Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)
Sometimes knowing that something is over isn’t enough to make it feel over.
Difficult or traumatic experiences can continue to affect us long after they've passed.
You may know intellectually that you're safe now, while your emotions or body seem to respond as though the past is still happening. A sound, sensation, interaction, or seemingly ordinary situation might trigger an intense reaction that feels confusing or out of proportion to what's happening in the present.
EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) is an evidence-based psychotherapy designed to help people process distressing experiences so that the past can begin to feel more like the past.
What is EMDR?
When we experience something overwhelming, the brain doesn't always process the experience in the same way it processes ordinary memories.
Thoughts, emotions, physical sensations, images, and beliefs connected to an experience can remain easily activated. Even years later, something in the present may trigger the same fear, shame, helplessness, or physical response associated with what happened before.
EMDR therapy helps the brain process these experiences so that they can be integrated more adaptively.
The goal isn't to erase memories or convince you that something painful didn't matter. Instead, the memory can remain part of your story without continuing to carry the same emotional intensity or influence over your life.
How does EMDR work?
EMDR uses a structured therapeutic process together with bilateral stimulation—alternating stimulation of the left and right sides of the body.
You may be familiar with the eye movements commonly associated with EMDR, but bilateral stimulation can also involve alternating sounds, tapping, or other methods.
During processing, you'll briefly notice aspects of an experience while bilateral stimulation is used. Rather than analyzing every thought or telling the entire story repeatedly, you're encouraged to notice what arises—thoughts, emotions, memories, images, or physical sensations—and allow the processing to unfold.
Your therapist remains with you throughout the process, helping you stay connected to the present and adjusting the pace when needed.
What can EMDR help with?
EMDR is best known, and extensively researched, as a treatment for trauma and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
Depending on your individual circumstances and treatment goals, EMDR may also be incorporated into therapy addressing concerns such as:
Trauma and complex trauma
Distressing or painful memories
Anxiety and fears
Negative beliefs about yourself
Grief and loss
Relationship and attachment wounds
Experiences of abuse, betrayal, or abandonment
Situations in the present that trigger intense reactions connected to earlier experiences.
EMDR isn't automatically the right treatment for every concern or every person. We'll consider your experiences, goals, current circumstances, and readiness together before deciding whether EMDR is an appropriate part of your therapy.
Do I have to tell you everything that happened?
This is one of the questions people often have about trauma therapy.
EMDR generally does not require you to describe every detail of a distressing experience aloud.
We'll need enough information to understand what you're experiencing and to work safely and effectively, but you remain in control of what you choose to share.
For some people, knowing they don't have to repeatedly tell the entire story makes approaching trauma therapy feel a little more manageable.
Will we start processing traumatic memories right away?
Not necessarily.
EMDR is much more than eye movements, and processing memories is only one part of a broader therapeutic approach.
Before beginning trauma processing, we'll spend time understanding what brings you to therapy, discussing your history and goals, and considering whether EMDR is appropriate for you.
We'll also make sure you have strategies to help you stay grounded and manage difficult emotions or physical responses that may arise.
For some people, preparation is relatively brief. For others, building safety, trust, emotional regulation, and stability takes considerably longer.
Your pace matters.
What does an EMDR session look like?
EMDR follows a structured process, but your experience of it will be individual.
Treatment may include:
Understanding your history and goals
We'll explore what is bringing you to therapy and identify the experiences, patterns, or symptoms you would like to change.
Preparation
Before processing difficult experiences, we'll develop strategies for staying grounded, regulating distress, and maintaining connection with the present.
Identifying what we'll work on
Together, we'll identify a specific memory or experience and explore the thoughts, emotions, physical sensations, and beliefs connected to it.
Processing
Using bilateral stimulation, you'll notice what comes up while your brain begins making new connections and processing the experience.
Checking in with your body
Because experiences aren't held only in thoughts, we'll also pay attention to physical sensations and changes that occur during processing.
Closure and reassessment
We'll make sure you feel sufficiently grounded before the session ends and revisit the work in future sessions to see what has changed.
Throughout the process, you can ask questions, request a pause, slow things down, or tell us something isn't working for you.
You remain an active participant in your therapy.
What if I'm nervous about EMDR?
That's completely okay.
EMDR can sound unusual when you first hear about it, and being curious, skeptical, nervous — or all three — is welcome.
We'll talk about what to expect before we begin. You can ask as many questions as you need, and we'll work collaboratively to find forms of bilateral stimulation and a pace that feels appropriate for you.
Therapy isn't something that is done to you.
It's something we do together.
Is EMDR right for me?
Maybe. Deciding that is part of the therapeutic process.
EMDR can be an effective treatment, but being interested in EMDR doesn't mean that we have to use it, and beginning EMDR doesn't mean we're committed to continuing it regardless of how you respond.
Your needs may change as therapy progresses. We can slow down, spend more time preparing, integrate other therapeutic approaches, or decide that another form of treatment would be more appropriate.
Good therapy isn't about fitting you into a particular technique. The approach should fit you.
Interested in EMDR?
You don't need to know whether EMDR is right for you before reaching out.
If you're interested in EMDR, have questions about how it works, or simply know that something in your life needs to change, we can start with a conversation.
You don't have to arrive with the right words.
You don't have to arrive ready to tell your whole story.
And you don't have to arrive with hope.
You can simply arrive as you are.