EMDR con EUGE

What is EMDR · The method

EMDR therapy, explained

A complete psychotherapeutic model, not a loose technique. Recommended by the WHO and by the UK’s NICE guidelines.

María Eugenia Buceta Mompó, psychologist

The model

What it is, and what it isn’t

EMDR therapy (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) is a psychotherapeutic model in eight phases. Bilateral stimulation comes later: first comes your history, understanding what brings you here, and building resources. Reprocessing begins after that.

It is a process, not a series of short, self-contained sessions. How long it takes depends on the person and on what they bring.

It is used to process memories that still hurt, and also in the opposite direction: to install resources, strengthen achievements and build skills.

It is effective in treating post-traumatic stress, anxiety, phobias and other emotional difficulties, and it is recommended by the World Health Organization and by the UK's NICE guidelines.

How it works

How does EMDR therapy work?

EMDR focuses on the memories that disturb a person's life today.

The work is organised in eight phases. The first ones are given over to clinical history, preparation and building resources; bilateral stimulation comes later, once there is a base to sustain it. Emotional stability is looked after before, during and after.

The model that explains why it works is adaptive information processing: when a memory is filed badly, it keeps producing symptoms in the present, and reprocessing reorganises it in a healthier way.

During reprocessing the therapist intervenes as little as possible. It is your own system that reorders the information. I accompany the process, I don't direct it.

Duration

How long does treatment take?

There's no number. When something is promised in six sessions, EMDR is being treated as a technique rather than as what it is: a psychotherapeutic model. Every case is different, and we assess the length together as we go.

What is more fixed is the frequency: weekly, or fortnightly in some cases. Less than that isn't recommended, because the process needs continuity to be effective and safe.

Traumatic event vs. trauma

Not every hard event in life turns into a trauma.

A traumatic event is any situation that overwhelms us emotionally, such as an accident, a significant loss, an experience of violence or a natural disaster. It doesn't necessarily leave a lasting mark on the nervous system.

Trauma happens when the brain can't process that event. Francine Shapiro, who created EMDR, described it as information that gets "stuck" in the nervous system. The experience doesn't integrate with the rest, and the person keeps reliving the distress through intrusive memories, nightmares or physical symptoms, even when the danger has passed. It can get in the way of daily life.

The same event affects people differently. Some process it and move on. Others develop a trauma, depending on their personal history, their age, the support around them and whether it happened more than once.

EMDR helps "unlock" these stuck memories so the brain can process and store them adaptively. The person can then remember what happened without the same distress.

A butterfly with black and red wings resting on green leaves

Before you choose

How to verify an EMDR therapist

If you’re looking for EMDR treatment or training, make sure to consult therapists accredited by EMDR Argentina or other official organizations. This specialization is only open to psychologists and psychiatrists.

EMDR Argentina, EMDR Iberoamérica, EMDR Europe and EMDR U.S.A. are national and regional associations in the Global EMDR Alliance. They are what guarantee the training of accredited professionals.

Frequently asked questions

Will I have to tell you everything that happened to me?

Not necessarily. We work with what you can and want to tell, at your own pace. EMDR doesn't need you to narrate the detail of what you lived through in order to work on it.

I've done therapy before and felt stuck. Is this different?

It's a different kind of therapy. It isn't my place to say EMDR is better or worse than the approach you did before. It's different.

And if you're in a process with another therapist, EMDR can work alongside it. In those cases I work as a team with whoever is accompanying you, and with your psychiatrist if you have one.

Does it help if nothing serious happened to me?

Yes. EMDR distinguishes two kinds. Trauma with a capital T is a single serious event, such as an accident or an experience of violence. Trauma with a lowercase t is situations that don't look serious on their own but leave a mark when sustained over time: pressure that never eases, constant criticism, the sense that it's never enough.

Both are worked with.

Do you use specific protocols?

Yes. EMDR has protocols adapted to special populations such as children and adolescents, couples, complex trauma and dissociative disorders, eating disorders, addictive behaviours, people living with pain, war survivors, and more.

What if I get distressed during a session?

It can happen, and it's to be expected. Reprocessing stirs emotional material: during or after a session there may be distress, more tiredness, vivid dreams or intense bodily sensations. These effects are usually temporary, though I can't tell you in advance how it will go in your case.

That's why the first phases of the work are preparation: before reprocessing anything we build resources, and those resources stay available during and after. If something stirs between sessions, I want to know. That is part of the process too.

Can I do EMDR if I'm on medication?

Yes. And if you're already under psychiatric treatment, so much the better: I can work jointly with your psychiatrist so that both approaches pull in the same direction.

All I ask is that you follow your doctor's instructions and tell me if anything changes in your medication.

Might you suggest I see a psychiatrist?

It can happen. If you're doing psychological treatment only and at some point I judge that adding a psychiatric consultation would help you, I'll raise it and we'll talk it through.

It isn't a requirement to start. It's part of working carefully, and it's covered in the informed consent we go over at the beginning.

Still have a question?

That's what the first session is for: we talk it through and see whether EMDR is right for you.

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