An EMDR Workbook for Everyone

Self-Help EMDR Therapy?

Self-EMDR is a kind of radical notion, I’ll admit, but it’s time has come. You already know that EMDR (eye-movement desensitization and reprocessing) therapy works with the whole nervous system to resolve traumatic memories, turning nightmares into plain facts we can handle. It clarifies our thinking and comforts our feelings. And you may know that EMDR therapy helps with performance in arts, academics, and athletics. You might even know that EMDR transforms relationships, too, by targeting the underlying attachment trauma that makes it hard to truly connect. 

But did you know that you can harness the processing power of EMDR in self-help exercises at home? Self-EMDR exercises are designed to help you work through your worst memories so they no longer haunt you. 

I wrote this book to help my clients do some of their EMDR processing at home, between therapy sessions. These are exercises I typically give as homework. But I also wrote this book for therapists. We need to do our own trauma processing, and it’s often very difficult for helpers to get the help we need (for more on this, listen to the ReConceive podcast).

The Art of Self-EMDR for Trauma Recovery walks you through a simple framework for conducting your own trauma processing, whether in a therapy session with a licensed professional, between sessions, on your own, or maybe with a trusted friend.

What’s more, The Art of Self-EMDR shows you creative methods to make your processing easier, more powerful, and more enjoyable. It can be an art-inspired activity, and when you allow your creative brain to get involved, EMDR becomes easier.

Self-EMDR is not a substitute for therapy with a licensed mental health professional. You will most likely need to work with someone who can guide you in the parts of your recovery that are trickier, less straightforward, or call for a skilled witness. But knowing how to use some basic self-EMDR skills on your own may calm you when you get triggered and accelerate your change between sessions. 

This is a way to start.