go beyond traditional talk therapy.

EMDR therapy in Fairfax, VA

You’ve tried everything you can think of to feel better, but nothing’s sticking.

Maybe you’ve been to therapy before, and logically you “get it.” You know what you’re supposed to do to feel better, but even when you try to “logic yourself” out of how you’re feeling with the tools you’ve learned in the past, it just isn’t working. I hear people say all the time, “Intellectually I get it. But emotionally I can’t seem to stop feeling this way.”

But you’re still feeling…

Consumed by your past negative experiences

Disconnected in your relationships

Overwhelmed by simple every day tasks

EMDR therapy can help you gain a sense of peace and acceptance with your past.

EMDR is an evidence-based treatment that helps people recover from past experiences. EMDR uses bilateral stimulation of the brain (typically with eye movements) while simultaneously briefly focusing on the unpleasant or traumatic memory. This process is associated with a reduction in the intensity, vividness, and emotional response of the memory. After completing an EMDR session, clients will be able recall the memory without feeling as activated as they were previously.

  • EMDR uses bilateral stimulation of the brain (usually eye movements or tapping) to reprocess distressing memories so that they are re-stored in your brain in a way that is less upsetting.

  • Together we will identify the event(s) or memories that are causing you distress, the associated negative belief you hold about yourself (for example, “I’m not good enough”) and reprocess these memories in a supported, safe way to reduce their intensity and allow you to access them with more control and emotional regulation.

  • EMDR can help everybody. If you’ve had a traumatic event or a history of abuse, it can help you reprocess these memories so that you do not feel as activated by them.

    If you haven’t had “trauma,” it can still help you. Everyone has negative beliefs about themselves, like “I’m not good enough” or “I’m powerless.” EMDR can help change these negative beliefs to be more adaptive, like “I am enough” or “I can control what I can.” These small tweaks in your thinking lead to massive changes in your daily life.

At the end of the day, I want you to know:

Your past does not have to define your present. Whatever you have gone through, it is possible to feel at peace.

Is EMDR right for you?

EMDR is a good fit for you if you…

  • Have experienced a traumatic event(s)

  • Are struggling with the impacts of motherhood (adjusting, feeling guilty all the time, feeling like you’re not good enough, etc)

  • Notice patterns in your relationship that keep you from feeling fulfilled and secure

  • Feel stuck, even though intellectually you understand what’s going on and can make sense of it

What we’ll work on

With EMDR, you can…

Finally heal past wounds that are affecting your day to day life

Learn how to show up in your relationships in a way that feels good

No longer feel controlled by negative beliefs about yourself

Gain new coping skills to be the best version of yourself

Your story is welcome here.

Your story is welcome here.

Questions?

FAQs

  • EMDR was developed to treat people suffering from PTSD and trauma. However, it has been found to be effective with so many issues, including but not limited to anxiety, depression, stress management, low self-esteem, social anxiety, and more.

  • So was I! I actually signed up for my EMDR training to prove it was BS. But after learning about the model, experiencing it myself, and now having used with clients for almost four years, I can say with confidence that it works (oftentimes much more quickly than traditional talk therapy!).

  • This varies person to person, and depends on frequency and duration of sessions. During our first session we will work together to identify your goals and the focus of treatment. Then we will take a session or two to develop healthy coping skills to use in between our EMDR sessions to help you feel more in control and emotionally regulated, and then we will make our plan of memories/events to process with EMDR. After that, we start the actual EMDR processing. Sometimes, we work through an entire memory in one session, and other times it takes more than one session. Regardless, my goal for you is that you feel better about the identified memory by the end of every session.