Counseling in Chicago with Bill Martin, LCSW

What Are Mirror Neurons?

Bill Martin, LCSW — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 19:17:51 +0000

Understanding the function of mirror neurons helps us understand why others’ intense emotional catharsis during large group awareness programs is such a powerful experience for those witnessing.

In many ways, it is like the witness is also experiencing the same powerful emotional “remembering.”

This also leads us to explore the potential for retraumatization of witnesses during these experiences. One never really knows what might trigger someone’s trauma memories. If the context in which the memory surfaces is not safe, there is a risk of retruamatization.
Here is another link to a great article on mirror neurons.

The Role of Mirror Neurons in Empathy, Mind Reading, and Language Learning

Bill Martin, LCSW — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 19:47:26 +0000

Read an absolutely fascinating (if you’re interested in mirror neurons! article about the importance of mirror neurons.

Read the article here.

The Neural Bases of Empathic Accuracy: An Article by Psychology Professors Kevin Oschner and Niall Bolger, graduate student Jamil Zaki, and Research Assistant Jochen Weber at Columbia University Published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, June 2009

Bill Martin, LCSW — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 03:48:19 +0000

A Columbia University research project using functional MRI scanning has mapped the two brain systems responsible for empathic accuracy, the parietal and premotor cortex.

These two brain systems help humans understand the intentions of simple gestures, interpret the meaning of those gestures and place them into context.

The researchers used a group of volunteers (objects) to talk about emotional events in their lives while being videotaped. Later, these volunteers watched themselves on video and evaluated whether they felt positively or negatively while talking about these live events.

Then, a second group of volunteers (perceivers) watched the same videotapes and were asked to evaluate the positive or negative experience of the initial volunteers as they described their life events while also hooked up to functional MRI scanning devices to measure which brain systems were activated.
When the perceivers were accurate about the emotional experience, the same brain systems, the parietal and premotor cortex were activated.

Interestingly, when the perceivers were wrong, a third brain system was activated that involves the control and management of one’s own feelings.

This suggested to the researchers that a persons attention to their own feelings may cause them to miss the gestures and other behaviors linked to the feelings of others.

Read the summary of the study here.

Empathy: Will a Monkey In A Research Project Pull A Chain To Get Food Or Starve Himself Because Pulling The Chain Also Causes Another Monkey To Experience Electric Shocks?

Bill Martin, LCSW — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 20:30:07 +0000

Monkeys like to eat and drink like the rest of us, but the research results about the power of empathy are fascinating.

The monkeys starve themselves rather than subject other monkeys to experience the pain of electric shock.

Pretty remarkable and says a lot about why children go to great lengths to “please” their parents and families so early in life, especially if the parent is in some type of pain.

In their article, pubished online here, “Empathy: Its ultimate and proximate bases,” Stephanie Preston and Frans De Wall describe the research detailing the biological basis for empathy.

Humans, like other mammals, are hardwired to respond to other conspecific’s (same species) pain.

The authors offer a biological explanation of empathy, called the Perception-Action Model (p4), which states that “the attended perception of the object’s (person/entity) being observed) state automatically primes or generates the autonomic or somatic responses, unless unhibited.”

So, the monkey or human infant (subject) after about one years of age, has a biologically driven response to viewing the pain or emotional experiences of others (object).

Think about what this means to children growing up in very vulnerable families with mentally ill, substance abusing or just plain unhappy parents…

Limbic Resonance: Why Our Eyes Really Are the Windows to Our Souls

Bill Martin, LCSW — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 03:51:14 +0000

Just for a moment, remember the last time you gazed into your lovers eyes and felt the hot passion of love. Maybe your heart seemed to tingle, your face was flush, and you could tell that they really loved you and you loved them back.

This is called the physiology of love, or limbic resonance. And yes, all mammals (humans are mammals:) experience this incredible process.

When we look into each other’s eyes, a complex neurological process begins which enables us to really experience the non-verbal, unconscious sensations and feelings within the other person and project our own feelings back to them.

Call it the love gaze. I hope you have it with more than your loving cat or dog who are thrilled to see you when you get home!
Read more about it here and here.

No, You Should Not Use Hypnosis, Guided Imagery or Other Trance Type Therapy to Recover Abuse Memories

Bill Martin, LCSW — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 19:27:51 +0000

I am writing to suggest a caution about “searching for abuse memories” generally and any “trance” based method, such as guided imagery, hypnosis, past-life regression, or age-regression therapy specifically.

It is widely held science now that any therapist led search for abuse memories is not recommended. Hypnosis, imagery, past-life or age regression type therapy has been the source of many lawsuits, ethical violations, and clinical problems. These methods are highly, highly discouraged.

Here is a link to research on 105 malpractice cases against therapists for using hypnosis

, guided imagery, and age regression. The legal terms used in the lawsuits are “negligent encouragement and implantation of false memories. It is chilling reading.

Using these methods. there are many possible ways a therapist opens themselves to legal action and ethical complaints…especially from those made angry by the recovered memory, such as the person who may be accused of the abuse.

It is best for us to be informed, but compassionate listeners to the stories of abuse we hear. There are many clinical methods available to help people process the impact of the abuse, but we should in no way ever help someone recover memories through trance work or other similar methods.

Here is what Jim Hopper says on his website about the search for abuse memories:

“It is true that, for some people, focusing on the contents of abuse memories, including recovered memories, can be part of a second stage of the healing process. (Again, for some people this may not be necessary and may not be something they are interested in doing.) For those who do choose to explore their memories, several important cautionary points should be kept in mind:

If abuse memories do not emerge spontaneously, this may be due to healthy and protective psychological “defense mechanisms.”

“Digging for memories,” or trying to force abuse memories to emerge, is almost never a helpful approach, and can cause a great deal of harm. This can cause increased distress and confusion, and behaviors that are harmful to oneself and important relationships (including false memories and mistaken accusations).

Attempting to recover abuse memories using hypnosis or other mind-altering techniques is almost never a good idea. The risk of creating very distorted or outright false memories is increased by such methods.

Even focusing on abuse memories one already has, without proper preparation, will almost always increase distress, instability and self-destructiveness.

Though new memories may emerge during the course of therapy, and managing and making sense of such memories can be part of the healing process, recovering memories of abuse should never be the focus, or even a goal, of therapy or counseling.”

There has been so much research in this area, it is very helpful to keep it in mind when we practice.

Colleen Conaway: Committed Suicide While Attending a James Ray Seminar in San Diego

Bill Martin, LCSW — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 19:25:26 +0000

Read about it here.

Mickey Reynolds: Caught Up in the James Ray “Movement” As a “Coach and Team Leader” and How Ray Betrayed His Trust

Bill Martin, LCSW — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 19:23:40 +0000

A video of Reynolds talking about his gullibility and feelings of betrayal by James Arthur Ray. Watch it here.

James Arthur Ray: Read His Smug, Hostile and Ignorant Views Toward Welfare and Health Care Reform and His Message of Extreme Personal Accountability for Everyone Else

Bill Martin, LCSW — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 19:17:38 +0000

Read his article here.

If you carefully evaluate the structure of his words and sentences, you will see that he is appealing to the ultra conservative, wealthy Americans who probably hate people on welfare.

Ray takes some very, very cheap shots at people on welfare, as well as people who are sick, need healthcare, or obese.

To him, these are all lazy people

who have been rewarded by our society for not trying hard enough.

He claims that people on welfare have been there for at least 3 generations. He does not cite any research source and I was unable to find anything in a quick search.

If you are interested in looking at poverty from a research perspective, check out this website on poverty and here.

You will see that most people receiving income support or benefits like food stamps are a part of the “working poor.”

And one of the most significant factors for keeping families in the trap of poverty is location- where they live not their “spiritual” laziness.
Of course, he himself never gets sick, and his insurance company is making money on him.

He calls on all these lazy Americans to be held accountable. He seems to say that people who have lung cancer and have smoked should somehow be treated differently by health insurance and our health care system.

Perhaps most hypocritical is his call for more personal accountability from everyone for the decisions they make in their lives.

I found his article to be self-serving, racist, and uninformed.

I am curious about how he will describe his own personal accountability related to the deaths while he led the sweat lodge in Arizona and just left without speaking to anyone.

I guess in his world, people who are healthy would be rewarded with money and those who became sick might be punished by being forced to participate in one of his “spiritual warrior” weekends.

Not exactly hard science.

James Arthur Ray, Sweat Lodge Deaths and Large Group Awareness Trainings

Bill Martin, LCSW — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 19:09:26 +0000

A well known self help guru is being investigated in the sweat lodge deaths of two participants of his four day large group training in Arizona.

Click here for details.