What is the Flash Technique
Often, when something happens that hurts our feelings, we can feel upset for a while. But the feelings go away on their own. We then feel good again.
Sometimes, when we remember what happened we get upset and feel hurt again. It stops us from feeling good. We can get stuck with the upset feelings.
The Flash Technique is a treatment. It helps us with our mental health.
It helps to reduce how upset we are when the memory comes back. It may even stop the upset completely.
A good thing about the Flash technique is that it works even though you don’t think or talk about the memory.
This can make it easier for people to do.
When is the Flash Technique used?
The Flash Technique can be used with other treatments, or it can be used on its own.
Your health care worker will talk to you about the best time to use the Flash Technique. You will both agree a good time to start.
When you have decided you will use the Flash Technique, we will make an appointment with you.
We will send you a letter or a text telling you where to come and what time.
What happens during the treatment?
You will come to the same building you usually do for your appointments. We will use a quiet and private room in the building.
You will already know the person who will use the Flash Technique with you.
At the appointment, we will ask you work on the memory that is causing the upset.
Then we will talk about a good memory or chat about something different, like where do you like to go on holiday?
As we chat, we’ll ask you to blink a few times.
Then we’ll ask you, to see if the feelings have changed.
We might do this three or four times during the appointment.
At the end of the appointment, we will check that the treatment has worked. We will ask you to tell us if the feelings will have reduced or gone away.
We want to make sure the treatment continues to work for you, so we will ask you this again at your next appointment.
Further Information
For further information speak to a member of your care team.
You can also visit the following websites to learn more:
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- this information is useful
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- tell a member of staff
- call our complaints team – freephone 0800 052 0219
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