The 8 Phases of EMDR

To start, we will gather information about your past, present, and future. We will spend time in this phase getting to know you and your patterns, concerns, and goals. It’s important during this time to explore your beliefs about yourself and how they came to be which typically includes discussing how you were raised and your experiences as a child. During this phase we will also complete assessments to determine your level of coping and attachment style.

During phase 2, we will identify and practice coping skills and resources to make sure you are prepared to properly handle any stress that may arise from reprocessing a traumatic event or difficult situation.

During this phase we will create a target plan which is a list of past, present, and future situations that have lead to your negative thinking patterns. In some cases there may only be one or two targets on our list if you are seeking out treatment for a one time traumatic event. We will then identify what feelings and thoughts come up when you think about the target yourself.

Example 1: You witnessed or experienced a serious accident. The memory of the accident will be the target we reprocess. We will determine your cognitive beliefs, emotions, and physical sensations related to the accident. When thinking about the accident, do you think to yourself, “I am in danger”, “I am powerless or out of control”, “I am guilty or shameful”? What emotions do you feel? Fear, anxiety, anger, shame, dread, etc. Where do you feel this in your body? Heavy chest, sweaty palms, tight jaw, stomach tension, etc. Once these are all identified, we will move into phase 4.

Example 2: You feel anxious and/or depressed but aren’t able to pinpoint one specific event that caused these feelings. Possibly you had a difficult childhood or upbringing. Maybe you were told for multiple years you weren’t good enough or are shameful. This target plan will be much longer than the target plan in example 1. We will identify memories from your past that triggered your negative thoughts and feelings about yourself, then identify present day triggers for these thoughts’s and feelings, and lastly, future triggers. Just like in example 1, for each memory we will identify the cognitive belief you hold about yourself when you think about the memory, the emotions that come up, and the physical sensations.

During this phase we will use sets of BLS (bilateral stimulation) to reprocess the memory or situation. You’ll have three options of BLS to choose from.

1. VISUAL. I will send you a link through our video chat and it will send you to a webpage that has a blue dot on the screen. I will hit the start button on my end and the blue dot will move and back and forth across the screen for 30-45 seconds. You will be thinking about the target (the memory) while simultaneously watching the dot.

2. AUDIO. With headphones in, I will play a beeping noise that will beep back and forth into each ear for 30-45 seconds. You will think about the target as you listen to the beeps.

3. TAPPING. You can also do quick taps back and forth on your shoulders or knees for 30-45 seconds while thinking about the target.

You can also do a mix of all of the above!

What does BLS do?

During BLS, both hemispheres of your brain are being activated at once due to the back-and-forth stimulation of the eye movement, the beeping, or the back-and-forth tapping. Stimulating both sides of the brain has been proven to reduce the stress and reactivity related to certain memories and situations. This is why you will be thinking about the distressing event or situation while doing the BLS. As we do more and more sets of BLS, you may notice that the memory (the target) we are working on becomes harder to focus on or feels less intense to think about, which is the goal!

How do you know when the memory has been fully reprocessed?

Before starting the BLS, I will ask you to think about the memory or stressful event and to rate how distressing it feels in the present moment to think about it on a 0-10 scale where 0 is not distressing at all or neutral and 10 is highest distress possible. As we do sets of BLS, that number should start to decrease and once it gets to 1 or 0, we know the memory has been reprocessed and we are ready to move on to phase 5.

Once you feel the disturbance when thinking of the memory is at a 1 or 0, we will install the positive cognition related to the memory. Before reprocessing, the cognition you hold about yourself may be “I am stupid” or “I’m not good enough”. Now by phase 5, the new positive cognition may be “I am good enough regardless of what happened” or “I am okay as I am and lovable regardless”. We will use BLS to further enhance this positive belief and feeling in phase 5.

Sometimes our bodies still hold the tension of a memory or situation. In phase 6, we will continue to use BLS to process out any uncomfortable or negative physical sensations that arise when thinking about the memory.

Phase 7 happens at the end of a session if the target (memory/situation) hasn’t been fully processed out and still has some lingering effects. If we have spent the session reprocessing a really difficult memory or situation, then this is where we would use some of the coping skills and resources that you learned in phase 2. We want you to be able to leave a session feeling grounded and safe!

Phase 8 actually happens at the beginning of your following session. I will ask you about anything that came up or anything you noticed in between sessions and we will evaluate where you are at now.