EMDR Therapy


You don’t have to relive it to heal it.

Helping your brain let go of what’s been holding you back.

In Gilbert and ONLINE across Arizona.

Unlock healing with EMDR Therapy

Are you someone who…

- has been in and out of therapy for a while with little progress

- Is noticing that things you thought you worked on are coming back up and bothering you again

- Experiences anxiety, nightmares,  sleep issues and other symptoms that are making it hard to function like you normally would

- Doesn’t want to have to talk about every single detail to feel better

- Wants to get to the root cause so you can finally start to feel relief


EMDR Therapy may be just what you are looking for.

So what exactly is EMDR you ask?


Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing aka EMDR, is a powerful, evidence based therapy designed to help you heal from traumatic experiences or distressing memories that continue to affect your emotions and behavior. 

When something traumatic happens, sometimes your brain doesn’t process the event the way it normally would. It’s like the memory gets stuck, and instead of just being a memory, it feels as though you're still experiencing the same fear, pain or anxiety when you think about it.

EMDR helps your brain “unstick” that memory, allowing it to be properly processed so it doesn’t hold the same emotional power over you.


How do I know if the experiences I have had are ‘stuck?’

We look to our thoughts, emotions, and physical symptoms for clues. Most of the time we are not thinking about the particular event that happened to us. More times than not, we are feeling the effects of it through feelings and body sensations. 

Janina Fisher states “Trauma Survivors have symptoms not memories.”

As we examine the issues that you are currently experiencing we can begin to figure out where it comes from. Chances are, there is a connection to your past that you may or not be totally aware of. Once we can find it, we can begin to do the work to get unstuck and begin to heal. 


How do we do this?

The goal is to help you start to feel relief and to help you understand the why behind what has been happening. When you can make the past to present connection you can begin to shift how your future looks.

You may have heard about EMDR or even seen it shown on your favorite TV show, I assure you that there are likely parts of it you have not learned about. 

Like….
There are 8 phases to EMDR therapy. We simply start with your intake (phase 1). We will begin to take a deeper look at what you are currently experiencing and making those past-present connections. Then we will move to the healing part of EMDR (phase4). This is where we get those ‘stuck’ memories, unstuck. 

Even though there are 8 phases to this therapy, we know that healing is not linear. There will be times that we move in and out of each phase and this is perfectly normal. 

We are going to honor your body and nervous system in this process and move at a pace that works for you.


EMDR Therapy is reprocessing trauma, Not just talking about it

Get to the root. Rewire the response. Transforming the way you live using EMDR Therapy.

EMDR Therapy can help:

Process unresolved trauma that shows up as anxiety, people-pleasing, emotional reactivity or fear of not being good enough.

Calm the nervous system, reducing the intensity and frequency of triggers that show up in present life but are connected to our past.

Break free from deep rooted beliefs about yourself so that you can begin to live more intentionally and authentically.

Build resilience and trust in yourself, allowing you to feel more grounded in making decisions and asking for support.

Feel more in control of your emotional responses rather than be hijacked by them.

Write your own story. You didn’t get any control over what happened to you but you can write what happens next.

Frequently asked questions about EMDR Therapy:

  • Phase 1: History & Treatment Planning

    • We start by getting a thorough history of your needs and goals for our work together and create an individualized treatment plan. 


    Phase 2: Preparation

    • We will work together to make sure that you understand the process and will work on increasing your emotional regulation tools. These will be used during our time together and can be used on your own.


    Phase3: Assessment

    • We will identify a specific memory or experience to work on. I will ask for things like an image that represents this experience, feelings, emotions and body sensations. Note that you do not need to go into great detail about the experience. 


    Phase 4: Desensitization

    • We use bilateral stimulation (BLS) to begin reprocessing the disturbing information. This can happen through eye movements, tapping your hands or using sounds.


    Phase 5: Installation

    • Once we reduce the distress of the experience we will identify a positive belief that you now have about the event. EX I am safe now, I am loveable. 


    Phase 6: Body Scan

    • We check in with our bodies to make sure that we really have gotten rid of the yuck that has been stuck. Our bodies will tell us what we need to know. If there is anything left, we will process it. 


    Phase 7: Closure

    • At the end of our session, it is important to make sure that you are leaving in a calm and grounded space. This is where you will use the strategies learned  from Phase 2.

    Phase 8: Reevaluation

    • Each session, we will do a quick check in of our past work. If there is more work to be done we will jump back into processing, if we need to move on to a new target, we will..

  • Therapy can be beneficial for those experiencing:

      • Anxiety & Panic attacks

      • Complicated Grief

      • Medical Trauma

      • Acute Trauma such as a recent assault, domestic violence

      • Childhood abuse or neglect

      • Religious Trauma

      • Dissociative Disorders

      • Attachment Trauma

      • Perfectionism

      • Chronic Stress

  • While EMDR can be effective in reducing your distress in a few sessions, there is no exact answer that I can offer. Therapy is catered to your individual needs and goals.

  • EMDR targets the parts of the brain where trauma and emotional pain get stored. While you focus on a memory, thought, or feeling, use bilateral stimulation to help your brain process the experience. This allows emotional intensity to decrease and new, adaptive perspectives to emerge- without needing to relive the trauma.

  • Absolutely. EMDR works well alongside modalities use as IFS, Brainspotiing and other methods. I often integrate these approaches to support clients in a way that feels grounded, flexible and orientated to your goals and needs.

“ Healing takes courage, and we all have courage, even if we have to dig a little to find it.”

~Tori Amos