Hey there, As psychedelic-assisted therapy moves toward mainstream acceptance (with FDA breakthrough therapy designations for both MDMA and psilocybin and more states adopting legislature for legal psychedelic therapy), many EMDR therapists are asking the same question: “How can I ethically incorporate psychedelic integration into my practice?” Luckily for you, I've probably spent more time researching this exact question than many people in the EMDR community. So much so that I gave a...
13 days ago • 6 min read
Hey there, I know a lot of therapists are experiencing burnout these days, so I want to double-tap this topic. Not everyone reading this is experiencing burnout, but hopefully you’ll remember this if you do in the future, or use it as a way to help prevent it altogether! For some, the cases can start feeling routine, and the breakthroughs become just another clinical outcome to document. The passion that drew you to trauma work gets buried under years of holding space for others' pain...
20 days ago • 3 min read
I’ll get straight to the point: EMDR work carries unique occupational hazards that has the potential to create burnout faster than other therapeutic modalities: The emotional intensity The impact of tracking trauma processing The effect of holding space for so much pain day after day Each of these factors can create challenges that many of us weren't prepared for in training. That’s why today, I want to share some practical strategies for building a sustainable EMDR practice (that honors both...
27 days ago • 5 min read
Hey there, Every EMDR therapist remembers those first post-training sessions. The mixture of excitement and anxiety The protocol cheat sheet nearby The hope that this approach will help your clients, combined with the fear of getting something wrong and/or hurting them If you've ever felt this way, you're in good company. Even the most skilled EMDR practitioners started somewhere (and most made the same common mistakes along the way). Today, I want to share the patterns and mistakes I've...
about 2 months ago • 5 min read
I hear this question all the time… “But EMDR is only for trauma, right?” There's this persistent myth that EMDR is only for PTSD… and that it should only be pulled out for a client with textbook trauma symptoms. But that’s not entirely true. The truth is… EMDR's effectiveness extends far beyond the trauma treatment where it first gained recognition. While a lion’s share of the research has indeed been trauma-focused, the EMDR providers on the frontlines doing the work have deepened their...
about 2 months ago • 4 min read
A few months ago, a therapist in my consultation group asked a question that gets to the heart of what makes EMDR both powerful and challenging: "How do I know when I should modify the standard protocol and when I should stick with it?" It's a question I hear often, and for good reason. We want to be flexible enough to meet our clients' needs, but not so flexible that we drift away from what makes EMDR effective in the first place. Today, I want to explore this clinical issue and give you a...
2 months ago • 5 min read
Hey there, Ever found yourself following the EMDR protocol perfectly, yet your client remains stuck? It’s more common than you think! In my consultation work, I've noticed something interesting. The difference between adequate and exceptional EMDR outcomes rarely comes down to protocol adherence. Instead it’s about deeply understanding the Adaptive Information Processing (AIP) model. Let me share three helpful perspectives on AIP that can help you navigate even your most challenging cases....
2 months ago • 5 min read