What Is EMDR?
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is an evidence-based treatment for safely processing traumatic experiences. It's one of the most extensively researched and validated treatments for trauma, and it works differently from traditional talk therapy.
How Trauma Gets Stuck
When an event is too distressing, it overwhelms our brains' natural process of healing from trauma and safely filing those memories into "the past." The memory of that trauma gets stuck in "the present," continually triggered by experiences in our daily life which our unconscious identifies as similar - a sound, a sensation, a situation - and therefore dangerous, even when they're not.
We then relive the intense emotions and distorted thoughts from the original event rather than experiencing the current event for what it actually is. For example, our current partner is kind and loving, but because our brain is unable to integrate this new information (that relationships can be safe), we find ourselves struggling with intimacy and trust, reacting as if he or she were a previous, abusive partner.
We can intellectually know something is in the past yet still feel like it's happening right now. EMDR is a way to speak to our emotional self with the support and reason of our logical self.
How EMDR Works
During EMDR, your eyes follow a guided movement (bilateral stimulation) that engages both hemispheres of your brain. This allows you to access a traumatic memory without reliving it. As if you're watching a movie of it rather than being trapped inside it. Like re-cutting a movie, you can edit your memory to tell a different story. We're not changing the memory; we're updating its meaning, and with that, the memory's power over you.
Maybe you know exactly what memory you want to process. Maybe you aren't sure, but you know you're experiencing anxiety in certain situations or around certain thoughts ("the future" is a very common one). Maybe you want to try EMDR, but there are certain memories you want to make sure we don't touch. With EMDR, you are completely in control of what memories we target and which we avoid. The process is client-directed and paced to your comfort level.
To learn more about the science of EMDR, visit the EMDR International Association.
What EMDR Can Help With
What to Expect
Memories that were once intensely disturbing to recall may eventually be brought up with ease. More importantly, events in your current life that used to trigger those memories can now be experienced as what they actually are: present-moment experiences, not re-enactments of the past.
EMDR doesn't erase memories. It changes your relationship to them - so they no longer control your emotional responses, your sleep, your relationships, or your sense of safety.
My EMDR Training
I completed EMDR training through an EMDRIA-approved program, meeting the gold standard for trauma treatment certification. EMDR is central to my practice and is often integrated with other therapeutic modalities depending on the client's needs.
I provide EMDR in person at my Hermosa Beach office in the South Bay area of Los Angeles; at locations of your choice (such as home or office) in a concierge capacity; and via secure telehealth throughout California, including greater Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Diego, and Sacramento.
If this sounds like what you're looking for, let's talk.
Your Therapist
Alex Douglas, LCSW 127148
15+ years in entertainment before becoming a therapist. EMDRIA-approved EMDR training. LGBTQIA+ affirmative.