EMDR Therapy

Kristy’s goal was to find a better way to live life.

Kristy* felt stuck and tired of having more bad days than good ones. Let’s look at Kristy for some insight.

Kristy considered starting therapy after realizing she could not find joy. Her upbringing and childhood, while not bad, were not as loving and nurturing as they could have been. Kristy sensed that she had a hard time being genuinely present and authentic with the people in her life whom she cared for, making her wonder if the way she responded to people had something to do with her past.

She also went through periods off and on where she struggled to get through the basic motions of daily life and often found herself snapping at others with a kind of temper that she did not recognize as herself.

Kristy longed for closer friendships, but it often seemed as if she had built an emotional wall between herself and others, making her feel even more isolated, lonely, confused, and angry.

I understand all these common feelings.

I’ve worked with others to help them better understand their feelings and actions and find unique solutions for something better. I look forward to helping you, too.

Together, you and I will examine your past experiences, both good, bad, and neutral. We will not dwell on the past or blame others for our hurts. Instead, we will reprocess past experiences in a way that fully resolves them and leaves you feeling better and empowered to move forward in new ways.

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) taps into the brain’s natural ability to heal itself. Unlike traditional talk therapy, EMDR therapy works in the unconscious part of the brain to make neurobiological changes that can positively affect emotions, thoughts, and behaviors.

So, what does this look like exactly?

I tailor each session to your unique concerns. EMDR therapy has eight phases, and each phase looks very different. You will receive gentle, safe, and compassionate guidance from me through each phase of treatment. While EMDR therapy is known for its eye movements, there is much more to the process than this.

First, we will take a holistic picture of your overall health, both mental and physical, as it relates to your present concerns. I will offer several objective assessments (questionnaires) to help us track your progress in therapy. I want to say that if we can measure it, we can improve it.

Then, I will give you feedback on the assessments and provide specific recommendations for you to try while carefully crafting a treatment plan relevant to your therapy goals. Week to week, you will try out particular recommendations and notice whether they are helpful for you.

Early in treatment, I will also work to get to know you as an individual by asking questions about past events that have shaped who you are today. The purpose of this is for me to get to know you as the unique person you are and to identify events in your past that may be fueling (unconsciously) certain present troubles and concerns for you.

Then, reprocessing comes next.

In later therapy phases, you will reprocess those events using eye movements, which are similar to those that a person has during REM sleep states. I will guide you gently through this and ask you to bring up specific thoughts, emotions, and body awareness during the eye movements.

Between reprocessing sessions, I will ask you to notice and report any changes from week to week. I do this to tailor the therapy to how your body, mind, and emotions respond. The overall process is dynamic.

Part of EMDR therapy is to help you envision future scenarios to instill confidence. Imagine how it would feel to have authentic and meaningful relationships with others and to believe that you are good enough and competent.

The power of EMDR therapy is that the confidence and positive feelings will begin to feel true for you at a gut level, which differs from practicing coping skills or positive self-talk. Those are important, too!