Trauma Specialist in Los Feliz and Online across California and Florida
EMDR THERAPY FOR TRAUMA AND ANXIETY IN LOS ANGELES
WHEN THE PAST WON’T STAY IN THE PAST.
You know that what happened is in the past, and yet it still shows up in your daily life without warning. This could be in the way you emotionally react, how your body responds, intrusive thoughts or memories that appear out of nowhere, or feelings that seem disproportionate to the present moment. Please know that you’re not stuck because something is wrong with you — and you are not broken. It’s just that your brain never finished processing what happened.
This is exactly what EMDR is designed to address.
EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) is an one of the most extensively researched trauma therapies available, recognized by the World Health Organization, the American Psychological Association, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, and dozens of other major health organizations worldwide. It's evidence-based and has been practiced for over 30 years, with a substantial body of research supporting its effectiveness for trauma, PTSD, anxiety, panic, phobias, depression, and more.
WHY TRAUMA GETS STUCK
The brain has a natural processing system that, under normal circumstances, integrates difficult experiences adaptively. But when something is too overwhelming, sudden, or frightening, this memory gets stored in a fragmented state that still carries its original emotions, physical sensations, and beliefs. Essentially, the brain keeps treating this experience as something that is in the present rather than the past.
This is why insight and intellectual understanding falls short. You understand that you are not in danger, but your body respond as though you are. The understanding lives in one part of the brain and unprocessed memory lives somewhere else. EMDR works directly with where the memory is actually stored, helping the brain complete the processing it couldn't finish at the time — so the past can finally become the past.
The Process of EMDR
EMDR uses bilateral stimulation, which is gentle, alternating left-right activation of the brain through eye movements, auditory tones, or handheld tappers, to activate the brain's natural processing capacity while you hold a specific memory in your awareness.
The bilateral stimulation helps create the conditions for the brain to do what it's designed to do, but couldn't complete on its own.
One of the things people find most relieving about EMDR is that deep processing can happen without having to recount or share every detail. The work happens largely beneath language, which is the same place the memory has been living. You don't have to narrate your way through it. Your nervous system does the work.
EMDR follows a structured eight-phase protocol moving through history-taking, preparation and resourcing, assessment, desensitization and reprocessing, installation of more adaptive beliefs, a body scan, closure, and reevaluation. The goal isn't to erase or forget what happened, but to process it fully enough that you are no longer controlled by it.
What EMDR Can Help With
EMDR is effective across a wide range of experiences, not just those that we typically think of as trauma or PTSD.
“Big T" Trauma: Acute, overwhelming single events: accidents, assault, medical emergencies, sudden loss, natural disasters.
“Little t” Trauma: Experiences that may not look as dramatic from the outside but have quietly shaped how you see yourself and the world: childhood shame or criticism, emotional neglect, painful relationships, moments that left a lasting imprint on your sense of worth or safety. Often it's these experiences — the ones people discount because "it wasn't that bad" — that are doing the most work underneath the surface.
Beyond trauma, EMDR can be helpful for anxiety and panic attacks, phobias, depression, OCD, chronic pain, performance anxiety, and negative self-perception.
what EMDR can help with
Who EMDR Is For
EMDR TENDS TO BE A PARTICULARLY STRONG FIT FOR PEOPLE WHO:
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You understand things intellectually, but things are not shifting. EMDR works with what's underneath the story, in the sensations, emotions, and beliefs stored in the body and nervous system.
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EMDR allows deep processing without requiring full verbal disclosure (which can feel upsetting or even re-traumatizing for some people). Your brain and body can do the work without you having to narrate every step.
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Whether it's generalized anxiety, panic attacks, or a specific fear or phobia that is impacting your life, EMDR works with the underlying experience driving the response — not just the symptoms on the surface.
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whose anxiety, self-doubt, or disconnection has roots in specific experiences — formative criticism, early shame, moments that quietly shaped how you show up in your work.
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If your healing feels like it lives somewhere beneath language — in the body, in sensation — EMDR's non-linear, internally-driven process may feel like a more natural fit than traditional talk therapy.
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EMDR is designed to accelerate healing in a way that talk therapy alone often can't — if you've been carrying something for a long time and are ready to see real movement, EMDR was built for that.
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You want the underlying material to actually shift — so that your reactions, your nervous system, and your sense of yourself can shift with it.
WHAT HAPPENS IN EMDR SESSIONS
Sessions typically run 50 to 90 minutes. Early sessions focus on history-taking and building the internal resources that support deeper processing. When we move into active work, most people describe the experience as quieter and more internal than they expected — images shift, emotions move, beliefs begin to loosen. Throughout, we track what's happening in the body as well as the mind, drawing on somatic and body-based practices to help the whole system release and integrate.
ADJUNCTIVE EMDR
EMDR integrates naturally with somatic therapy, Brainspotting, and other trauma-informed approaches. It also works beautifully as adjunctive work — if you have a therapist you love who doesn't offer EMDR, we can work together in a focused way on specific material, and I'm glad to coordinate with your existing provider. For those who want to go deeper in a concentrated window of time, EMDR is also available in an intensive format — you can find more about that on the intensives page.
WHY I LOVE THIS WORK
After years of doing this work, EMDR still moves me. There is something remarkable about watching someone find their way to a new place that months of talking couldn't reach. This isn’t because the therapist directed it there, but because the brain, given the right conditions, has an adaptive response and knows exactly where it needs to go. It isn't broken, it’s just been blocked. And when those blocks are cleared out of the way, it moves naturally toward integration, drawing on its own logic, its own associations, and its own capacity to heal.
I've witnessed breakthroughs in EMDR that I don't think would have been possible through talk therapy alone, special moments when where a person's relationship to their own history visibly shifts. It's some of the most meaningful work I do.
FAQs
COMMON QUESTIONS
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No. Deep processing can happen without full verbal narration.
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This is gentle and non-invasive and can be done through eye movements, alternating tones through headphones, or small handheld tappers that vibrate left and right. We’ll find what works best for you.
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It depends on what you're working with. A single discrete event might be processed in a handful of sessions. Complex or developmental trauma typically takes longer. I am happy to discuss your needs in our consultation call.
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Yes! EMDR works very well as an adjunctive therapy, and I'm happy to coordinate with your therapist.
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Yes. Bilateral stimulation adapts well to video sessions through eye movements on the screen, auditory tones, self tapping, or tappers used at home.
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As a trauma specialist, I regularly use EMDR in my practice, and find it to be some of the most rewarding work that I do. I am fully trained in EMDR through the Institute for Creative Mindfulness.
READY TO FIND OUT IF EMDR IS RIGHT FOR YOU?
If any of this resonates, I’d love to talk. A free consultation is always the place to start.