What Does EMDR Look Like?

Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) therapy is a popular treatment modality for people dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). More recently, it’s also been used to help with a variety of other mental health conditions, including anxiety. 

The idea behind EMDR isn’t to cause someone to “forget” the trauma that happened to them. Rather, it works by desensitizing each individual to that trauma and helping them to reprocess what happened, so it isn’t all-consuming. 

While there is some talking involved, many people are attracted to EMDR because it’s different from traditional talk therapy options. 

But, what does it actually look like? What can you expect from a typical EMDR session? 

The Eight-Phase Approach

EMDR is considered a short-term therapy. You won’t be going to sessions for years. Rather, you’ll work through different stages on your healing journey, including: 

• History-taking

• Preparation

• Assessment

• Desensitization 

• Installation

• Body scan

• Closure

• Reevaluation

At the beginning of the process, your therapist will get some background information about what you’re experiencing and what you’ve been through. This will give them a starting point when it comes to proper preparation and making a strategy designed to fit your needs. 

The desensitization process is where you’ll start to experience initial freedom from your trauma. Your therapist will help to weaken the power that the negative thoughts have over your mind so you can reprocess them into healthier, more positive ones. You’ll likely be told to focus on a target memory as you go through the desensitization and installation processes. 

What Does a Session Look Like? 

Once the history-taking, preparation, and assessment portions of your journey are complete, your therapist will start implementing rapid eye movement exercises to help with desensitization and reprocessing. 

You’ll be told to focus on that negative thought or memory while your therapist guides you through sets of rapid eye movement or other types of bilateral stimulation. It could be as simple as following their finger back and forth while you focus on the thought. 

It can be difficult to go through these sessions because you’re being asked to relive an experience that was painful or emotionally damaging. You might feel tense, tired, or even stressed immediately following a session. But, getting to the “root” of the issue is the best way to overcome it. 

Eventually, you’ll use that same bilateral stimulation to change the way you think about that particular negative memory. Again, EMDR isn’t about forgetting what happened to you. It’s about changing how much control it has over you. 

Using EMDR In Your Everyday Life

You and your therapist will eventually work together to incorporate your new perspective on your negative memories into your life. Your therapist will ask you to describe how you’re feeling physically and emotionally so you become more aware and in tune with those feelings and how to cope with them when they come up. 

You might have struggled with specific triggers in the past as well. You’ll identify those triggers throughout your sessions so you can learn how they affect you. More importantly, you’ll learn how to cope with them. 

Finally, when you complete your EMDR sessions, you’ll be able to determine whether you achieved the goals you had set out at the beginning. You’ll experience a sense of closure from start to finish, and your therapist will likely reevaluate you to see exactly how your thoughts and feelings have changed during the length of your sessions. 

Unlike so many forms of talk therapy, EMDR actually changes the way you think about distressing, traumatic memories. When you feel more in control, you’re less likely to let trauma and anxiety define you. 

If you’re interested in learning more about EMDR, please don’t hesitate to contact me or set up an appointment.