EMDR Intensives
What it is:
An EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) Weekend Intensive is an immersive therapeutic experience designed to help individuals process and heal from trauma or distressing experiences in a short amount of time. This intensive format allows participants to engage in several focused therapy sessions over the course of a weekend, typically lasting a day and a half to two days, with breaks in between for rest and reflection. These intensives are designed to accomplish about 3 months worth of therapy work in a single weekend.
What to Expect:
During the weekend, participants work with a trained EMDR therapist to address past traumatic events or persistent emotional struggles that are interfering with their daily lives. The therapist uses the EMDR method, which involves guiding the client through specific eye movements or bilateral stimulation while revisiting distressing memories. This process helps the brain reprocess and integrate the memories in a healthier way, reducing emotional charge and alleviating symptoms like anxiety, depression, and PTSD. These intensives are run by Stephanie Moore, LPC-MH, QMHP, who is trained in EMDR, once per quarter throughout the year. Other therapists from Moore Counseling group are also present to help people process if they become overwhelmed or stuck on a topic and are unable to calm down.
The intensive structure is ideal for individuals seeking to make significant progress in a concentrated period, often for those who are unable to attend weekly therapy sessions due to time constraints, or prefer to do traditional psychotherapy during weekly meetings or those wishing to address deeply rooted trauma more quickly. The weekend typically includes:
- Pre-session assessment: A discussion with the therapist to understand the client’s history, goals, and current challenges.
- Multiple therapy sessions: Intensive, focused EMDR sessions, focusing on group work with the option to step away with another counselor if you become overwhelmed.
- Guided processing: EMDR techniques involving bilateral stimulation (often in the form of eye movements, tapping, or auditory cues) to help clients process trauma-related memories.
- Integration activities: Opportunities for clients to reflect on their experiences, with emotional support and grounding exercises to help integrate the work done during the weekend.
- Post-session support: Follow-up guidance to ensure that clients can process any lingering emotions and make the most of the therapeutic breakthroughs.
This intensive experience provides a powerful opportunity for healing in a supportive, contained setting, and it is particularly helpful for individuals who are ready for deep emotional work and prefer a more condensed approach. Although this work is done in a group setting there is no sharing of traumatic events, and no one is required to share anything during the intensive if they are not comfortable.
