Backed by research. Focused on lasting change.
EMDR Therapy in San Jose and virtually across California
You’ve convinced your mind to let it go — but your body still holds on.
If you’ve tried talk therapy and are still struggling, it doesn’t mean you’re broken–it means you need a different approach.
Insight can be meaningful—and yet for many people, it only goes so far.
Does this sound like you?
You’re a capable woman… but inside, you’re exhausted
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You understand your patterns… but they still run the show
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The past is over…but it still lives in your body
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You’ve done the self-work… but something still feels stuck
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You want to feel at home in yourself
EMDR helps by working at the level where these reactions live. It supports your brain and body in processing what’s still being held emotionally and physically, even when you logically understand it. Instead of just managing symptoms, EMDR helps release the emotional charge that keeps pulling you back into the same patterns, so relief can finally feel real, not forced.
EMDR Helps with More Than Just “Big Trauma.”
Many women come to therapy feeling anxious, overwhelmed, or stuck — even if they wouldn’t label their experiences as trauma.
Often, it’s not just hard things itself that linger, but the patterns and beliefs left behind.
EMDR can help gently process the experiences shaping how you feel about yourself, your relationships, and your sense of safety in the world so you can move forward.
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feeling wired, on edge, or unable to fully relax text goes here
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feeling not enough or somehow “too much”
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like people-pleasing, conflict avoidance, or difficulty trusting
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losses, breakups, medical experiences, or moments that still linger with you…even if you’ve minimized them
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from carrying too much for too long
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fear of being fully seen
EMDR can help if you’re struggling with
You’ve carried so much already. EMDR clears the path, unlocks your brain’s natural healing, and helps you finally let go.
EMDR is a different approach that helps reach the parts talk therapy couldn’t touch.
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Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is a method that helps people heal from difficult or painful life experiences that have left a scar. It does this by getting to the root of the issue and connecting with your body in a way that goes beyond logic and talking about what happens.
EMDR uses specific techniques called bilateral stimulation-such as guided eye movements, tapping, or alternating vibrations- to help your nervous system process and let go of the intense feelings, beliefs and memories that keep you stuck. Bilateral stimulation does this by engaging both sides of your brain in a way that goes back and forth from left to right.
It’s a bit like rocking your nervous system into balance.
By activating both sides of the brain, your mind is able to process and release memories or feelings that once felt “stuck,” so they no longer have the same intense hold on you. And by doing this, your brain can take in new, more helpful beliefs and integrate new information you have now in the present. You will notice shifts in how you feel, think, and relate to the world.
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The 8 phase protocol of EMDR
EMDR follows a structured process that includes history taking, planning, preparation, processing, and integration to ensure healing happens safely and effectively
Phase 1: Getting to Know You
We’ll explore your history and talk about what you want to work through and heal from. Together, we’ll make a plan that feels clear and supportive.
Phase 2: Building Safety and Support
Before we start processing any memories, we’ll focus on helping you feel grounded, calm, and in control—both during sessions and in everyday life. You’ll learn helpful tools and coping strategies you can come back to any time.
Phases 3–7: Processing and Integrating Information
When you’re ready, we’ll process one memory, emotion, or belief at a time using bilateral stimulation—the core of EMDR. This gently activates both sides of the brain, helping your nervous system “unstick” painful experiences and release their intensity. If the intensity remains past the session, we will revisit it until it feels absent or neutral. As your brain reprocesses and resolves old stuff once and for all, it can take in new, more supportive beliefs, leading to lasting shifts in how you feel, think, and relate to the world.
Phase 8: Checking In and Moving Forward
After processing, we’ll revisit your goals and check in on how things are feeling. Then we’ll decide together what to focus on next.
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Through EMDR, together we’ll help you feel calmer and more grounded, gently untangling beliefs about yourself and soothing intense emotions that have weighed you down.
We’re not just going to learn more coping skills together, together we’ll help your nervous system actually process and heal from the root of your pain. Like pruning an overgrown garden—clearing space so your inner strength can thrive.
As your body and mind calm, you’ll begin to feel safer, more anchored in the present and more connected to your inner wisdom that you’ve always had. EMDR helps turn the volume up on this assured voice. This creates a lasting foundation for growth so you can move forward with confidence and live the life you actually want.
Together, through EMDR, you will grow into your inner strength and live the life you’ve always deserved.
At the end of the day, I want you to know:
The weight of what you’ve been carrying can get lighter
It’s time to move beyond just coping and feel real, lasting relief.
EMDR with me can help.
Schedule a free consultation
Questions?
FAQs
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EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) is a structured, evidence-based therapy that helps your brain and body process and heal from trauma, distressing memories, and negative beliefs—without needing to talk through every detail. EMDR uses specific techniques such as guided eye movements or tapping to activate healing.
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While traditional therapy focuses on insight and conversation, EMDR works directly with your nervous system by using bilateral stimulation. Through back and forth movements activating both sides of your brain, bilateral stimulation helps your brain reprocess past experiences that still impact you today, leading to release, decreased intensity of emotions and body sensations and deep and lasting healing
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Yes, absolutely! While EMDR is well known for treating trauma, it can also be highly effective for many other challenges.
EMDR can help with:
Anxiety or chronic worry
Low self-esteem or self-criticism
People-pleasing and boundary struggles
Negative core beliefs (like “I’m not good enough”)
Perfectionism or feeling “never enough”
Feeling stuck, overwhelmed, or emotionally reactive
Old experiences that still bother you, even if they don’t seem “traumatic”
If you’ve ever had moments that left a lasting emotional imprint—even subtle ones—EMDR can help your brain process and release them, so you feel more grounded, confident, and present in your life. You don’t need to have “big T” trauma for EMDR to support meaningful healing and change.
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Everyone’s journey is different. Some people feel shifts within a few sessions; for others, deeper healing takes time. We’ll move at your pace, and you’ll likely start to notice gradual changes both in and outside of sessions.
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Once you’re ready, we use gentle techniques called bilateral stimulation- like eye movements or tapping- while you focus on a memory or belief. This helps your brain naturally process what’s been stuck and create more helpful, positive beliefs.
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No. One of the main draws of EMDR for many people is that you don’t have to share every detail of your trauma out loud. We focus more on how the memory feels and lives in your body, rather than re-telling your story.
Learn more about EMDR through my blog posts
