EMDR Intensives
Get Months Worth of Healing in Just a Few Days…
Based in Asheville. Serving Adults throughout NC & TX.
Learn more about EMDR Therapy here.
EMDR Intensives
Imagine being able to save yourself weeks or even months of therapy, achieving results more quickly while also enjoying the compounding effect of your breakthroughs in a much shorter period of time.
The traditional model of weekly psychotherapy simply doesn't meet the needs of everyone. Now more than ever, we need flexibility in how we get support.
Perhaps you’ve been meaning to get into weekly therapy for a while now, but your schedule has been so hectic and demanding that a weekly therapy appointment feels more overwhelming than supportive.
Perhaps you’re needing help — and a lot of it — right now, and you don’t want to spend months in the traditional weekly model of therapy treatment to feel better.
Perhaps you’ve had a felt sense that something profound is changing within you, but you’re not quite sure how to shift all the way into this new experience of yourself with your current therapist. Maybe you cognitively understand new things now with the help of your talk therapist (e.g., “it wasn’t my fault,” “I did the best I could,” “I’m a good person,” “I’m loveable,” etc.), but your still confused in some ways because this awareness has not yet trickled down to a felt sense in your body (e.g., “I still feel responsible” or “I don’t feel good enough”). So now you’re curious about how EMDR therapy can help with this important piece. EMDR intensives can help to un-stick those feelings that don’t match what you think or know-to-be-true.
While traditional EMDR Therapy sessions are spread out over weeks, months, or even years, Intensive EMDR is designed to condense this same therapeutic work over a much shorter period of time, often over just a few days depending on your goals. I offer EMDR intensives to help you get relief faster and more efficiently, so you can get back to enjoying your life instead of spending months or years in therapy.
WHAT ARE THE POTENTIAL BENEFITS OF WORKING INTENSIVELY?
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Have you been in weekly therapy and been frustrated by the slow progress? Working intensively might allow you to make some significant headway and offer faster relief. A half-day intensive program can be equivalent to about two months of traditional therapy.
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EMDR intensives offer a way to receive treatment in a concentrated format. Giving yourself an extended, dedicated space of time allows you to go deeper into the work on the memories and symptoms that brought you into therapy.
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Extended sessions reduce all that pressure to try to get everything done in the traditional 50-55 minute session.
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Intensives are more efficient. Weekly therapy sessions follow a format that eats up time. You walk in, check-in, discuss updates, address crises and concerns of the week, dive into the work, and then before you know it the session is almost over and time has to be spent containing the work and using strategies to return to a state that allows you to safely continue your day. This can be frustrating because it feels like you have only begun to scratch the surface. You spent so much time sharing the ongoing day-to-day struggles that you didn’t get to do half of what you planned to. In an EMDR intensive, this is not the case. With multiple sessions compacted into one session, more time is left to focus on 'the work' which can allow for accelerated progress. As intensives are concentrated and focused, it can add up fewer cumulative treatment hours overall, saving money despite the higher investment up front.
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Some have argued that intensive trauma therapy is more cost effective than traditional weekly therapy for the reasons noted above
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Weekly or even bi-weekly sessions can be difficult to manage for many people. Maybe you are a busy parent, someone who travels regularly, a working professional who has even more on your plate since COVID, or a client who wants or needs help now. Whatever the reason that weekly sessions just won’t work for you, EMDR intensives are available to support you during times you need help the most and in a way that also meets the needs of your busy or complicated schedule.
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Because sessions are scheduled in a condensed format
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You are given exclusive access to appointments reserved for the intensive program. This allows you to fast track your therapy by addressing issues in more timely manner and avoiding scheduling issues that often arise when meeting on a weekly or bi-weekly basis.
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Some people simply prefer a 'go in and get it done' approach to therapy versus the slower pace of weekly therapy.
Customized Intensive EMDR
2 Options
OPTION 1: Intensive EMDR Program
While traditional EMDR Therapy sessions are spread out over weeks, months, or even years, an EMDR Intensive program is a designed to condense this same therapeutic work over a much shorter period of time, often over just a few days depending on your goals. This intensive approach allows for quicker processing and resolution of traumatic memories or distressing symptoms.
Intensive EMDR programs involve pre-defined half-day to multi-day programs that include a pre-consultation interview, intensive EMDR session(s), a post-treatment follow up, and an optional customized workbook specific to your goals. During a 1-to-3 day EMDR Intensive Program, we we can often address:
A specific traumatic event
Recent traumatic event
Other significant event or stressor that currently causes you distress
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
Simple Phobia
Complicated/Traumatic grief
A “stuck point” you’ve hit in talk therapy
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Your EMDR Intensive Program includes:
(1) A pre-consultation interview to assess for candidacy for the Intensive program, discuss any questions or concerns you have, and identify your goals for the intensive program. We will decide how many EMDR intensive sessions to schedule based on your goals and needs. This typically ranges from 1 to 4 EMDR intensive sessions, with each session usually being 2-3 hours in duration.
(2) A customized treatment program with targeted treatment goals, including half-day (3 hour), 2-day, and 3-day options. Your Intensive Processing program begins by developing resources to increase your sense of calm, security, and control, allowing you to more safely and confidently engage in the reprocessing phase of treatment and handle any between session distress that arises. If clinically indicated, reprocessing will take place next with breaks for self-care as needed. The last 15-30 minutes of an intensive session are spent closing the session and assessing/planning for additional needs.
(3) The post-treatment interview typically occurs about a week after your processing session(s) and is designed to assess and support your adaption to positive changes from treatment and identify any 'next-steps'. This may be to continue therapy with your primary talk therapist, schedule additional EMDR intensive sessions to focus on other memories or symptoms, or to pause therapy for now and monitor daily life to see if any further needs or goals arise.
(4) An optional personalized treatment workbook, which allows you to work on your treatment goals before, during, and after our EMDR intensive sessions.
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Intensive EMDR rates are $230/hour.
(1) Weekday half-day intensive program (ranges from $1380-$1840) includes: 90-minute pre-consultation interview; 3 hour virtual half-day customized intensive; 30-60-minute post-treatment follow-up; Optional personalized treatment workbook
(2) Weekday 3-day intensive program (ranges from $2760-$3220) includes: 90-minute pre-consultation interview; 9 hours over 3 days customized intensive; 30-60-minute post-treatment follow-up; Optional personalized treatment workbook
Alternative intensive program designs are available upon request. Feel free to ask about a program design that might fit your needs better. Fees would be based on your needs and program design, and are communicated ahead of time in accordance with the No Surprises Act.
*IMPORTANT: Additional EMDR therapy intensives may be necessary to achieve your treatment goals. For persons with complex or relational trauma or other complex needs/goals, additional intensive work will be recommended. Individuals with more complex trauma histories may be considered for Mini-Intensives if a primary therapist is involved for continued support, making this adjunct EMDR. Follow-up recommendations are individualized based on your specific needs
OPTION 2: Ongoing Extended Sessions
This second option is also known as ‘working intensively’ and involves ongoing intensive EMDR for people who are needing or wanting longer-term support towards several treatment goals using the intensive format. Working Intensively involves extended sessions (typically 90 - 120 minutes) on a less than weekly basis (often 1 - 2 times per month).
*IMPORTANT: For Intensive Programs, a $100 nonrefundable deposit is due at the time of scheduling the pre-consultation interview. At the pre-consultation interview, a nonrefundable deposit of 50% of the remaining balance will be collected . The final portion of the remaining balance will be due on the first day of the 'intensive' portion of the program. There is a 48-hour cancellation policy for all half-day and multi-day intensive programs. A credit card on file is required.
RESEARCH ON INTENSIVE EMDR IS POSITIVE & GROWING
Intensive application of trauma-focused therapy seems to be well tolerated in patients with PTSD, enabling faster symptom reduction with similar, or even better, results, while reducing the risk that patients drop out prematurely. Learn more here and here and here.
Intensive EMDR treatment is feasible and has demonstrated reliable improvement in PTSD symptoms in a very short time frame. Learn more here.
An intensive program using EMDR therapy is a potentially safe and effective treatment alternative for complex PTSD. Learn more here.
The economy is compelling: even compared to other trauma therapy, the intensive EMDR format may decrease treatment time because less time is spent on:
checking in at the beginning of each session
addressing the crisis or concern ‘of the week’
focusing on stabilizing and coping skills that a client may not need after trauma recovery
assisting a client in regaining composure at the end of the session
Learn more here.
E.C. Hurley's (Frontiers in Psychology, 24 August 2018 ) results show that EMDR Therapy is effective in both weekly and intensive treatment formats when treating Veterans diagnosed with PTSD . Learn more here.
FAQs about EMDR Intensives
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EMDR Intensive Programs consist of 3 parts:
1. The pre-consultation interview appointment (75-90 minutes).
2. The intensive EMDR sessions: 3- hour half-day, 2-day, and 3-day are the standard options.
3. The post-treatment follow up appointment (30-60 minutes).
4. An optional personalized treatment workbook.
More information on each of these can be found above on this webpage.
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No. A thorough assessment by a qualified EMDR therapist is crucial to determine if this approach is a good fit for a person’s individual needs and circumstances. Some situations in which an intensive may not be clinically indicated include a person struggling with:
uncontrolled substance use disorder
active suicidality with plan and/or intent
ongoing self-harm behaviors
overwhelming acute stressors in need of immediate attention
untreated dissociative disorder
marked emotional dysregulation / inability to tolerate painful emotions
unstable psychotic disorder
mental health crisis
needs for ongoing support
The suitability and appropriateness for EMDR intensives will be assessed during the initial phone contact and initial consult appointment. If it is determined that an intensive is not indicated at this time, a recommendation for alternative care will be made.
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If you choose an intensive EMDR program, sessions are typically 3 hours long. These sessions may be scheduled once or twice per day, depending on your needs and preferences.
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Typically, we can address one primary issue within 2-4 EMDR intensive sessions.
The total number of intensive EMDR sessions will vary for each person, depending on how your brain responds to EMDR and how many goals or topics you want to address.
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Yes! It’s called Adjunct EMDR Therapy. I partner with primary therapists and their clients to target specific issues. Adjunct therapy is typically short-term and in an intensive format. Learn more here.
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Unfortunately no, although it may be possible to get partial reimbursment for some of the hours. Two things to know regarding this:
(1) I’m not in-network with any insurance plans. Payment-in-full is due at the time of the appointment. A credit card on file is required. You may request a superbill that you can submit to your insurance company if you have out-of-network mental health benefits to attempt to obtain partial reimbursement.
(2) Insurance companies do not cover the cost of EMDR intensives because intensives consist of multiple hours of treatment per day, and insurance companies have historically narrowly defined outpatient mental health treatment (in most situations) as occurring once per week for one hour. I encourage you to call your insurance company and ask about your benefits and coverage. There have been times when a client of mine was reimbursed for a portion of the intensive hours following submission of a superbill. Please call your insurance company and ask about their policies and your benefits regarding multi-hour sessions and/or multiple sessions within a week.
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The traditional weekly therapy model involves 45–60-minute sessions on a reoccurring basis, typically for months or even years. Yes, EMDR can work within the traditional weekly therapy model, but the effectiveness and efficiency of EMDR is hampered by the limited amount of session time in this model. After check-ins and updates consume the first part of the session, EMDR opens up the issues we are focused on and just as things are moving along or deepening, it’s time to shut it down again until next week. This often brings incremental doses of relief that over time result in significant progress, but in the interim, clients often feel frustrated or discouraged by the pace of progress.
While definitively comparing outcomes from the traditional model vs the intensive model is complicated, having done literally thousands of EMDR sessions in the 1-hour format, anecdotally I can confidently state that clients are much more likely to make more progress in one 3-hour intensive session than in 3 separate 1-hour sessions. Additionally, clients usually report that they feel better leaving an intensive session since they are able to move through more ‘hard stuff’ within a single session, thereby reducing their distress related to the issue we are focused on.