What Is EMDR Therapy and How Does It Work?
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is an evidence-based psychotherapy approach that helps your brain process traumatic memories and distressing experiences. Unlike traditional talk therapy, EMDR uses bilateral stimulation—typically eye movements, but also taps or sounds—while you briefly focus on traumatic memories. This activates your brain’s natural healing mechanisms, allowing you to reprocess memories so they’re less emotionally disturbing. Research shows EMDR is highly effective for PTSD, with 77% of trauma survivors no longer meeting diagnostic criteria after treatment, and it works faster than many other approaches—often showing results in 6-12 sessions.
If you’ve been told you need to “talk through your trauma” but the thought of recounting painful memories for months makes you want to avoid therapy altogether, EMDR might be exactly what you need. This approach doesn’t require you to describe traumatic events in extensive detail or relive them for extended periods. Instead, EMDR works with how your brain naturally processes information—helping you move stuck memories from “fight or flight” mode into long-term storage where they belong.
EMDR was developed in 1987 by psychologist Dr. Francine Shapiro and has since become one of the most researched and validated treatments for trauma. The World Health Organization, the American Psychiatric Association, and the Department of Veterans Affairs all recognize EMDR as an effective treatment for trauma and PTSD.
At Magenta Therapy, we use EMDR and other evidence-based approaches to help NYC professionals process trauma, reduce anxiety, and heal from experiences that continue to impact their daily lives—all through convenient virtual sessions.
Curious if EMDR is right for you? Book a free 15-minute consultation to discuss your symptoms and verify your insurance coverage with UnitedHealthcare, Aetna, Cigna, or Oxford.
How EMDR Actually Works: The Science
EMDR might sound unconventional—moving your eyes back and forth while thinking about trauma? But there’s solid neuroscience behind why it works.
Your Brain’s Natural Processing System
Every night when you sleep, your brain processes the day’s experiences during REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep. Your eyes move rapidly back and forth, and your brain files away memories, consolidates learning, and integrates experiences. This is why you often wake up with fresh perspective on problems.
Trauma disrupts this natural processing. When something overwhelming happens, your brain’s alarm system (the amygdala) goes into overdrive. The memory gets stuck in its raw, unprocessed form—complete with the sights, sounds, body sensations, and emotions from the original event. This is why trauma survivors can have flashbacks that feel like they’re happening right now, even years later.
According to research published in the Journal of EMDR Practice and Research, traumatic memories are stored differently in the brain than regular memories—they remain emotionally “hot” and unintegrated with other experiences.
How EMDR Unsticks Traumatic Memories
EMDR mimics what happens during REM sleep. The bilateral stimulation (eye movements, taps, or sounds) activates both hemispheres of your brain while you briefly focus on the traumatic memory. This dual attention—thinking about the trauma while simultaneously focusing on the bilateral stimulation—allows your brain to reprocess the memory.
What happens during reprocessing:
- The emotional intensity decreases
- Physical sensations associated with the trauma diminish
- Negative beliefs about yourself shift
- The memory moves from present-tense threat to past-tense fact
- You gain new insights and perspectives you couldn’t access before
The result: You remember what happened, but it no longer hijacks your nervous system. You can think about the experience without being flooded with the same overwhelming emotions.
Research from the National Institute of Mental Health shows that EMDR creates measurable changes in brain activity—specifically decreasing activation in the amygdala (fear center) and increasing activity in the prefrontal cortex (rational thinking).
What EMDR Treats Beyond PTSD
While EMDR is best known for treating PTSD, it’s effective for a wide range of issues rooted in distressing experiences:
Trauma and PTSD:
- Single-incident trauma (accidents, assault, natural disasters)
- Complex trauma from childhood abuse or neglect
- Medical trauma (surgeries, diagnoses, difficult births)
- Developmental trauma and attachment wounds
Anxiety Disorders:
- Panic disorder and panic attacks
- Social anxiety stemming from humiliating experiences
- Performance anxiety with roots in past failures or criticism
- Phobias that developed after specific incidents
Depression:
- Depression linked to loss, rejection, or traumatic experiences
- Persistent low self-worth from childhood experiences
- Grief that feels stuck or complicated
Other Applications:
- Disturbing memories that intrude on daily life
- Chronic pain with emotional components
- Performance blocks in work or creative pursuits
- Persistent feelings of shame or inadequacy
At Magenta Therapy, we often use EMDR alongside other approaches like DBT (for emotional regulation) when treating anxiety, OCD, or BPD symptoms that have trauma components.
Learn more about our trauma-informed treatment approaches.
The Eight Phases of EMDR Therapy
EMDR follows a structured protocol. Here’s what to expect if you begin EMDR therapy at Magenta Therapy:
Phase 1-2: History Taking and Preparation (Sessions 1-3)
History taking: Your therapist learns about your background, identifies which memories or experiences are causing current distress, and determines if EMDR is appropriate for your situation.
Preparation: You learn what EMDR is, what to expect, and develop grounding techniques to manage emotional distress. This is crucial—your therapist ensures you have the skills to feel safe during trauma processing.
You’ll practice:
- Deep breathing exercises
- Safe place visualization (imagining a calm, secure location you can return to mentally)
- Container technique (mentally “containing” distressing material between sessions)
- Self-soothing strategies
Phase 3-6: Assessment and Desensitization (The Active Processing)
Assessment: You identify a specific target memory, the negative belief associated with it (like “I’m powerless” or “I’m not safe”), and the positive belief you’d rather have (“I have control now” or “I’m safe now”).
Desensitization: This is the heart of EMDR. You briefly focus on the traumatic memory while following your therapist’s fingers with your eyes as they move back and forth (or listening to alternating sounds, or feeling alternating taps). You do this in short sets of 20-30 seconds.
What happens: Between sets, your therapist asks “What are you noticing?” You might report new images, thoughts, emotions, or body sensations. Your brain is actively processing. The memory often shifts—details change, intensity decreases, new insights emerge.
Example progression:
- Set 1: “I see the car accident. I feel terrified. My chest is tight.”
- Set 3: “The image is less vivid. I remember thinking I was going to die.”
- Set 5: “I’m noticing I didn’t die. I survived. The chest tightness is less.”
- Set 8: “It’s more like watching a movie now. I can see it but I’m not in it.”
Installation: Once the distress decreases, you focus on strengthening the positive belief. The goal is to help your nervous system internalize: “That was then. This is now. I’m safe.”
Body scan: You check for any remaining physical tension or discomfort related to the memory and process those until they resolve.
Phase 7-8: Closure and Reevaluation
Closure: At the end of each session, your therapist ensures you’re emotionally regulated before you leave. You might use grounding techniques or the safe place visualization.
Reevaluation: At the start of each session, you revisit previously processed memories to ensure they remain neutral and identify any new aspects that need attention.
Timeline
Single-incident trauma: Often resolves in 3-6 EMDR processing sessions after the preparation phase.
Complex trauma: May require 8-12+ sessions to process multiple related memories and themes.
Total treatment: Most people complete EMDR in 6-12 sessions, though complex cases may take longer.
What EMDR Feels Like: A Realistic Expectation
Let me be honest about what the experience is actually like, because many people have misconceptions.
During EMDR Processing:
It’s not hypnosis. You’re fully conscious and in control. You can stop at any time. You’re aware of the therapist and the room around you.
It can be emotionally intense. You might feel sadness, anger, fear, or other strong emotions during processing. This is normal—it’s your brain working through what’s been stuck. Your therapist helps you manage the intensity.
It’s also surprisingly tolerable. Because you’re only focusing on the memory briefly (20-30 seconds at a time) and the bilateral stimulation creates distance, it’s often less overwhelming than people expect. Many clients say it’s easier than traditional trauma therapy where you recount the story repeatedly.
Physical sensations are common. You might feel tension, tightness, tingling, warmth, or other body sensations as your nervous system processes the trauma. These typically decrease as processing continues.
Unexpected memories may surface. Sometimes related memories or experiences you’d forgotten come up during processing. This is your brain making connections and healing associated wounds.
Between Sessions:
You might feel tired. Processing trauma is neurologically exhausting. Rest is normal and necessary.
Dreams may intensify. Your brain continues processing between sessions, often through dreams. This usually settles after the first few weeks.
Emotions may fluctuate. You might have a few days where you feel more emotional or irritable. This is temporary as your brain reorganizes the traumatic material.
New insights emerge. Clients often report “aha moments” in the days after EMDR where they suddenly see their experience from a new perspective.
Virtual EMDR: Does It Work Online?
Yes—and research confirms it. A study published in the Journal of EMDR Practice and Research found that virtual EMDR via telehealth is as effective as in-person treatment.
How virtual EMDR works:
Instead of following the therapist’s hand with your eyes, you follow a moving dot on your screen, or the therapist uses other forms of bilateral stimulation:
- Alternating audio tones through headphones
- Self-administered butterfly taps (crossing your arms and alternating tapping your shoulders)
- Watching the therapist’s fingers via video
Advantages of virtual EMDR in NYC:
- Process trauma from the safety and privacy of your own home
- No commute stress or triggering subway rides after an intense session
- Flexible scheduling for busy professionals
- Continuity of care if you travel or relocate within New York
At Magenta Therapy, our therapists are trained in delivering effective EMDR via telehealth throughout New York.
Meet our team of trauma-informed therapists.
Is EMDR Right for You?
EMDR Works Well For:
People who have specific traumatic memories or distressing experiences that continue to affect them, anxiety that seems rooted in past events, avoidance of situations that trigger trauma responses, nightmares or intrusive thoughts about past experiences, or difficulty moving forward despite trying other therapies.
EMDR is particularly effective if you’re someone who finds it difficult to talk about your trauma in detail or if you’ve tried talk therapy and felt stuck.
EMDR May Not Be Appropriate If:
You’re in active crisis or don’t have basic emotional stability (EMDR requires some capacity to regulate emotions during processing). You have certain dissociative disorders without proper preparation. You have unstable medical conditions affected by increased arousal. You’re in ongoing dangerous situations (current abuse, active addiction without treatment).
Your therapist will assess whether EMDR is right for your specific situation during the initial consultation.
Can EMDR Be Combined with Other Approaches?
Absolutely. At Magenta Therapy, we often integrate EMDR with:
- DBT skills for emotional regulation
- CBT for challenging unhelpful thought patterns
- Attachment-focused work for relationship healing
- Mindfulness practices for grounding
The combination approach ensures you have comprehensive tools for healing.
Insurance Coverage for EMDR Therapy in NYC
EMDR is covered by most insurance plans under standard mental health benefits. There’s typically no difference in coverage between EMDR and other therapy approaches—it’s all billed as psychotherapy.
At Magenta Therapy, we’re in-network with:
- UnitedHealthcare
- Aetna
- Cigna
- Oxford Health Plans
What you’ll pay: Your standard mental health copay per session (typically $20-50).
Number of sessions: Most insurance plans don’t limit the number of sessions as long as treatment is medically necessary. EMDR for trauma is considered medically necessary.
Contact us for free insurance verification. We’ll confirm your coverage before your first session.
Common Questions and Concerns About EMDR
“Do I have to talk about my trauma in detail?”
No. You need to identify the memory and access it briefly during processing, but you don’t have to narrate the entire story to your therapist. Many people find this aspect of EMDR less re-traumatizing than traditional exposure therapy.
“What if I can’t remember the traumatic event clearly?”
EMDR can still work. You don’t need detailed memories—just a sense of the experience, the emotions associated with it, or even just the negative belief it created. Your brain knows what needs processing.
“Will I forget what happened?”
No. EMDR doesn’t erase memories. You’ll still remember the events, but they’ll feel less emotionally charged—more like a distant memory than a present threat.
“What if I get too overwhelmed?”
Your therapist controls the pace and has techniques to reduce intensity if needed. You can stop at any time. The preparation phase ensures you have skills to manage emotional distress before you begin trauma processing.
“How is this different from just distracting myself?”
EMDR isn’t distraction—it’s active processing. The bilateral stimulation facilitates your brain’s natural healing mechanisms rather than avoiding or suppressing the memory.
“Does it work for everyone?”
EMDR has strong research support, but like all therapies, it doesn’t work for everyone. Most people (70-90% depending on the study) experience significant benefit. If EMDR isn’t effective after several sessions, your therapist can pivot to other evidence-based approaches.
Taking the First Step
Living with unprocessed trauma or persistent distressing memories is exhausting. You might feel like you’ve tried everything, or you might be hesitant to start therapy because you assume it means months of painful storytelling.
EMDR offers a different path—one that works with your brain’s natural healing capacity rather than against it. It’s structured, time-limited, and backed by decades of research showing it works.
If you’re in New York and struggling with trauma, anxiety, or disturbing memories that won’t leave you alone, you don’t have to keep carrying that weight. Your brain knows how to heal—sometimes it just needs the right conditions to do its work.
Your next step: Contact Magenta Therapy for a free 15-minute consultation. We’ll discuss whether EMDR is right for your situation and verify your insurance coverage with UnitedHealthcare, Aetna, Cigna, or Oxford. Virtual EMDR therapy available throughout New York.
Healing is possible. Let’s help you get there.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: How many EMDR sessions will I need?
A: This varies based on the complexity of your trauma. Single-incident trauma (like a car accident) often resolves in 3-6 processing sessions after preparation. Complex trauma or multiple traumatic experiences typically require 8-12+ sessions. Most people complete EMDR treatment in 6-12 total sessions, which is often faster than traditional trauma-focused therapy.
Q: Can EMDR be done virtually, or does it need to be in person?
A: Research shows virtual EMDR is as effective as in-person treatment. Instead of following the therapist’s hand, you follow a moving dot on screen or use audio tones through headphones. At Magenta Therapy, we successfully deliver EMDR via telehealth throughout New York with excellent results.
Q: Will EMDR make me forget the traumatic event?
A: No. EMDR doesn’t erase memories or create amnesia. You’ll still remember what happened, but the memory will feel less emotionally intense and disturbing. It shifts from feeling like a present threat to feeling like a past event—something that happened to you but doesn’t control you.
Q: What if I don’t have a specific traumatic memory, just general anxiety?
A: EMDR can still be helpful. Your therapist can target the earliest memories where the anxiety developed, recurring anxious thoughts, or specific situations that trigger your anxiety. EMDR isn’t only for big traumas—it works for smaller distressing experiences that created lasting impact.
Q: Does insurance cover EMDR therapy in NYC?
A: Yes. Most insurance plans cover EMDR under standard mental health benefits with no distinction between EMDR and other therapy types. At Magenta Therapy, we’re in-network with UnitedHealthcare, Aetna, Cigna, and Oxford. You’ll pay your regular mental health copay. We verify benefits before your first session so there are no surprises.
Additional Resources
- EMDR International Association (EMDRIA): emdria.org – Official EMDR organization with research and therapist directory
- “Getting Past Your Past” by Dr. Francine Shapiro – Comprehensive book on EMDR by its founder
- National Center for PTSD: ptsd.va.gov – Evidence-based trauma treatment information