If you're struggling with traumatic experiences or troubling memories, we invite you to consider trying EMDR therapy to help you find healing and relief. EMDR works by stimulating the brain's natural healing processes through a series of guided eye movements or other forms of bilateral stimulation. It is completely non-invasive and offers symptom relief. 

 

EMDR stands for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, and it's a technique that has been shown to be effective in treating a wide range of issues, including:

• Trauma

• PTSD

• Anxiety

• Depression

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We are currently offering EMDR Intensives. EMDR Intensives are a standalone service that can be completed alongside your individual sessions with your current therapist. An intensive course of EMDR has an extended length to allow for more complete processing that you would receive in weekly EMDR sessions.

 

If you are interested in learning more and to determine if an EMDR intensive is right for you, please schedule a free treatment consultation with our EMDR Intensive specialist, Amanda Nomicos, LAC by scrolling to the bottom of this page. 

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This therapy is often used as an adjunct to other types of therapies. 

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EMDR Intensives are effective for single event traumas such as:​

• Birth trauma

• Car accident

• Robbery

• Sexual assault

• Experiencing a sudden death

• First responder that sees trauma at work

• Relational Trauma

• Attachment Trauma

 

Here are the steps to completing an EMDR Intensive:

• You will complete a few questionnaires once scheduling that will give the therapist a better understanding about what you are going through.

  • An Intake with questions about what you want to work on

  • A assessment to assess for safety

  • The Dissociative Experiences Scale

  • A form about current coping skills

• You will schedule a 50-minute appointment with the therapist (included in cost) to create the treatment plan and review coping skills.

• Day of Intensive

  • Therapist will have snacks and drinks and will make sure there are adequate breaks.

  • You will spend the majority of the time reprocessing in accordance with the treatment plan created.

 

About Therapist:

Amanda Nomicos is a Licensed Associate Therapist. Amanda has completed EMDR basic training that was approved by EMDRIA which includes over 20 hours of training and consultation hours. She has also completed additional training in incorporating attachment theory and internal family systems into the EMDR standard protocol.

 

Why choose an EMDR intensive:

• Saves time and money

  • An intensive may be more money upfront but you are saving time in the long run. You will not have to make time for weekly EMDR sessions when you can have the possibility to get it done at one time.

• Works more quickly than standard therapy

  • A typical EMDR session is 50-55 minutes but not all of that time is spent in processing. There is the initial check-in for the session, recap, and deciding where to start. When all of that is done, you typically only have 25-30 minutes of processing time. With an intensive, you have 3-5 hours of processing time.

• You need more than traditional psychotherapy

  • Intensives can be done alongside traditional psychotherapy to assist in processing things you have felt stuck with in therapy.

 

Prices:

½ day Intensive Includes:

• 15 minute consultation

• 50 minute pre-intensive treatment planning appointment

• 3 hours on day of intensive

• Price: $600

Full day Intensive Includes:

• 15 minute consultation

• 50 minute pre-intensive treatment planning appointment

• 6 hours on day of intensive

• Price: $1100

 

Note: Insurance does not cover the cost of EMDR intensives.  Please expect that this will be a private pay service that is not reimbursed by your insurance company. However, you are able to use HSA cards and flex spending cards.

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The Process

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First, your therapist and you will determine if EMDR therapy is a good fit for you during the free treatment consultation. You will work with your therapist to develop a target sequence plan, which is built around a specific activating memory.

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You will then work with your therapist to identify the belief that is associated with the image (for example, this might be "I am not good enough" or "I cannot trust anyone")

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The next step is to identify a reprocessed belief that is typically intrinsic in nature (meaning you have the control - for example, "I am not good enough" might become "I am worthy being me.")

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You will use bilateral stimulation (BLS) while focusing on the negative event, belief, and the experience of the emotion in your body. The trauma does not need to be openly discussed with your therapist if you would prefer. 

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You will have full control to stop the session at any point. Our EMDR sessions last 53 minutes. There are 8 phases to this treatment as listed below: 

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Phase 1: History and Treatment Planning

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This phase generally takes 1-2 sessions. Your clinician will take a thorough history and develop a treatment plan. 

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Phase 2: Preparation

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You will likely not start EMDR on your first session. This is because it is important to learn techniques to manage distressing emotions that may come up through the EMDR process. Phase 2 includes learning nervous system calming skills and other skills that are taught in most other types of psychotherapy (such as paced diaphragmatic breathing and safe place). 

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Phase 3: Assessment

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In this phase, you will work with your clinician to create a target sequence plan. 

 

The first step is to choose the memory you would like to process. Next, with your clinician's guidance, you will identify a negative self-belief associated with the image (these fall into 5 categories, value (e.g. "I am unworthy"), safety (e.g. "I am in danger"), power ("I am powerless"), control ("I am not in control"), and responsibility ("It is all my fault"). You will then go through your past, present, and future to identify memories (and fears about the future) relating to the negative belief. 

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Next, you will choose a belief you would like to reprocess to - such as "I am worthy."  You will then go through your own past, present, and future to identify times when this has felt true. 

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Phase 4: Desensitization

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During this phase, you will use bilateral stimulation (such as moving your eyes back and forth or tapping on your knees) to desensitize the emotional intensity associated with the memory. You will continue this until your subjective unit of disturbance (SUD) level is 0 (meaning you experience no disturbance from the memory). 

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Phase 5: Installation

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The goal of this phase is to increase the strength of the positive belief. You will again use bilateral stimulation to help increase how true the new belief FEELS (such as "I am worthy."). 

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Phase 6: Body Scan

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After completing phase 5, the next step is to clear all body sensations associated with the trauma. You will continue the bilateral stimulation (e.g. eye movements) until all physical sensations are alleviated. 

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This is a very important step as research has found that information about traumatic events or experiences is stored in body memory (called motoric memory), rather than narrative memory (verbal, imagery associated with the event). When information in motoric memory is processed, it can then move to narrative memory for it to be verbalized and the physical symptoms disappear. An EMDR target memory is not considered healed until all body sensations and negative feelings associated with it disappear. 

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Phase 7: Closure

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This phase is completed at each treatment session. This ensures the patient leaves the end of each session feeling better than at the beginning. If desensitization is not complete at the end of a single session, calming techniques will be used to help the person achieve calm. You will also be briefed as to what to expect between sessions (e.g. ongoing processing). 

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Phase 8: Reevaluation

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This is the start of each session. You will reevaluate your progress in your treatment plan. 

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Schedule a FREE treatment consultation

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Select: Amanda Nomicos, LAC (our EMDR Intensive Specialist)

Select: BrainBody EMDR Intensive as the location

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