Therapy Chat

505: Betrayal Trauma + Emdr with Marcken Volmy

Nov 17, 2025
Marcken Volmy, a licensed mental health counselor and EMDR-trained therapist, delves into the profound effects of betrayal trauma. He shares how trust violations by loved ones can shatter one's sense of safety. The conversation touches on the BetterHelp FTC case, illustrating how institutional betrayal impacts client and therapist trust. Marcken explains how EMDR can help reshape negative beliefs and restore safety, using his own trauma recovery story as a powerful example. His insights connect personal healing to broader societal issues.
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INSIGHT

Betrayal Breaks Role-Based Trust

  • Betrayal trauma shatters expectations because harm comes from those we trusted or from roles that promised safety.
  • Acknowledging the wound and its impact is necessary before healing can begin.
INSIGHT

Betrayal Reactivates Old Negative Beliefs

  • Betrayal can reactivate early negative beliefs like "I'm unlovable" and validate old wounds.
  • Without treatment, betrayals can cause people to re-adopt harmful self-beliefs they had worked to discard.
ADVICE

Use EMDR To Rewire Self-Blame

  • Use EMDR to pair a new positive belief with the traumatic memory to shift implicit self-blame.
  • Let the nervous system process the memory so the client can internalize truths like "It wasn't my fault."
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