When I began practicing therapy, I made a commitment that I would never use an intervention that I had not first tried out myself. I have to really believe in and experience the effectiveness of an intervention before I feel right bringing it to the people who come to me for help.

During my second day of EMDR training, the instructor asked us to turn to the person next to us, think of a “small t” trauma (an upsetting experience that we would rate as a 2 or 3 on a scale of 0-10 where 10 is the most distressing) and begin to practice the simple beginnings of EMDR therapy we’d learned so far. My “small t,” low level, recent experience quickly brought me back to a much more distressing, very old memory.

Even though my training partner was as yet fairly unskilled, the basics of EMDR therapy she used enabled me to let go completely of a long-held childhood trauma. It turned out that particular trauma was attached to difficulties I’d been having as an adult. Before that day I’d been unaware of the connection. After completing the training, I found a certified EMDR therapist and continued to process other distressing childhood experiences.

A skeptic by nature, I could hardly believe I’d experienced such profound healing of my old traumas (and so quickly), but there was no way I could deny what I’d experienced with EMDR therapy.

I completed the required 50 hours of EMDR training and consultation in 2016 and became a certified EMDR therapist in January 2019. Certification in EMDR therapy requires an additional 12 hours of training beyond the 50 hours of basic training, 20 hours of consultation, a minimum 50 hours of experience with 25 different clients, and 3 letters of recommendation. Certification lets you know that your EMDR therapist has gone above and beyond the basic training, uses EMDR regularly, and has a commitment to attend ongoing trainings.

I’m also trained in Attachment Focused EMDR Therapy, which adapts the traditional protocol in ways that I believe make it more heart-centered and effective, as well as more relevant for those who suffer with symptoms of C-PTSD (sometimes called complex, developmental or attachment trauma).

Since I began using EMDR therapy to help my clients heal their traumas, big and small, I’ve been humbled and awed again and again as I’ve witnessed such deep, profound healing of old wounds for so many people. Many of these people had tried different kinds of therapy for years and had given up hope of ever feeling “normal” again.

Over the years, I’ve seen many people show up at my office suffering from sometimes debilitating symptoms of PTSD or C-PTSD and after EMDR therapy, leave having completely resolved the underlying traumas that caused their symptoms. Here are just a few of symptoms I’ve seen resolve: teeth grinding, migraines, insomnia, nightmares and panic attacks.