Why I LOVE intensive EMDR
Even if it is are wildly scary
What is an intensive session?
An intensive EMDR session is a therpay session that lasts all day/ several hours. Because EMDR is not talk therapy and because it alters your brain patterns this can be done in chunks of time instead of hourly sessions. This allows for your brain to process all at once instead of in chunks of time.
EMDR is a type of therapy that uses bilateral stimulation. What the heck is that? It is utilizing both sides of your brain. This can be done with buzzers that you hold in your hands, which vibrate back and forth, eye movement following a light that goes back and forth, or utilizing headphones with a tone that goes back and forth in your ears (I don’t use the sounds very much honestly). Yes it is weird. It also works very well and has a bunch of science backing it, so I have decided to embrace the weird.
Intensive therapy in this context does not mean you need more care or are “ worse off than you thought.” It’s just a different modality.
What is it like for you as a person receiving the intensive treatment?
We will start with a one hour intake. In this session I will learn about your goals and expectations. We will discuss all your hopes and dreams for signing up for this wild journey. We will discuss what you are struggling with as well as what you would like your life to look like. Hopefully, in this session, you will get a little feel for me and my vibe to make sure you like me. We will also begin to understand your nervous system and reactions. We will use this in our session; it gives you a kick start into healing.
We will then schedule a one-hour session. This session is designed so that you can get to know the therapy, me, and yourself. We will begin the healing process in this session. If you hate it, we part ways and I refer you somewhere else. If you want to try more before your intensive, great we can do that too. When you're ready, we plan the day. I don’t push this, I know it can be scary. I simply offer it.
We will schedule a chunk of time to continue working on this topic. This is typically a 4 or 6 hour session. We will take breaks throughout the day to stretch our legs, eat, drink water, etc.
My clients who do intensives say that it is way scarier than you it actually is. I am not going to lie and say it is a super enjoyable day, but it does foster great amounts of change that sticks throughout your life. You will leave tired and with “alot to think about.” As it settles in 24-48 hour you will start to notice changes in your reactions to day to day tasks.
Therapy is exhausting anyway why not cram it all into one day? :)
At the end of the day we will schedule a follow up session for 1-2 weeks out depending on your preference.
What intensives are like for me?
I absolutely love doing intensives.
A mentor of mine once said the best way to treat burnout is doing good work, and I can absolutely 100% agree with this. When I know my work makes changes it gives me energy. Who doesn’t like being good at what they do?
I get to see lasting changes very quickly with intensives. I get to sit with the yuck without having to start it and stop it in chunks wondering what will happen next. Plus, that ’s energy is all I am holding for the day. I get to see it shift and change with the skills I have learned after all these years. I get to hold the hope because I know this works.
At points, it is hard for me, too, but I have seen change happen, so it is way easier for me to trust the process and sit in it than it is for the other person in the room.
I love intensives because they work and they work well. It’s not just quick it sticks. It allows people to move on with life and only call me when they need me again.
