know that about you. It’s quite a vulnerable thing to do.

She also spoke about the time when her children were not at school and she really wanted to write about that. The drive that she has she’s seen in her own children. They see themselves as the director of their own learning. During the last bit of our time together she talked about the importance of reconnecting with your own drive in yourself. The early years foundation stage is designed for children to choose their activity which gives them a sense of agency which is so fundamental to their development but it’s lost as soon as you go into school and you’re told by adults how to learn.

If you have any questions on the topics discussed in this podcast, or are looking for help finding a specialist one-to-one tutor for your child, book a free consultation with us today, we’ll be happy to help.