Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)
EMDR therapy
EMDR is a structured, evidence-based approach originally developed for treating trauma and PTSD. It helps the brain process difficult memories that may feel “stuck,” so that they become less emotionally charged and less disruptive in daily life. This processing is done by briefly recalling the distressing memory while engaging in bilateral stimulation (BLS), typically through guided rapid eye movements. Research indicates that this dual-attention process can reduce the vividness and emotional intensity of the memory by taxing working memory and facilitating new associations with more adaptive information. The goal is not to erase the memory, but to help it become less activating and more integrated, so that it no longer triggers the same level of distress in daily life.
EMDR is an evidence-based approach for therapeutic trauma processing. When we experience trauma, it is stored within our brains in a way that is difficult to access. Words, smells or seemingly unrelated events may trigger an intense flashback.
best known for trauma
Although EMDR is best known for trauma, research increasingly shows that it can also be helpful for depression, anxiety, grief, shame, chronic self-criticism, and relationship patterns that feel hard to shift. In these situations, EMDR does not only target single traumatic events but also the underlying memories, beliefs, or patterns that continue to fuel current symptoms. For example, EMDR can help reduce the emotional weight of experiences that contributed to self-criticism, chronic worry, or a persistent sense of not being good enough. By processing these experiences more fully, clients can gain greater emotional stability, and situations that once felt overwhelming become more manageable.
With Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, the therapist will guide you through exercises that will help you re-live this memory in a way that will not trigger an intense reaction. This way, you become more desensitized to the memory. However, not only is this approach useful in trauma, it is also useful for anxiety, depression, grief, shame, chronic self-criticism, and relationship patterns that feel hard to shift.
EMDR: Helping you process traumatic memories
The approach I use is further informed by somatic and attachment-focused EMDR principles, which means we pay careful attention to nervous-system regulation and attachment patterns. This foundation helps ensure that processing is done at a pace that feels manageable, supportive, and grounded in a strong therapeutic relationship.
