What is Online Adjunctive EMDR?

Sometimes, no matter how hard you're working in therapy, a specific fear, memory, or body response keeps showing up. You’ve made progress, but something still feels stuck.

Adjunctive EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) offers a focused, shorter-term way to work through that stuck point. It’s designed to complement the therapy you’re already doing, not replace it. You don’t need to switch therapists or start over. This is about zooming in on a particular trauma, pattern, or response that’s getting in the way, so you can move forward with more clarity and capacity.

This approach is best suited for people who are already in therapy, highly motivated, and ready to engage in more targeted trauma work. Most importantly, it’s your choice. Trauma therapy only works when you’re in the driver’s seat. You get to decide if and when this work feels right.

What Makes Adjunctive EMDR with Me Different

My approach is grounded in deep respect for your identity, your history, and your internal system. This isn’t just about following a protocol. It’s about building a connection with yourself to make trauma reprocessing happen. Here’s what you can expect:

• An LGBTQ+ affirming and culturally attuned space
  As someone with lived experience as a queer person and immigrant, I know firsthand how important it is to have a therapist who truly sees and honors your full self. You deserve care that doesn’t just tolerate who you are, but affirms it. A place where you can explore your unique, nuanced, and complex experience of being human.

• Integration of Internal Family Systems (IFS) and EMDR
  We won’t bulldoze your trauma responses. Instead, we’ll take time to listen to all the parts of you—not just the one that wants to move forward, but also the parts that might feel scared, protective, or unsure. Getting full consent from your internal system is central to how I work.

• A focus on building your capacity for joy, humor, and internal care
  Trauma work is hard, but it doesn’t have to be bleak. Together, we’ll look for small moments of relief, lightness, and connection. These glimmers of joy matter, and we’ll build rituals to return to them.

Is This Right for You?

Adjunctive EMDR might be a good fit if:

• You’ve recently experienced something traumatic, like an accident, assault, or medical event

• You’re in recovery from an eating disorder or substance use and are working hard on developing new behaviors; trauma reprocessing may be a missing link to enhance this work

• You’re making progress in therapy, but trauma symptoms or anxiety keep interrupting your growth
  

This approach may not be appropriate right away if you’re experiencing significant dissociation, actively using substances, or recovering from a traumatic brain injury. If that’s the case, we can either work together on stabilization or I’ll recommend continuing with your primary therapist until your system feels more ready. If you are unsure if this applies to you, schedule a free 15 minute consult and we can explore that together.

What’s the Process Like?

1. Free 15-Minute Phone Consultation
   We’ll talk about your goals, I’ll share a bit about how I work, and we’ll decide together whether this approach feels right for you.

2. Talk to Your Primary Therapist
   You’ll bring it up with your current therapist. They may offer helpful insight and can help support your process.

3. Sign a Release of Information (ROI)
   With your permission, I’ll speak briefly with your therapist to learn more about your goals and therapy journey. This helps me tailor our work and make sure EMDR is a good fit.

4. Check Insurance Eligibility and Sort Out Payment
   I accept several insurance plans, and my billing coordinator can check if I’m in-network. We can also talk through self-pay options.

5. Initial Intake Session
   This will feel similar to a therapy intake, but more focused. I’ll ask about what’s been coming up for you and we’ll co-create a treatment plan that feels realistic and grounded.

6. Resourcing and Preparation (Phase 2 of EMDR)
   We start by strengthening your ability to feel grounded and safe. I use Internal Family Systems (IFS or “parts work”) to explore different aspects of your internal world. Some parts may be excited to move forward, while others might feel hesitant or scared. We’ll make sure all parts of you are on board before we begin trauma reprocessing.

7. Identifying Targets
   Together, we’ll trace current challenges back to earlier experiences that shaped how your brain and body learned to respond. Often, the first time you felt a certain way becomes a kind of mental template. These early memories become the focus of EMDR.

8. Reprocessing (Phases 3–8 of EMDR)
   Using bilateral stimulation (like eye movements, tapping, or tones), we help your nervous system process unresolved survival responses. This doesn’t erase what happened. Instead, it helps shift the emotional intensity and loosen the grip of trauma responses. At the end of each session, we’ll spend the final 10 minutes grounding, reconnecting with internal resources, and containing what came up. This supports you in re-entering your day feeling more settled.

9. Collaboration with Your Therapist
   You may continue working with your primary therapist during this process or return to them afterward. I’ll share optional handouts with them and, if helpful, we can occasionally check in to make sure you’re supported on all sides.

10. Listening to Your Nervous System
    If a part of you decides it’s not ready to move forward, we honor that. This isn’t failure. It’s wisdom. Sometimes the most important thing we can do is listen and slow down.

11. Closure and Integration
    By the end of our work, many clients report feeling more grounded, less triggered, and more present in their relationships and therapy. We’ll reflect on your progress and celebrate the strength it took to show up for this work.

Are There Side-Effects?

EMDR is powerful. Some people feel tired, emotionally raw, or stirred up after sessions. You might experience vivid dreams, physical sensations like nausea or dizziness, or temporary mood changes. These are signs that your system is processing deeply.

To support you, we always end our sessions with 10 minutes of grounding, containment, and reconnecting with something positive. This helps you move into the rest of your day with more ease and regulation. We will also check-in at the start of your next session to talk about how it is going between sessions.

Please keep me informed about how your body is responding; this is valuable information that can guide our next steps and can be an entry point for our reprocessing. In EMDR, listening to your body is incredibly important!

What Are the Benefits?

Every person responds differently, and there are no guaranteed outcomes. That said, many clients experience:

• Decreased trauma and anxiety symptoms

• Fewer panic attacks or intrusive thoughts

• Less avoidance or emotional numbing

• More confidence, clarity, and self-trust

• A stronger capacity to feel present in relationships and therapy

This work can help you feel more present in your life; not controlled by your past, but rooted in the present.

You Deserve To Move Forward In A Way That Honors Your Full Self

You are not broken. Your responses make sense. And integration and relief are possible.

If a specific trauma, fear, or memory keeps getting in the way, Adjunctive EMDR might be the missing piece. This process is collaborative, compassionate, and deeply rooted in honoring who you are.

If you are not currently with a therapist, then we can build a more comprehensive treatment plan that utilizes EMDR for you!

Click here to schedule a free consultation or reach out with any questions. I’d be honored to walk with you through this part of your therapeutic journey.