Example of EMDR

Clients ask all the time - “What is EMDR actually like?”

It’s a difficult question to answer because it does look a bit different for everyone.

However, here is a case study that I made up that might help give a sense of how it works.

Let’s say a client comes in with driving anxiety. After talking through it, the therapist and client realize it stems from a previous car accident.

The therapist would then have the client focus on the accident and add some kind of bilateral stimulation.

For the first few minutes, the client may feel a bit worse. It can be very emotional and difficult to focus on past negative experiences.

However, usually with a bit of time, the level of distress goes down.

In addition to that, other things can happen. The client might remember some positive things that happened - like the person who called 911, like the firemen showing up and being so kind.

By the end, these terrible out of control helpless feelings become feelings of acceptance and seeing how they overcame and were strong and reslilient in the face of a difficult situation.

After awhile, the distress from the memory is gone and usually the present day symptom (in this case driving anxiety) begins to go away.

This is a very simple story and there is a lot more to the process but I hope it gives you a little taste of what can happen in EMDR.