When you've lived through trauma, your body remembers things your mind can't always explain.

EMDR — which stands for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing — is a therapy designed to help people safely process those traumatic memories, and the beliefs and body reactions attached to them.

It’s not talk therapy. It’s not about “reliving” your worst memories.

It’s about helping your nervous system finally let go of what got stuck — so you can begin to feel safe again, from the inside out.

How EMDR Works

EMDR helps reprocess traumatic memories by using something called bilateral stimulation — often eye movements, tapping, or sounds — to engage both sides of the brain while you focus on pieces of a memory.

Your therapist gently guides you to notice what comes up: images, emotions, body sensations, beliefs.

Over time, the memory loses its emotional charge. Your body doesn’t go into fight, flight, or freeze when it’s touched.

The trauma doesn't disappear — but it stops controlling your life.

The 8 Phases of EMDR

1. History & Preparation – Your therapist learns about your story and explains the EMDR process.

2. Resourcing – You build tools for safety, grounding, and stabilization before starting deeper work.

3. Targeting – You choose specific memories, images, or beliefs to process.

4. Desensitization – Bilateral stimulation begins while you focus on the memory.

5. Reprocessing – Your brain begins making new connections and letting go of stuck beliefs.

6. Installation – You replace old negative beliefs with new, empowering ones.

7. Body Scan – You check for remaining tension or disturbance in the body.

8. Closure & Reevaluation – You close the session with grounding and check progress in future sessions.

EMDR is always done at your pace. You stay in control the entire time.

What EMDR Is Not

Let’s break some myths:

❌ It’s not hypnosis

❌ It’s not reliving trauma all at once

❌ It doesn’t erase memory — it reprocesses it

❌ It’s not for just “severe” trauma — it works for all kinds of stuck pain (childhood, medical, grief, assault, emotional abuse, etc.)

A Note From the Author

I was skeptical at first.

I had spent years dissociating, surviving, shutting down — how could moving my eyes help untangle all that?

But EMDR changed everything. It gave me a way to face the memories I never thought I could survive.

It helped me reclaim pieces of myself I thought were gone forever.

This book — and this site — wouldn’t exist without it.

Want to Learn More or Find a Therapist?

If you’re curious about trying EMDR, or just want to learn more from trusted sources, here are some helpful links:

🌀 EMDRIA.org – The official EMDR International Association

 (Offers research, FAQs, and clinician directories)

🌀 Find an EMDR Therapist – Search by location and specialization

🌀 The Body Keeps the Score – A foundational book on how trauma lives in the body

🌀 When the Past Is Present – David Richo – On triggers, reactivity, and healing emotional flashbacks

🕊️ A Final Word

EMDR isn’t a magic fix. It’s hard, sacred work.

But for many of us, it’s the first time the weight begins to lift — not because the past is gone, but because it’s no longer trapped inside our nervous system.

My book was written inside the healing process — in the messy middle of EMDR. If you’re wondering what this therapy feels like from the inside, that’s where we’re going next.