Granite, my T had me draw out an imagined (or real, mine was imagined) a safe haven for myself, however i thought of it. I got to put in whatever it was that made me feel happy and safe…basically that phrase "go to your happy place" drawn out. She asked me to draw it because I like art (as do you), and I was VERY skeptical of the whole thing. Like "How on earth is this going to help anything?" I ended up getting a piece of poster board and just having fun with it because I didn't think it really mattered.

I drew a remote island that was loosely based on the huge house my dad's side of the family goes to every summer. While I haven't gone every year, i went from year 5 until 18, and then sporadically since then. It is a week of fun and relaxation and we have our own private beach and boat.

I spent a few days drawing it, and it ended up being pretty cool. We never actually used it for various reasons, but my T's reasoning was that your brain can't detect what is real or not. Feelings are feelings. Meaning, if I imagined this whole place that makes me feel happy and warm and fuzzy, if in times of distress, I thought of it, my brain would be comforted it--regardless of the fact that it isn't an actual place.

This is partially what EMDR focuses on. You literally can change details in your story, and it somehow 'tricks' your brain into helping you feel better. That is super simple and only a tiny bit of what EMDR does, but i see the similarities to what your T asked you.

I am glad that she is being forward about trying to actively make this a more safe space for you. Maybe she needed to see you open up just a tiny bit, and she is now willing to really go the extra mile to help you feel safe. I can't know her thoughts on how she works, but I'm glad she is doing this.

Right now just let your mind wander and think "What makes me happy?" Your scrap room seems like a pretty safe haven to me. Also I had to do an exercise where I thought of safe people, real or not. I had one friend and the rest were tv stars or famous somehow (I am SO not going to reveal that, way to embarrassing)! The point wasn't the factual info "Obviously this famous person can't really protect me, but the role that they play in my head makes me feel more protected." Soemthing like that.