If you have scheduled your first EMDR session, or you are thinking about it, you probably have questions. That is normal. Most clients walk into their first appointment with a mix of hope and apprehension, wanting the relief they have heard EMDR can provide but unsure what the process actually looks like from the inside.
Here is what we want you to know up front: EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) is an evidence-based psychotherapy designed to help your brain’s natural healing system do its job. Your brain already knows how to process difficult experiences, the same way your body knows how to heal a cut. Trauma is what happens when that processing gets stuck. EMDR removes the blockage so your mind can finish what it started.
This guide will walk you through what to expect, how the treatment is structured, and how to prepare so you can get the most out of the process.
Your First Session Will Not Include Eye Movements
This surprises many clients. They come in expecting to start reprocessing immediately and are relieved to learn that the first appointment is not about diving into traumatic memories. It is about safety, history, and building the foundation that makes the deeper work possible.
Your therapist will use the initial session to conduct a thorough intake: learning about your history, understanding what brought you to treatment, and beginning to identify the specific memories and experiences that will become targets for reprocessing. This is also where your therapist assesses your current level of internal stability. EMDR is powerful, and engaging with traumatic material before you have the coping tools to manage the emotional intensity would be counterproductive.
Direct engagement with traumatic memories and bilateral stimulation, whether that takes the form of guided eye movements, gentle taps, or auditory tones, typically begins in the second or third session, depending on your readiness. That preparation is not wasted time. It is what makes the reprocessing safe and effective.
The Eight Phases of EMDR Treatment
EMDR follows a structured eight-phase protocol. Understanding the phases in advance can reduce the uncertainty that makes starting treatment feel intimidating.
Phases 1 and 2: History and Preparation
These are the foundation phases. Your therapist identifies the specific memories, beliefs, and body sensations that will be targeted during reprocessing. You also learn grounding and stabilization skills, including the Safe Place (or Calm Place) exercise, which gives you an internal resource you can access at any point during treatment to de-escalate emotional distress. Think of this phase as building the container that will hold the work. The stronger the container, the deeper and safer the processing can go.
Phase 3: Assessment
Before reprocessing begins, your therapist activates the target memory and establishes baseline measurements. You will rate your current level of distress using the SUD scale (Subjective Units of Disturbance, rated 0 to 10) and identify both the negative belief the memory carries (“It was my fault,” “I am not safe”) and the positive belief you want to install in its place (“I did the best I could,” “The danger is over”). These measurements give your therapist a way to track your progress throughout the session and across the course of treatment.
Phases 4 Through 6: Reprocessing
This is the core of EMDR therapy. Using bilateral stimulation, your therapist guides you through sets of eye movements, taps, or tones while you hold the target memory in awareness. The bilateral stimulation helps your brain reprocess the memory, reducing its emotional charge and allowing it to be filed away as something that happened in the past rather than something that feels like it is still happening now.
During desensitization (Phase 4), your distress rating drops as the memory loses its grip. During installation (Phase 5), the positive belief is strengthened until it feels genuinely true, not just intellectually accurate. During the body scan (Phase 6), your therapist checks for any residual physical tension or discomfort associated with the memory, because trauma is stored in the body as well as the mind.
Phases 7 and 8: Closure and Reevaluation
Every session ends with a closure process designed to ensure you leave in a stable state, even if the memory has not been fully reprocessed yet. Your therapist will guide you through grounding and stabilization before you walk out the door. At the start of the next session, the reevaluation phase checks in on what has shifted since the last appointment: new insights, dreams, or emotional responses that emerged between sessions.
It Is Normal to Feel More Before You Feel Better
One of the things we tell every client before reprocessing begins: EMDR targets the raw, unprocessed data of the trauma. That means there may be periods during treatment, particularly in the early phases, when you feel heightened emotional sensitivity. Memories, feelings, or body sensations that you had pushed down may surface between sessions.
This is not a sign that treatment is going wrong. It is a sign that your brain is beginning to move material that has been stuck. Skilled EMDR clinicians focus heavily on the preparation phase precisely for this reason, equipping you with robust coping tools before the active processing begins so you have the resources to manage the temporary intensity.
If you experience emotional rawness between sessions, use the grounding skills you practiced in Phase 2. Reach out to your support network. And bring whatever came up to your next session, because it is often clinically meaningful.
How to Prepare for Your First EMDR Session
There are several things you can do before treatment begins that will support the process.
First, understand that your brain wants to heal. The Adaptive Information Processing model that EMDR is built on holds that your mind has a natural drive toward resolution and integration. EMDR does not impose healing from the outside. It removes the obstacles that have been preventing your brain from doing what it already knows how to do. Holding that framework can reduce the fear of the unknown that many clients carry into their first session.
Second, identify your support network before you start. Know who you can call or text if you feel emotionally activated between sessions. This does not mean you will need to, but knowing the resource is there provides a layer of safety.
Third, begin practicing grounding on your own. Simple mindfulness exercises, guided imagery, or even a few minutes of focused breathing each day can build your capacity for emotional regulation before your therapist introduces more structured techniques. Think of it as warming up before a workout.
Fourth, take care of your physical health. Adequate sleep, proper nutrition, and hydration all support the neurological work your brain does during EMDR. Sessions are cognitively demanding, and your brain will process more effectively when your body is well-resourced.
Finally, consider keeping a journal during treatment. New insights, vivid dreams, and unexpected emotional responses often emerge between sessions, and they can be easy to forget by the time your next appointment arrives. A brief log of what came up gives your therapist valuable information about how your processing is progressing.
What Makes EMDR Different
EMDR is recognized as a brief therapy, meaning that many clients experience significant relief in fewer sessions than traditional talk therapy requires. Research shows that over 80% of people with single-event trauma experience substantial relief from PTSD symptoms after a short course of treatment. For complex trauma involving multiple or prolonged experiences, the timeline is longer, but the approach remains highly effective.
What sets EMDR apart from other therapeutic approaches is that it does not require you to talk in detail about the traumatic event, complete homework assignments between sessions, or challenge your beliefs through extended verbal analysis. The bilateral stimulation does much of the heavy lifting at a neurological level, allowing your brain to reprocess the memory in ways that talking about it alone cannot achieve.
EMDR does not erase your memories. You will still remember what happened. But the emotional sting, the sense that the event is still happening, the physical activation your body produces when the memory surfaces: those diminish. The memory moves from feeling like an open wound to feeling like a scar. You can see where it was. It no longer hurts when you touch it.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Safe Place in EMDR?
The Safe Place (sometimes called the Calm Place) is a mental stabilization tool developed during Phase 2 of treatment. It is an internal resource, a detailed visualization of a place where you feel completely safe and calm, that you can access at any point during or between sessions to de-escalate emotional distress. Your therapist will help you build and strengthen this resource before reprocessing begins.
How do I know if I am ready for reprocessing?
You are ready when you and your therapist agree that you have sufficient grounding tools, including techniques like the Container exercise and the Safe Place, to manage the temporary emotional intensity that reprocessing can produce. Your therapist will not move into active processing until both of you feel confident in your preparation.
What is bilateral stimulation?
Bilateral stimulation (BLS) refers to the rhythmic left-right stimulation used during EMDR reprocessing. This can take the form of guided eye movements (following your therapist’s fingers or a light bar), tactile taps (holding small buzzers that alternate between hands), or auditory tones delivered through headphones. The bilateral stimulation helps your brain process traumatic memories that have been neurologically “stuck.”
How is progress measured?
Therapists use two primary scales. The SUD (Subjective Units of Disturbance) measures your level of distress related to the target memory on a scale of 0 to 10. The VOC (Validity of Cognition) measures how strongly you believe the positive cognition you are installing, rated from 1 (completely false) to 7 (completely true). Together, these scales give both you and your therapist a clear picture of how the processing is progressing.
EMDR Therapy in Lakewood and Longmont, Colorado
At Self Care Impact Counseling, our team includes EMDRIA-trained EMDR therapists who specialize in trauma, PTSD, anxiety, and the kind of complex presentations that require careful pacing and clinical skill. We offer EMDR therapy at our offices in Lakewood and Longmont, as well as online sessions for anyone in Colorado.
We invite you to call us at 720-551-4553 for a free 20-minute phone consultation, or try our Find-Your-Therapist tool to get matched with an EMDR therapist who fits your needs. You can also reach us through the contact page on our website.
Self Care Impact Counseling envisions a new age of counseling for adolescents, adults, couples and groups that makes a REAL difference with core values of GROWTH | BALANCE | COMPASSION | INNER HARMONY.
About the Author
Alayna Baillod, LCSW, is a Clinical Supervisor and the Owner of Self Care Impact Counseling. She is an EMDRIA Approved EMDR Consultant and EMDR Therapist, extensively trained in Gottman Couples Therapy, Emotion-Focused Therapy (EFT), DBT, Somatic Therapy, Internal Family Systems (IFS), and Attachment Theory. Alayna specializes in couples counseling, EMDR trauma therapy, and codependency recovery. Find your therapist here.
