You don’t have to talk through everything in order to heal.
What Is EMDR Therapy?
EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) is a scientifically backed, trauma-informed therapy that helps the brain reprocess painful memories and release the emotional charge that keeps you stuck in cycles of anxiety, shutdown, or fight, flight, freeze, and fawn.
Unlike talk therapy, EMDR works directly with your nervous system, allowing your brain to complete the healing process that was interrupted by past experiences. Over time, EMDR helps you feel safer, more grounded, and more present in your life.
How EMDR Therapy Works
When something overwhelming happens whether childhood attachment injuries, workplace trauma, or repeated stress the brain can’t always fully process it. Those unprocessed memories stay stored in your body, influencing your thoughts and emotions long after the event is over.
In EMDR, we work together to:
Identify past events or patterns that still trigger emotional pain
Access these memories in a safe, grounded way
Use bilateral stimulation (eye movements, tapping, or sounds) to help your brain reprocess the memory
Integrate new, healthier beliefs such as I am safe, I am capable, I am loveable
This process supports nervous system healing, helping you move out of survival mode and into calm awareness.
EMDR Therapy for CPTSD
EMDR is for you, if:
You’ve experienced complex trauma (CPTSD) or childhood attachment wounds that show up in your adult life
You’ve struggled with anxiety, panic attacks, or a persistent sense of impending doom I can't explain
You’re chronically in fight, flight, freeze, or fawn responses at work, in relationships, or seemingly out of nowhere
You’ve experienced intrusive thoughts or OCD patterns that disrupt my daily functioning
Feel emotionally exhausted from years of perfectionism and burnout
Carry workplace trauma such as toxic environments, betrayal, chronic stress, or loss of professional identity
Shut down, people-please, or over-control in relationships due to abandonment fear
Feel disconnected from your body, or like you're watching your own life from a distance
Have tried talk therapy and feel like you understand your patterns but can't change them
Are navigating perimenopause and finding that old wounds are surfacing with new intensity
EMDR works especially well for:
Complex PTSD and single-incident trauma
Attachment disorder in adults
Panic disorder and generalized anxiety
OCD and intrusive thoughts
Phobias and performance anxiety
Grief and loss
Workplace trauma and burnout
Codependency and relationship patterns rooted in early attachment injuries
Who is EMDR for?
Traditional talk therapy can be great for some people, but it has its limitations. EMDR helps people get to the root of the problem by helping the brain file and categorize memories where they belong. EMDR is for people who carry things they can't seem to shake no matter how much they understand them intellectually.
You might know your patterns inside and out and still find yourself overwhelmed, shut down, or flooded when it matters most. Intellectually understanding why something happens doesn't always stop it from happening. Trauma lives deeper than insight and lives in our mind and body, which is where EMDR is more effective than talk therapy.
What EMDR With Me Looks Like
As a therapist that has been practicing EMDR for almost 10 years, I know that EMDR can create immense change and relief for you. EMDR is something I approach with clients as something we do together at a pace that your nervous system can handle.
I use an integrated approach by weaving EMDR together with IFS (Internal Family Systems) and attachment somatic-focused care. Oftentimes, this means we're not just targeting memories in isolation. We're understanding the parts of you that hold those memories, building enough safety within the therapeutic relationship, and making sure your system is ready before we go anywhere near the deeper work.
Here’s how EMDR works:
-
We start by understanding your history: what brings you in, what you're carrying, and what you want your life to feel like. We identify the experiences most contributing to your current symptoms and create a roadmap together.
-
Before any trauma processing happens, we build your capacity to handle it. This includes nervous system regulation skills, grounding techniques, and establishing a genuine sense of safety in our relationship. For people with complex trauma, this phase can take several sessions.
-
We identify a specific memory or experience to work with. We look at the image, the negative belief attached to it ("I am not good enough," "I am not safe," "I am not loveable"), the emotions and body sensations that come with it, and how distressing it feels right now.
-
This is the active processing phase. While holding the memory in mind, you follow the bilateral stimulation, eye movements, taps, or alternating sounds. We allow your brain to do the work. Most people are surprised by what comes up and by how much shifts.
-
Once the distress has reduced, we strengthen a positive belief to replace the old one. "I am safe now." "I handled it." "I am enough." These aren’t positive affirmations as we it's anchoring what your nervous system has actually started to believe
-
We check for any remaining tension or activation held in the body. Trauma lives somatically, and we don't skip this step.
-
Every session ends with you in a stable, grounded place. This doesn’t mean that you arent going to experience feelings or emotions, it means we give your nervous system time to acclimate and close out the session prior to us leaving.
-
At the start of each subsequent session, we check in on what's shifted since we last met, and decide where to go next.
-
There's no universal answer. Single-incident trauma may resolve in 6–12 sessions. Complex PTSD and attachment wounds, the kind most of my clients are working with, typically take longer, and the work is layered. What I can tell you is that people often notice real shifts within a couple of sessions.
What to Expect & Potential Outcomes
During the process EMDR can bring up strong emotions, vivid imagery, and physical sensations in session. That's normal and it’s apart of the process. Sessions can feel intense in the moment and leave you tired afterward. Some people feel raw or emotionally tender for a day or two after deeper processing. This isn't a sign something is wrong or EMDR is not working, it is more an indication that something is shifting.
What tends to shift early:
A sense of distance from memories that used to feel immediate
Less reactivity in situations that used to trigger strong responses
Better sleep
Reduced physical tension
What tends to shift over time:
The deep beliefs ("I am not good enough," "I am not safe," "I don't matter") losing their reactivity
Nervous system regulation and being able to move through the day without being hijacked
Relationships improving as your threat response softens
More presence in your body and less dissociation or numbness
Freedom from anxiety that felt permanent
The ability to be with uncertainty without bracing for disaster
What "healed" actually means: You will still remember what happened. EMDR doesn't erase memories. What it does is change how those memories live in your mind and body. A memory that used to knock you flat becomes something you can look at steadily without the flooding, the shame, the urgency. It happened, it’s apart of your history, but you don’t have to relive it on a daily basis.
FAQ’s:
-
EMDR was originally developed for single-incident trauma, but the evidence for complex PTSD is strong and growing. Working with CPTSD takes longer and requires more preparation but it absolutely works. The key is that the preparation phase (building safety and nervous system capacity before processing) is given the time it needs. In my practice, I work with complex trauma regularly, and I integrate EMDR with IFS to make the process safer and more thorough for people with layered trauma histories.
-
No. You don't have to tell me everything that happened in order to process it. In EMDR, you hold the memory in your own mind while the bilateral stimulation does its work. I don't need a verbal account of every detail. Some clients find this enormously relieving especially those who have felt re-traumatized by having to narrate their trauma to previous therapists.
-
Yes. Virtual EMDR is effective and widely used. Many clients find that doing EMDR from their own home in a space they've made comfortable and safe can actually supports the process. All you need is a reliable internet connection, privacy, and a device with a camera.