EMDR Therapy in Minnesota (MN)
Trauma therapy that doesn't require you to retell your story in detail.
Some experiences don't stay in the past.
They show up as a reaction that's bigger than the moment calls for, a belief about yourself you can't argue your way out of, or a body that braces before you consciously know why.
EMDR is a way of working with experiences that still feel stuck or unresolved — helping you reprocess what happened so the memory can become something that happened to you rather than something that still feels like it's happening to you.
I'm trained in EMDR and Narrative Exposure Therapy, and I work with adults 18 and older, including people whose difficult experiences weren't one event but a pattern that lasted years. I see clients in person at my Eagan office and online throughout Minnesota.
What Is EMDR?
EMDR stands for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. It's a structured, trauma-focused approach that helps people process distressing experiences that continue to affect how they think, feel, or respond.
Sometimes an experience can feel as though it is still happening even when you know logically that it happened in the past.
You might notice:
A memory that feels unusually vivid
Strong emotional reactions that seem bigger than the current situation
Body sensations connected to something that happened before
Negative beliefs about yourself that feel difficult to change
Triggers that seem to come out of nowhere
Patterns you understand intellectually but still can't seem to shift
EMDR uses bilateral stimulation as part of the reprocessing process. This may involve side-to-side eye movements, alternating sounds, or tactile stimulation such as tapping.
You don't have to tell the entire story in detail for EMDR to be useful. We work with what you are ready and able to approach.
Trauma, Culture, and Healing
Trauma doesn't happen outside of culture. And healing doesn't either.
Across generations, communities have carried the effects of violence, displacement, racism, colonization, war, migration, loss, family separation, and other experiences that don't always end with the person who first experienced them.
People and communities have also developed their own ways of responding to and healing from those experiences. Storytelling, spirituality, prayer, music, movement, ritual, community care, connection to elders and ancestors, and other cultural traditions have long been part of how people make meaning, survive difficult experiences, and heal.
EMDR is one modern psychotherapy. It isn't the first way humans have used rhythm, movement, connection, or other embodied experiences in healing, and it isn't the only way to heal from trauma.
Rhythmic and alternating movement, drumming, dancing, walking, and other embodied practices exist across many cultural traditions. In EMDR, bilateral stimulation can include eye movements, alternating sounds, or tactile stimulation such as tapping. We can consider what feels comfortable and appropriate for you rather than assuming one form of stimulation is right for everyone.
Your culture, spirituality, family, community, and understanding of healing can be part of the conversation.
I don't expect you to leave those things at the door when we do trauma work.
And I won't assume that everything meaningful to you needs to be translated into Western clinical language before it belongs in the room.
Sometimes the work is about what happened to you. Sometimes it's also about what your family or community has carried, what you were taught about survival, and what you want to carry forward. or leave behind.
If You're Skeptical About EMDR
You might be wondering what the heck you're supposed to do with the eye movements, tapping, or following a hand back and forth.
Fair question.
EMDR can sound strange if you've never experienced it before. And if you've had experiences with mental health care where you felt dismissed, misunderstood, overmedicated, or not listened to, you may have good reasons to be cautious about another approach. For some families and communities, that caution was earned long before they ever walked into a therapist's office.
You don't have to come into EMDR convinced that it will work.
You can and should ask questions. You can tell me when something doesn't make sense. We can talk about what the research says, why I'm recommending a particular approach, and what other options might make sense for you.
You are also in control of your participation. We can slow down, pause, change the approach, or decide that EMDR isn't the right fit.
Skepticism isn't resistance. Sometimes it's good judgment. There's room for that here.
What EMDR Is Not
EMDR is not:
Hypnosis. You remain awake and aware throughout the process.
Erasing memories. The goal isn't to make you forget what happened.
A quick fix. Some people notice meaningful changes relatively quickly; others need more time.
Only for combat veterans or catastrophic events. Trauma can take many forms.
Something I rush you through. Preparation, pacing, and readiness matter.
What Can EMDR Help With?
EMDR can be used to work with many experiences and patterns, including:
Single-incident trauma
Repeated or prolonged trauma
Complex or developmental trauma
Racial trauma and experiences of discrimination
Experiences related to migration, displacement, or family separation
Anxiety or panic connected to past experiences
Negative beliefs about yourself
Grief and loss
Medical trauma
Birth-related or reproductive experiences
Childhood relational experiences
Intrusive memories, nightmares, or flashbacks
Strong emotional or physical reactions to reminders of the past
Patterns that continue even though you understand where they came from
You don't have to have a PTSD diagnosis for us to talk about whether EMDR may be appropriate.
EMDR Isn't Just About the Worst Thing That Happened
Sometimes the experience we work on isn't the most dramatic thing that happened.
It might be the experience that shaped a belief:
I'm not safe.
I'm too much.
I have to handle everything myself.
I can't trust my judgment.
It's my job to keep everyone else okay
EMDR can help us explore the experiences connected to those beliefs and the reactions that continue to show up in your life.
EMDR is one tool. We may use it alongside other approaches depending on what you're experiencing and what you need.
When Trauma Wasn't One Event
For some people, what happened wasn't a single incident with a clear before and after.
It was an environment, sometimes for years.
A childhood where safety depended on reading the room. A relationship that wore you down gradually. A family, a workplace, or a system where the harm was ongoing and treated as normal.
For some people it was also the accumulation of things that were never named as harm at the time, everyday racism at school or work, being the only one in the room, having your reality questioned, living through migration or family separation, or growing up with what your parents carried from what they survived.
That kind of experience can show up differently.
Less: I have a memory I can't shake.
And more:
Difficulty trusting your own read on a situation
Feeling responsible for everyone else's comfort while having little room for your own
Relationships that feel either too close or too far, without much middle ground
A sense that something is wrong with you rather than that something happened to you
Not being able to point to one clear incident, and wondering whether you're allowed to call it trauma
You don't need a single identifiable event for this to be worth taking seriously.
When experiences have been complex or prolonged, the work may look different. We may spend more time preparing, work in shorter processing windows, or begin with more recent experiences before approaching earlier ones.
Sometimes EMDR isn't where we start.
I also use Narrative Exposure Therapy (NET), DBT, mindfulness, and other approaches. NET was developed for people who had survived organized violence, war, and displacement, often refugees carrying many difficult experiences across many years rather than one identifiable event. Instead of working through one memory at a time, it works with your life story as a whole, placing hard events in the context of everything else your life has held.
Sometimes we use more than one approach.
If you've tried therapy for these experiences before and it felt like either too much or not enough, that's worth bringing to a consultation. Often, it means the approach needed adjusting.
What Is an EMDR Session Like?
EMDR generally happens in phases. We don't jump straight into processing a difficult memory.
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We'll talk about what brings you to therapy, what you've experienced, what's happening now, and what you want to change.
I'll explain how EMDR works and answer your questions.
You don't have to give me a detailed account of everything that has happened to you.
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Before processing difficult experiences, we'll build skills and resources that can help you stay grounded and present.
This might include grounding strategies, calming imagery, containment, or other ways of helping you manage strong emotions.
We don't skip this part just because you're ready to get to the "real work."
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When we're ready, we'll identify a target experience and notice the thoughts, emotions, body sensations, and beliefs connected to it.
Bilateral stimulation may involve:
Side-to-side eye movements
Alternating sounds
Tactile stimulation such as tapping
We'll use short sets rather than doing everything at once.
You don't have to perform EMDR correctly. There isn't a right answer or a particular thing you're supposed to feel.
You remain in control of the process.
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We'll make sure you have time to settle before ending the session.
Sometimes you may notice changes between sessions — a dream, a memory coming up differently, an emotional shift, or a new perspective.
You don't need to force those changes. We'll talk about what you notice and decide together what comes next.
How We Pace the Work
Trauma processing works best when there is enough safety and stability to do it thoughtfully.
I pay attention to:
Your readiness
Your current stress level and circumstances
Your ability to stay present
What happens in your body and emotions during sessions
What you're hoping to change
Whether the work is helping or becoming destabilizing
If something feels like too much, we slow down.
If something isn't working, we adjust.
You are the expert on your own limits. My job is to hold the structure, pay attention, ask questions, assess readiness and work with you rather than pushing you through it.
Understanding Your Window of Tolerance
Your window of tolerance is the zone where you can experience emotions while still being able to think, stay present, communicate, and respond flexibly.
Trauma and chronic stress can affect how easily you move outside that zone.
You may notice:
Hyperarousal
Anxiety or panic
Racing thoughts
Irritability
Feeling on edge
Difficulty settling down
Hypoarousal
Numbness
Disconnection
Feeling far away from yourself
Low energy
Difficulty thinking or responding
Neither is a character flaw.
These can be ways your nervous system responds when something feels overwhelming. For some people, they're also what it looks like to have adapted to an environment where staying alert or staying quiet was genuinely necessary.
Part of trauma therapy can be learning to recognize these shifts and developing more ways to return to the present.
Grounding Techniques
Grounding can help you reconnect with the present when emotions or memories become intense.
Some examples include:
5-4-3-2-1
Notice:
5 things you can see
4 things you can feel
3 things you can hear
2 things you can smell
1 thing you can taste
Alternating Self-Soothing
This might include gentle alternating tapping, walking, or another rhythmic activity that helps you reconnect with the present.
These are grounding and self-soothing tools, not EMDR.
Container Exercise
Imagine placing something difficult into a container that you can return to when you're ready.
Safe or Calm Place
Create a mental image of a place associated with safety, comfort, or calm.
For some people no such place comes to mind, and that itself is meaningful rather than a failure. We can work with a person, a memory, a piece of music, a prayer, or something imagined instead.
Not every technique works for every person. We'll find what actually works for you.
Is EMDR Right for Me?
EMDR may be worth considering if:
You understand what happened but still feel strongly affected by it
Certain situations trigger reactions that feel difficult to control
You have recurring negative beliefs about yourself
You experience intrusive memories, nightmares, or strong body reactions
You want to work with trauma without having to repeatedly tell the entire story
EMDR may not be where we start.
If you're experiencing significant instability, don't have enough support or resources to stay grounded, or processing would be likely to make things worse right now, we may focus on stabilization or another approach first.
That's not failure.
It means we're paying attention to what you actually need.
I may draw from Narrative Exposure Therapy, DBT, ACT, mindfulness, and other approaches depending on your goals and circumstances.
EMDR is one tool, not the whole toolbox.
What Does the Research Say About EMDR?
EMDR is recommended as a treatment for PTSD by several major health organizations, including the World Health Organization and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
I'm continuing my own EMDR training and consultation as part of practicing this work thoughtfully and responsibly.
Learn more:
EMDR International Association (EMDRIA) — public education and research on EMDR and trauma treatment
Resources Between Sessions
You don't have to spend every minute outside therapy "working on yourself."
Sometimes the most supportive thing you can do is live your life.
Rest. Eat. Laugh. Dance. Skate. Go outside. Talk to someone you trust. Watch something ridiculous. Take a walk. Do absolutely nothing for a little while.
If you're looking for additional information about trauma, grounding, EMDR, or finding support, you can explore my Trauma & EMDR Resources.
Taking Care of Yourself During Trauma Therapy
Trauma work can take energy. Even if you do not physically see it.
During treatment, it can help to pay attention to the basics:
Sleep and rest
Regular meals
Gentle movement
Time outside
Supportive relationships
Grounding practices
Activities that remind you that your life is more than what happened to you
You may also notice that alcohol, caffeine, lack of sleep, or major stress can affect how regulated you feel.
Healing isn't linear.
Some days you'll feel like you're making progress. Other days may feel messy.
That doesn't mean the work isn't working.
Ready to Get Started?
If you're wondering whether EMDR might be a good fit, you don't have to figure that out by yourself.
We can start with a free consultation.
I'll answer your questions, hear a little about what brings you to therapy, and talk with you about whether EMDR or another approach makes sense for what you're looking for.
I currently see adults 18 and older:
In person: Eagan, Minnesota
Online: Minnesota, Wisconsin, Washington, New Jersey, and North Dakota
Current availability: Thursday afternoons and Fridays
If You Need Immediate Support
Therapy is not an emergency or crisis service.
If you are in immediate danger, call 911 or go to the nearest emergency department.
If you're experiencing a mental health crisis or thinking about suicide, call or text 988 for the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.