ET-Details---More-Scheduling

Bainbridge Institute for Integrative Psychology

Bainbridge Island, Washington

Clearing and Repairing Very Early Trauma & Neglect

FAQ's - "Frequently Asked Questions"

How Can I Know If Intensive Treatment for Early Trauma and Neglect for Me?

1. Sandra is available for an in person or telephone session, at her usual rate, to determine whether this is an appropriate treatment for you. If you wish, Sandra can start her assessment in such a session if time permits. Ten minute phone questions are without charge but you may have more extensive questions than that.

2. Highly dissociative people are only appropriate for this method if they have already accomplished considerable groundwork and the self-system is likely to allow the work. Sandra is experienced with working with dissociative clients and addressing concerns protective parts may have. If you are dissociative and after initial evaluation Sandra agrees to work with you using the early trauma procedure, it will require you to have an ongoing therapeutic relationship to receive you after leaving the intensive work, if you won't be working with Sandra in an ongoing way. You’ll need to sign a consent form for Sandra to collaborate with your therapist before and/or after the work.

How Much Time Does It Take and How Much Does It Cost?

3. Many people need three or four days, some need five, rarely more. If budget permits only one or two days, we may not get as far as you’d like, but you’ll be better off than without any of the early work, because it is like laying a new foundation at the base.

4. It isn’t possible to rush this process, though Sandra is very focused in how she uses the time. We can’t skip resourcing and will revisit that as needed; it is the scaffolding that supports the work and makes it possible. We also can’t skip dealing with any resistance that comes up. Fortunately, there are some efficient ways to address both of those issues for many people. These are issues that determine our pace and the rate of progress. The cost is determined by how many knots there are in the tapestry that is you and your story.

5. Sandra charges for her time. For the intensive, you will owe $150 for each 45 minute “hour” we spend together. We’ll collaborate on when to take breaks and how long to work.

6. You’ll pre-pay for the bulk of the work, on this schedule:

Deposit is due at the time of scheduling to hold the time for you, based on the number of days you are asking Sandra to reserve.

Pre-Payment is due 2 Wks before the intensive, assuming at a minimum you'll incur $900 a day (six 45 minute "hours" per day):

Days Deposit Pre-Payment

$200

$700

$400

$1400

$600

$2100

$800

$2800

$1000

$3500

7. At the end of the intensive session, you will owe for any remainder over and above the $900 per day already pre-paid. It is typical for people to work between six and nine “hours” so you may owe up to $1350 for a really full day. So, although you prepaid for $900 for each of the two days ($1800), if we actually worked eight “hours” on the first day and nine on the second day, you’d owe an additional $850 on the last day. If you have an absolute budget, make sure Sandra knows so we are both saving and using an appropriate amount of time.

How Does Payment Work?

8. Pay As You Go. Many people find the cost challenging, and so need to save for some months or more to be prepared to pay for the work prior to undertaking the work. Sorry, but we don’t carry balances, so it’s important to not schedule before you are ready financially for such a large commitment.

9. Payment Methods: We prefer to receive payment via check or money order. You may also pay by PayPal or credit card. The website and/or the bookkeeper will assist you with payment. If we haven’t gotten payment by the due dates, the time won’t be saved for you.

10. Super Bills: Insurance is unlikely to pay for this treatment. Sandra does not take insurance, but will produce a superbill if you request it and provide the information on the registration form.

What Are the Steps Ahead of the Intensive?

13. Your deposit saves the dates you have arranged with Sandra or with her assistant, Vicki Splinter.

14. You’ll need to register ahead of time, and those forms are available on this website. You’ll also find HIPAA forms for your information, which health care providers are required by law to make available to you.

15. Many people wish to have an initial appointment in person or by phone for purposes of providing Sandra with a history so it isn’t saved until the day of the intensive and gobble up valuable time there. We both need to agree the approach is appropriate for you, your story, and your needs; it isn’t for everyone. Sometimes the time spent on your history can be shortened if you are able to provide a written narrative to include: where you were born and raised, how far you went in school, key issues related to your family relationships, medical and psychological treatment history, work history, and related matters. Sandra will still need to ask some questions, however.

16. If you are nearby, you may wish to have one or two sessions to put in place the preparation steps of the early trauma protocol, because then the time set aside for intensives can be most effectively used for clearing early traumatic experience. Those preparation steps are described elsewhere on the website, but typically include: 1) container imagery, 2) safe state or other resources, 3) resetting the affective circuits.

17. For some people fancier footwork is involved, including getting the self system on board, and some education about emotions and about fight, flight and freeze and how they operate in all mammals for survival and safety. We’ll also make sure you can look at emotions from a distance and not just “slide in.” That’s a big piece.

18. For some people, additional assessment and evaluation may be indicated before launching on intensive early trauma work, to ensure your safety and strength.

19. Before finalizing air travel, if you are coming in from far away, be sure to confirm that you are in fact on our schedule when you think you are. Check with Vicki.

20. As described above, both a deposit to save the dates and prepayment of the minimum likely time are required. Cancellation policies apply as described below.

21. For ideas about lodging go to http://www.bainbridgelodging.com or the Chamber of Commerce at http://www.bainbridgechamber.com. The Chamber also has helpful visitor information for you to explore while you are here. Many people choose to rent a car if they fly in from a distance, but taxis are also available.

22. On the first day of the intensive, we’ll ensure that all the necessary preparatory steps have either already been undertaken, or we’ll begin there in the work together.

23. Most people don’t want to do much the evenings after an intensive session. The work is profound and will take some introspective or just resting time. Self-care is key in this work, so plan on drinking plenty of water, getting plenty of sleep, inviting yourself to dream, eat good food, maybe take some anti-oxidants because you’ll be releasing energetic holdings. Fruits and vegetables will be put to good work in reconfiguring your new you.

24. After the work, your nervous system will be “knitting and purling” for a time, and this is usually gentle and comfortable. Occasionally, if we ran out of time in a gnarly hurtful baby spot, you may feel stuck there. Let Sandra know if you need help in person or by phone moving through such a spot.

25. Keep in mind that any unusual experiences during the work or in the time right after the work may be related to the work. Think of them as “vapors leaking up from King Tut’s tomb.” So if your spouse seems, as one wild example, to be demon spawn, suddenly, consider the possibility that something about the early work has a theme of demon spawn in it somewhere. Similarly, if it seems to you that Sandra is a mean mother, please mention this, because although it may have a basis in present time, and we’ll consider that, often it is part of story, telling itself. We use information in the room and about what is happening between us as clues to the story. We’ll be detectives together, and we’ll hear your story together.

26. The most common unsettling experience after the ET work is to feel oddly inert or flaccid. This seems to be part of a baby state, as if baby is just sitting, waiting, not mobilized for much action.

What is Your Cancellation Policy?

27. Due to the amount of Sandra's time being held for you when we schedule intensives as part of your healing, the cancellation policy, for any reason, is as follows.

Cancellation after paying deposit : No return on deposit but may be applied if rescheduled.

Cancellation after prepayment is paid and more than one week prior to doing intensive sessions: 50% of prepayment will be returned

Cancellation for any reason after prepayment is paid and less than one week prior to intensive sessions: None of prepayment will be returned.

Cancellation after intensive has begun. None of prepayment will be returned

Any Thing Else I Should Know?

28. Yes! Personal statement from Sandra: "I consider this work a sacred trust. It is my privilege to hear the story of baby you that may never have been told or heard before, except in symptoms or reenactments. I’ll help you review, release and repair very early experience in a way that provides a felt sense of well-being. Spend a little time before we meet identifying, if you don’t already know, what your highest resource is, and what your relationship is to the spiritual realm. Then I can support your process in a way that makes sense to you on your own terms. This is the most helpful way I know to repair very early injuries, hurts, betrayals and disappointments."

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