Thank you for responding. I'm glad I'm not the only one who sees the issue as complex!

I looked at the definition of the EMDR protocol, and we are doing a variation. My therapist uses bilateral stimulation with hand buzzers, but not eye movement. Most of the rest of it is the same, however.

I don't think your comments about dissociation apply in my case (again, I know you are only speaking in generalities). I don't test as having any DD. I do feel like I have strong defensive mechanisms and have trouble accessing emotions sometimes, but not to the extent of being highly dissociative.

I think the reason she's only having me work on fragments of the memory is because I expressed concern about digging up too much and being overwhelmed. I was concerned about somehow feeling retraumatized by the process. So she suggested we just deal with bits at a time.

So, no real clarity here. But thanks for taking the time to read and respond. I'll keep the dialogue open with my therapist.