EMDR Client Information

  • The mind can often heal itself naturally, in the same way as the body does. Much of this natural coping mechanism occurs during sleep, particularly during rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. Francine Shapiro developed Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR) in 1987, utilising this natural process in order to successfully treat Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Since then, EMDR has been used to effectively treat a wide range of mental health problems.

  • In addition to its use for the treatment of Post-traumatic Stress Disorder, EMDR has been successfully used to treat or reduce:

    • Anxiety and panic attacks

    • Depression

    • Stress

    • Phobias

    • Sleep problems

    • Complicated grief

    • Addictions

    • Chronic Pain, Pain relief, phantom limb pain

    • Self-esteem and performance anxiety

    • Childhood trauma

    • Birth trauma

    • Single incident event trauma

  • EMDR can accelerate therapy by resolving the impact of your past traumas and allowing you to live more fully in the present. It is not, however, appropriate for everyone. The process is rapid, and any disturbing experiences, if they occur at all, last for a comparatively short period of time. Nevertheless, you need to be aware of, and willing to experience, the strong feelings and disturbing thoughts, which sometimes occur during sessions.

  • EMDR can be brief focused treatment or part of a longer treatment plan. Standard EMDR sessions can be for 60 to 90 minutes, however, intensives can also be appropriate where multiple sessions can occur within the same day or on consecutive days.

  • During EMDR treatment, you will remain in control, fully alert and wide-awake. This is not a form of hypnosis and you can stop the process at any time. Throughout the session, the therapist will support and facilitate your own self-healing and intervene as little as possible. Reprocessing is usually experienced as something that happens spontaneously, and new connections and insights are felt to arise quite naturally from within. As a result, most people experience EMDR as being a natural and very empowering therapy.

  • EMDR is an innovative clinical treatment which has successfully helped over a million individuals. The validity and reliability of EMDR has been established by rigorous research. There are now nineteen controlled studies into EMDR making it the most thoroughly researched method used in the treatment of trauma, (Details on www.emdr-europe.org and www.emdr.org) and is recommended by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) as an effective treatment for PTSD.

What happens when you experience Trauma?

When trauma occurs, whether from a single overwhelming event (like a car accident) or prolonged distress (such as childhood neglect), your body’s usual process of managing new information can become overwhelmed. This overload can result in traumatic experiences being “frozen” or left “unprocessed” in your brain. Rather than being stored as a coherent narrative, these memories and emotions remain in the limbic system, a part of the brain that handles emotions and physical sensations. This unprocessed trauma is isolated in a memory network connected to strong feelings, but disconnected from the cortex, which is where verbal memories are typically stored.

The Limbic System (iStockphoto)

Learn more: UQ - Queensland Brain Institute

As a result, these traumatic memories can be repeatedly triggered, especially when you encounter situations that remind you of past distress, even if you no longer consciously remember the event itself. The painful emotions—such as anxiety, panic, anger, or despair—are reactivated in the present, making it difficult to fully engage with and learn from new experiences. EMDR therapy helps by facilitating connections between the emotional memory network in the limbic system and the language-based memories in the cortex, allowing the trauma to be processed and integrated in a very natural way.

What to Expect During an EMDR Processing Session

During the eye movement phase of EMDR, I will talk or offer suggestions only minimally. Instead, you are encouraged to just notice and observe the experience - your memory, thoughts, emotions, and bodily sensations. You don’t need to try to force anything or make the memory “go away.” You’ll be asked to briefly report on your experience at the end of each set of eye movements. You might notice that the sensory details of the memory become less vivid or more distant.

If other associations come up during the process, you can share them with me. Some traumas may be processed in a single session, while others, especially those that are older or involve multiple events, may require several sessions. We’ll move at a pace that feels comfortable for you.

I’ll be here with you throughout the session to support you, especially if any distressing feelings come up. There’s no pressure to resolve the memory immediately; this is a gradual process, and we will work through it together.

EMDR Process

  • 1. History Taking and Treatment Planning

    In this first phase, we’ll talk about your history and the specific issues you want to address. This helps us identify which memories and experiences are causing distress and sets a plan for treatment.

  • 2. Preparation

    This phase is about getting you ready for EMDR. I’ll explain how the process works and teach you relaxation techniques to use if you ever feel overwhelmed during the sessions. We’ll also work on establishing a sense of safety and trust.

  • 3. Assessment

    Here, we focus on a specific memory that you want to work through. You’ll recall details of that memory and identify the negative beliefs you hold about yourself related to it (like “I’m not safe” or “I’m powerless”). We’ll also pinpoint the emotions and physical sensations you feel when thinking about it.

  • 4. Desensitisation

    This is where the actual EMDR process begins. You’ll focus on the memory while I guide you with eye movements (or sometimes tapping or sounds) to stimulate both sides of your brain. This helps your brain process the memory and start to reduce the emotional intensity tied to it. Over time, you’ll notice that the memory becomes less disturbing.

  • 5. Installation

    Once the negative emotions have lessened, we’ll work on installing a more positive belief about yourself (for example, replacing “I’m not safe” with “I am safe now”). This helps shift your perspective and build healthier ways of thinking.

  • 6. Body Scan

    In this phase, we’ll check if any physical tension or discomfort remains in your body related to the memory. If there is, we’ll use more EMDR techniques to process it and release that tension.

  • 7. Closure

    At the end of each session, we’ll bring you back to a calm and grounded state, even if the memory has not been fully processed yet. I’ll guide you through relaxation exercises to ensure you feel safe and centered.

  • 8. Re-evaluation

    At the beginning of the next session, we’ll review your progress. We’ll check to see if the memory still causes distress or if any new emotions or memories have surfaced. We may continue processing until the memory no longer triggers negative emotions or beliefs.