If you’re like us, you relish those moments when you can relax and read a good book. I had chance to indulge in reading a few during the recent festive break that have left me feeling inspired.
Among them, two that stood out were by well-known celebrities who have each encountered traumatic personal relationships and have survived to tell their tales. Melanie Brown’s, ‘Brutally Honest’ and Tina Turner’s ‘My Love Story’ are on a similar theme, with both women having had troubled marriages. Their autobiographies describe in dramatic detail how they allegedly suffered at the hands of their ex-husbands and the effect that this has had on them.
The Queen of Rock “n” Roll, Tina is celebrating her 60th year in the music industry and her story reveals her incredible life in the spotlight, how she rose to fame with her ex-husband Ike Turner, enjoyed great success in the 1980s and what happened afterwards. Written from the heart, Tina reveals her highs and her lows, how love and a kidney transplant saved her life, how she dealt with her son’s tragic suicide, how Ike Turner forced her to go to a brothel on her wedding night and how she contemplated killing herself when she discovered Ike’s mistresses. The Sunday Express described Tina’s book as “an honest, thoughtful and touching reflection on a full and fulfilling life.”
‘Massive issues’
In Melanie Brown’s tell-all memoirs she exposes with frankness, mingled with Yorkshire humour, her struggles as she rose to fame as Scary Spice, one of the iconic Spice Girls, and went on to become a judge on X Factor and America’s Got Talent. Mel claims she was physically and emotionally abused for the 10 years of her marriage to film producer Stephan Belafonte, from whom she is now divorced. In her book she reveals the acute pain hidden behind her success and glamourous lifestyle. She says she was shocked that a strong woman like herself, whilst at a venerable faze in her life, could have been manipulated by this man.
Mel revealed during an interview on ‘The Ellen Show’ that ‘massive issues’, which she had previously suppressed about what she gone through, had surfaced while she was working on her book. The singer has since been diagnosed with PTSD due to the trauma of what she’d faced.
Relationships, when in decline, or just bad choices can affect us physically, emotionally and psychologically. As Tina and Mel put on brave faces and performed perfectly in their superstar roles, their fans had no idea what they were going through at the time. In the same way, employers and colleagues have no idea what employees are going through in their private lives that can be affecting their performances at work.
EMDR is working for Mel
Mel attributes EMDR as helping her break free of her traumatic past, aiding her recovery from PTSD with Stephan and helping her to have the courage to speak out about the abuse she suffered. She said on “The Ellen Show”, "After trying many different therapies, I started a course of therapy called EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing), which in a nutshell works on the memory to deal with some of the very painful and traumatic situations that I have been through.”
At Beyond EAP we use EMDR to help your employees recover from traumatic experiences that are affecting their work life. EMDR offers a different approach to talking therapies, is less invasive and offers faster results, so it may be more appropriate for your employee.
Contact Beyond EAP to find out how EMDR can help your employees process their past.
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