System Speak: Complex Trauma and Dissociative Disorders Guest: Wendy Lemke
Dec 5, 2025
In this engaging discussion, Wendy Lemke, a seasoned psychologist specializing in hypnosis and trauma therapy, shares her insights from over 30 years of experience. She emphasizes tailoring therapy to individual needs, particularly how to work with trauma and dissociation. Wendy explains the concepts of ego states and their roles in healing, while also delving into how trance can be an automatic response to stress. Listeners will learn about the importance of internal authority and listening to their bodily cues in recovery.
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Treat Parts Like An Internal Family
- Ego state/parts work treats internal multiplicity like a family system that needs relational bridging.
- Building relationships with all parts models healthier internal communication and reduces conflict.
Respect Parts’ Boundaries And Purposes
- Explain ego states to survivors as different self-states with boundaries and purposes, not as pathology.
- Respect the 'wisdom of walls' and avoid dismantling protective boundaries too quickly.
Trance Is Ordinary — Dissociation Is Habitual
- Trance is an everyday state of absorbed, focused attention that everyone enters in various contexts.
- People with dissociation spend more time in trance as an automatic response to stress, which reinforces symptoms.
