EMDR THERAPY IN FALLS CHURCH, VA

You may understand what happened and still feel it in your body

Sometimes insight is not enough. You may know that an experience is over and still find yourself reacting as though it is happening again. A memory, conversation, or situation may bring up fear, shame, anger, or a physical response that feels difficult to control.

EMDR is one approach that can help you work with distressing experiences and the beliefs, emotions, and body responses connected to them.

In-person in Falls Church and online throughout Virginia.

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WHAT IS EMDR?

EMDR helps you work with experiences that still feel present.

EMDR stands for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. It is a structured therapy approach that helps people process distressing experiences and the beliefs, emotions, and body responses connected to them.

During EMDR, we identify experiences that still carry distress and use bilateral stimulation, such as guided eye movements or alternating taps, as part of the processing work.

The goal is not to erase what happened or make you forget it. The goal is for the experience to feel less immediate, less emotionally charged, and less likely to take over the present.

EMDR IS MORE THAN EYE MOVEMENTS

The work includes preparation, processing, and making sure you have enough support along the way.

EMDR is a structured process. Before any trauma processing begins, we spend time understanding what is bringing you to therapy, identifying what feels most important to address, and making sure you have enough support and stability for the work.

Processing is only one part of EMDR. Preparation, pacing, and checking in about how you are responding matter just as much.

WHAT THE PROCESS MAY LOOK LIKE

EMDR is structured, but the pace is individualized.

01 / ASSESSMENT

Understanding your history and goals

We begin by understanding what brings you to therapy, what you are experiencing now, and which memories, beliefs, or situations may be connected to the distress.

02 / PREPARATION

Building resources and readiness

Before processing, we build resources and make sure you have ways to manage distress. The amount of preparation needed can vary, especially when trauma has been ongoing or relational.

03 / PROCESSING

Working with the memory and what is connected to it

When it feels appropriate, we may use bilateral stimulation while working with a specific memory, belief, emotion, or body response. You remain present and able to communicate throughout the process.

04 / INTEGRATION

Checking in on what has shifted

We look at what has changed, what still needs attention, and how the work is showing up outside of session. EMDR may be one part of a broader treatment plan rather than a stand-alone intervention.

EMDR & COMPLEX TRAUMA

When trauma happened over time, the work may need to move differently.

When difficult experiences happened repeatedly or within important relationships, there may not be one single memory to process. The work may involve patterns, beliefs, body responses, and relationship dynamics that developed over time.

In those cases, preparation can be especially important. We may spend more time building resources, understanding triggers, and helping you feel grounded before moving into deeper processing.

EMDR can be integrated with somatic approaches, parts work, attachment-based therapy, and other strategies when that better fits what you need.

WHAT THERAPY WITH ME IS LIKE

Therapy with me is warm, collaborative, and grounded in curiosity rather than judgment. I pay attention not only to what happened, but also to the patterns your nervous system, relationships, and environment may have taught you to carry.

As a Black therapist, I also understand that trauma does not happen in a vacuum. Race, culture, family roles, community expectations, and identity can shape how you learned to cope, what you were expected to carry, and what felt safe to express. I bring that lens into EMDR and trauma therapy without assuming that any one experience defines you.

If we use EMDR, we will move at a pace that supports safety and regulation. I pay close attention to shifts in your body, emotions, and nervous system so the work is not simply about “getting through” difficult memories but helping your system respond differently to them.

EMDR FAQ

What you may be wondering about EMDR.

  • Not necessarily. EMDR does not require you to describe every detail of an experience. We will still talk enough to understand what you are working on, develop a treatment plan, and make sure the approach is appropriate for you..

  • No. EMDR is a different type of psychotherapy. You remain awake, aware, and able to communicate throughout the session.

  • EMDR can still be part of treatment, but the work may move more slowly and include more preparation. When trauma happened over time or within important relationships, we may also work with patterns, beliefs, body responses, and relationship dynamics that developed over time.

  • There is no set number that applies to everyone. The length of treatment depends on your history, current concerns, goals, and the complexity of what we are addressing. We will regularly check in about what is helping and what may need to change.

  • Yes. I may integrate EMDR with somatic approaches, parts work, attachment-based therapy, CBT, or other strategies when that better fits your needs.