Hi. I will try to babble about this for a minute but I can't promise it will help. When I started therapy 2 years ago I had just ended a significant relationship, had trouble handling my emotions and got depressed. Saw the T, blah, blah, talked about harmful thoughts or ideas...yes..always..doesn't everyone? Apparently not, I learned. After more time it all came down to FAMILY OF ORIGIN issues. UGH!! I barely remembered anything about my FOO. But my T knew all about how to tap into that. So slowly and carefully she worked and the memories came up. Shame was dealt with. I am much less reactive. I am still on meds but I am no rush to stop them. I still have memories pop up and I have to stop and think, "did that really happen"? It did.
Hope that helps a tad. ( It helped me)