Local to Tyler, online across Texas and Tennessee
EMDR therapy
Deep Trauma work to truly heal what has hurt for so long
You’ve learned every coping skill under the sun and it’s so hard to do it all.
Despite trying therapy in the past, you’re not convinced that the discomfort you feel can really ever change. Life is supposed to be hard, right? This is just the way it has to be, right? (Nope.)
You still Feel:
Anxiety and feeling overwhelmed in “normal” situations, like your emotions are out of proportion to what happens
Uncertainty in relationships that “should” be fulfilling, but are mostly draining and frustrating
Fear that you’re fundamentally flawed, beyond help, doomed to struggle forever and never feel good being you
EMDR is the best solution I’ve found.
This specialized approach is amazingly effective in getting your brain and body to FINALLY get on the same page. It’s maddening to know one thing and feel something else. EMDR is the secret sauce to get your body to release old information that keeps hijacking your emotions, so you can feel how you feel now, not how you felt back then.
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Eye Movement Densitization and Reprocessing is a process that activates the same areas of the brain as REM sleep, to help us process and “put away” experiences as memory. It’s been around for a good 50 years and is widely recognized as a useful tool to address a variety of emotional and mental difficulties.
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Sometimes it seems like any other therapy. There is lots of verbal processing, considering current discomforts and relevant personal history, practicing healthy self regulation and self care.
When it’s time to reprocess, we use bilateral stimulation (BLS) to get the brain and body fully engaged. Options for BLS include eye movements (looking back and forth), sound (headphones with alternating tones or music), or touch (handheld buzzers that alternate or even self-tapping). We’ll figure out what is comfortable for you.
Reprocessing usually brings up emotions that have been stuck for a long time so you can finally let it go, for real. So the sessions can be emotional, but in a cathartic, relieving way. It can be hard like a good workout is hard - feeling drained but satisfied. -
This totally depends on you and what your goals are for therapy.
At first, we’ll work together to make sure we’re focusing on the right things to achieve the changes you want most. Then, we’ll start to target particular areas and work through reprocessing each one fully.
Reprocessing a memory usually takes a few sessions to complete but clients often feel relief in the first one or two, so the remainder is to fully resolve the impact of that experience and equip the body to handle similar experiences differently in the future.
The overall duration of therapy depends on your goals. I picture myself helping you untangle from the web of your experiences, so at whatever point you feel unraveled enough to take it from there, I’ll cheer you on. How much is tangled and how much help you want to feel free is totally up to you.
I recommend (but don’t require) that clients plan to attend weekly sessions for about six months and then we’ll evaluate where to go from there. I’m very flexible and we can take breaks between memories or space out sessions every other week if that’s preferred.
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EMDR intensives are a different way to schedule where you meet for multiple hours over a set period of time.
I am working on developing this option and will be offering it within a couple of months. If you’re interested in this, let me know and I’ll reach out when this service is available.
EMDR
I don’t have a magic wand, but this is pretty damn close.
You can move from knowing better to actually feeling better - and sooner than you think.
Larissa Smith, LCSW
You’ve learned about mental health but applying it still takes real effort.
Your body cringes when you think of some of your past experiences, particularly involving people you love (parents, partners, etc.)
Feel physically agitated and angsty “with no real reason”, or you find sleep to be difficult.
You want to get on with it and feel better already!
who it’s for
EMDR is for you if…
who it’s not for
EMDR is not for you if…
You’re consistently in real danger - abusive relationships, active addiction, risky job, suicidality, etc. (Address safety first)
You’re not willing to let yourself feel how you feel, because actually letting yourself cry can be necessary for this type of release. I know it’s hard and I’ll help, but you have to be open to it.
together, we will:
Evaluate
What isn’t working for you now and what changes you want to see in your life
Identify
Where these patterns came from and what you needed then that you can access now
Release
All the pent up emotional energy that’s had you boxed in and overwhelmed all at once. You can Feel Free!
