What Happens in an EMDR Session?

EMDR (eye movement desensitization and reprocessing) therapy has 8 phases:¹

1. Initial history discovery and treatment planning
2. Preparation
3. Assessment
4. Desensitization
5. Installation
6. Body scan
7. Closure
8. Reevaluation

These phases are not all timed specifically nor are they all timed equally. Meaning, if a patient is struggling with something especially difficult one day, part of this 8-phase process may be approached differently, not at all, or done quickly.

Sessions are led by an EMDR-certified therapist

In some cases, one phase might be part of the entire process of your EMDR session. It all depends on how you and your EMDR-certified therapist choose to go about your sessions and what you are comfortable with.

Usually, your therapist will begin by telling you to open your eyes and mention a “safe phrase” if you begin to start feeling uncomfortable enough to want to stop where you are in the process.

Phases can feel different

For me, I’m a very visual person, so the preparation and assessment phases are particularly important to me. Some days, I don’t even realize the body scan is happening because I am so engaged in the session that it’s over before I even know it.

Now, this is not to say that each session is easy, nor quick.

Some sessions feel like a drag. They can be uncomfortable and some require a lot of preparation, especially if you are struggling with a mental illness barrier or a type of anxiety that won’t allow you to completely calm all the way before you try to begin.

Getting in the right frame of mind

In order to even start your session, you have to be in the right frame of mind. Otherwise, it may be more damaging to your psyche. Your therapist will determine if it is appropriate to continue with an EMDR session or provide you with therapist discussion/counsel instead.

For instance, during the body scan phase, "an EMDR session is not considered successful until the client can bring up the original target without feeling any body tension. Positive self-beliefs are important, but they have to be believed on more than just an intellectual level."¹

Sometimes EMDR sessions do not feel easy

It’s important to keep in mind that not all EMDR sessions will go smoothly, be the same, or feel successful. Unfortunately, that’s the unfortunate part of therapy when you bring up trauma that a patient has gone through.

For me, it’s known that the trauma I faced years ago, and especially the trauma that was suppressed, will take years to unravel.

Patient and therapist work together

It’s also very important to know that there can be times when some of these phases will have more time spent on them in a “typical” session. Your EMDR specialist, along with the patient, will determine how far they will both go and how long they will spend in each phase.

Some phases may only last a few minutes and another might be skipped altogether depending on how the patient is feeling.

You can learn more in this article that reviews each phase of EMDR therapy.