EMDR therapy
EMDR is not talk therapy. It's not hypnosis. It's how you finally stop carrying a memory the way it happened.
The long version.
EMDR — Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing — is a structured, evidence-based therapy for reprocessing memories that your nervous system has stored, unfinished. It works because the brain, given the right conditions, actually knows how to metabolize what happened to it. My job is to build those conditions and stay with you inside them. This page is about the method itself; if you're here because of what happened to you rather than the acronym, the trauma & PTSD page is probably the better door.
You might recognize —
- A specific memory, or a category of them, that still fires even though you've talked it to death
- You've done insight-based therapy and something still hasn't moved
- Panic, hypervigilance, or shutdown that feels older than the current situation warrants
- A single-incident trauma — accident, assault, medical event, sudden loss — that keeps intruding
- Complex or developmental trauma where many smaller memories add up to a pattern
Questions people actually ask.
Does EMDR really work over telehealth?
Yes — there is now a strong evidence base for telehealth EMDR, and a large part of my practice runs this way. We use screen-based or self-tapping bilateral stimulation.
Do I have to describe the memory in detail?
No. EMDR does not require narrative retelling. You hold the memory internally while the bilateral stimulation runs; what you share out loud is your choice.
How long until I feel a shift?
For a discrete single-incident memory, sometimes a handful of sessions once we're properly prepared. Complex trauma is longer and layered. We talk about pacing before we start.
Is EMDR safe if I have complex trauma or dissociation?
It can be, with careful preparation. We spend real time on stabilization and resourcing before any reprocessing begins. If EMDR isn't the right fit for your system, I'll say so.