Understanding EMDR Therapy and the Different Ways It’s Offered
EMDR therapy often comes up in conversations about trauma, anxiety, and stress, but it isn’t always clear what it actually looks like in practice.
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) can take different forms, depending on the person and where they are in the healing process. For some, it’s part of ongoing therapy. For others, it’s explored through focused intensives or used as an adjunct alongside other approaches.
Here’s a clear, approachable overview of what EMDR therapy is, who it can support, and the different ways it may be offered—so it’s easier to understand how EMDR might fit into the larger picture of care.
Table of Contents
What Is EMDR Therapy?
Who EMDR Therapy Can Help
Ways EMDR Therapy Is Offered
Ongoing EMDR Therapy
Intensive EMDR Therapy
Adjunct EMDR Therapy
In-Person and Online EMDR Therapy
Choosing an Approach That Feels Supportive
Final Thoughts
What Is EMDR Therapy?
EMDR therapy, short for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, is an evidence-based approach to therapy that helps people process experiences that still feel unresolved or continue to affect daily life.
When something stressful, overwhelming, or frightening happens, the brain doesn’t always get the chance to fully process it. Instead, parts of the experience—memories, emotions, body sensations, or beliefs about oneself—can remain “stuck.” EMDR therapy works by helping the brain revisit and reprocess those experiences so they can settle and feel more integrated, rather than continuing to feel active or triggering.
During EMDR therapy, a therapist guides attention between the present moment and aspects of a past experience while using bilateral stimulation, such as eye movements, tapping, or alternating sounds. This process supports the brain’s natural ability to organize and make sense of what happened, without requiring someone to go into graphic detail or repeatedly retell the story.
As reprocessing occurs, experiences that once felt intense or overwhelming often begin to feel more distant and less emotionally charged. Many people notice changes not only in how they relate to past experiences, but also in how they respond to stress, emotions, and triggers in the present.
EMDR therapy isn’t about erasing memories or forcing anything to happen. Instead, it helps the nervous system recognize that an experience is over—and that the present moment is safer and more manageable than it once felt.
Who EMDR Therapy Can Help
EMDR therapy is used with a wide range of people and situations. While it’s often associated with trauma, EMDR is not limited to one age group, diagnosis, or life experience.
Depending on the setting and the therapist’s training, EMDR therapy may be used with:
Children, using developmentally appropriate, play-based adaptations
Teens, especially when experiences feel overwhelming or difficult to talk about
Adults, across many stages of life
Individuals, working through personal experiences or patterns
Couples, when EMDR is thoughtfully integrated into relational work
Groups, in certain therapeutic or structured settings
People may explore EMDR therapy for many reasons, including past experiences that continue to feel impactful, ongoing anxiety or panic, phobias, medical or developmental experiences, relationship wounds, or moments that felt particularly overwhelming or unresolved. EMDR is also sometimes considered by people who have tried other forms of therapy and are looking for a different way to approach experiences that continue to have an impact, even with insight.
Importantly, EMDR therapy is applied differently depending on the population and setting. The way it’s offered with a child, a teen, an adult, or within a couple or group setting can look very different. A trained EMDR therapist considers factors like age, readiness, goals, and support when deciding how EMDR may be used.
Ways EMDR Therapy Is Offered
EMDR therapy can take different forms depending on how treatment is structured. Rather than being delivered in a single, fixed way, EMDR is incorporated into therapy in a few distinct formats.
For some people, EMDR is integrated into ongoing therapy sessions over time. In other cases, it may be offered through more focused intensives that take place over a shorter period. EMDR can also be used as an adjunct approach, woven alongside other therapeutic work rather than serving as the primary focus. EMDR may be offered in different settings as well, including in-person or online. These options reflect differences in how EMDR is structured and delivered, rather than differences in effectiveness. Together, they offer flexibility in how EMDR fits into therapy overall.
Ongoing EMDR Therapy
Ongoing EMDR therapy takes place within the rhythm of regular therapy sessions. Rather than focusing exclusively on reprocessing, EMDR is introduced gradually and thoughtfully as part of a broader therapeutic relationship.
In this format, EMDR may be revisited across sessions depending on what is being explored at the time. Some sessions may focus on preparation, stabilization, or integration, while others may involve active EMDR processing. The pace unfolds over time, allowing space for reflection, support, and meaning-making between sessions.
Ongoing EMDR therapy can be a good fit for those who want EMDR to unfold within the continuity of a longer-term therapeutic relationship. It allows EMDR to be revisited, paused, or returned to as therapy evolves.
Intensive EMDR Therapy
EMDR intensives involve dedicating a longer block of time to focused EMDR work, rather than spreading sessions out over weeks or months. This format is often scheduled over one or several extended sessions, allowing for deeper immersion in the work within a shorter timeframe.
In an intensive, EMDR tends to be the primary focus of the time together. Preparation and follow-up support are still part of the process, but the structure allows for more sustained attention to specific targets or themes. This can be helpful when someone is looking to address a particular concern or has limited availability for weekly sessions.
EMDR intensives are not meant to replace ongoing therapy for everyone. Instead, they offer an alternative structure for those who prefer concentrated work or who are seeking a more time-limited approach. Some people choose intensives as a standalone experience, while others integrate them alongside ongoing therapy.
Adjunct EMDR Therapy
Adjunct EMDR therapy involves using EMDR in a supplemental, focused way rather than making it the central structure of treatment. In this format, EMDR is applied to specific moments, themes, or experiences, while the overall direction of therapy remains grounded in another primary approach.
Adjunct EMDR may be used to address a particular memory, belief, or reaction that has become relevant within the course of therapy. The work is typically brief and contained, with clear entry and exit points, rather than ongoing reprocessing over time.
This approach can be helpful when EMDR is used to address a specific aspect of the work without shifting the overall direction of therapy. It allows EMDR to address specific material without becoming the central focus of therapy.
In this way, adjunct EMDR functions as a specific intervention rather than a standalone modality, offering flexibility within an existing framework of care.
In-Person and Online EMDR Therapy
EMDR therapy can be offered both in person and online, and for many people, the difference comes down to access and comfort rather than the therapy itself.
In-person EMDR takes place in a shared physical space, which some people find grounding or reassuring, especially if being physically present with a therapist feels important. Online EMDR is provided through secure telehealth platforms and allows people to participate from their own space, which can be helpful for scheduling flexibility, distance, or mobility concerns.
Both formats can be effective when EMDR is provided by a trained therapist. While the experience may feel different, the core structure of EMDR remains the same. What tends to matter most is whether the setting aligns with someone’s circumstances and practical access needs.
Ultimately, choosing between in-person and online EMDR is less about which is “better” and more about what fits best within someone’s life and circumstances at the time.
Choosing an Approach That Feels Supportive
Deciding how to approach EMDR therapy doesn’t have to be immediate or definitive. Many people arrive with questions rather than a clear preference, and that’s often a natural place to start.
Different EMDR formats exist because people come to therapy with different circumstances, timelines, and levels of availability. Some approaches allow for gradual exploration, while others offer a more concentrated focus. These options aren’t meant to compete with one another—they simply offer different ways of engaging with the work.
It’s also common for preferences to shift over time. What feels appropriate at the beginning of therapy may look different later on, as goals become clearer or circumstances change. EMDR can be revisited, paused, or approached from a different angle as needed.
Working with a trained EMDR therapist allows space to talk through these considerations and adjust the approach along the way. Rather than needing to choose a path upfront, the process often unfolds through conversation, collaboration, and ongoing reflection.
Final Thoughts
Learning about EMDR therapy often brings up curiosity, questions, and a mix of reactions. That’s normal. EMDR can be a powerful tool and is meant to be approached thoughtfully. Whether EMDR becomes part of ongoing therapy, is explored through a more focused format, or is used alongside other work, the goal is the same—to support healing in a way that feels respectful of each person’s pace and experience. If EMDR is something you’re considering, having clear information can make the process feel less overwhelming.
Understanding what EMDR is and the different ways it can be offered is simply one step toward deciding whether it feels like the right fit, now or in the future. As with any therapeutic approach, the most important factor is working with a trained clinician who can help guide the process with care and intention.
Until next time, don’t forget to take care of yourself.
– – Catherine Alvarado, LMFT
About the Author
Catherine Alvarado, LMFT, is an EMDRIA Certified Therapist and EMDRIA Approved Consultant based in Redondo Beach, California, offering individual therapy to teens and adults through South Bay Psychotherapy & EMDR. She also co-owns Eunoia Wellness Studio, a collaborative space in Redondo Beach created to support holistic care. Her work attends to the thinking mind alongside emotional and bodily experience, with attention to how stress and life experiences are carried in the nervous system.
Catherine specializes in EMDR therapy and works with individuals navigating anxiety, panic, trauma, and patterns that feel difficult to shift, even with insight. EMDR is one part of a broader approach that helps connect past experiences with what shows up in the present, supporting greater ease, safety, and self-trust over time.
Her work is relational and reflective, often blending EMDR with somatic awareness and gentle exploration of inner experience. Therapy is approached as a space to slow things down, get curious, and build a more steady, trusting relationship with oneself.
She practices in Redondo Beach and offers both in-person and online therapy.
