EMDR Therapy in Pasadena
EMDR for adults who understand their patterns and still can't think their way out of them: trauma, anxiety, and the reactions that fire faster than words.
Somatic and attachment-focused EMDR for individuals and couples · Pasadena, CA · LCSW
The gap between what you understand and what your body feels
You've probably talked it through already, maybe for years. You know where it started, and you can explain exactly why you react the way you do. And still, the same situations flip a switch: your chest tightens, you go quiet, you're braced before anything has actually happened.
EMDR works in exactly that gap. Some things don't live in language. They're held lower down, in the nervous system, in the part of you that learned a long time ago how to stay safe. Talking about them from the outside rarely reaches them.
EMDR isn't about reliving the worst thing that happened to you. The way I work, it's about helping the brain finish processing what got stuck, so an old memory stops setting off a present-day alarm.
The WorkHow EMDR therapy works
EMDR works on the memory, not the story
We find the specific memory or belief that still carries a charge, then use gentle bilateral stimulation (usually eye movements or taps) while you notice whatever surfaces. Less analyzing, more letting the brain do what it does in REM sleep: sort, file, and settle.
You don't have to relive the trauma
You won't be asked to narrate every detail or sit inside the worst moment. You stay present, in the room, in control. If something starts to feel like too much, we slow down or stop. Nothing here is forced.
The change settles in the body
When it lands, you feel the shift somewhere physical: the memory loosens its grip, the reaction quiets, the thing that used to flood you becomes something you can simply remember. That's the goal: not forgetting, but no longer bracing.
What to ExpectWhat happens in an EMDR session
The first session or two, we don't do any reprocessing at all. We talk about your history, what you're hoping to shift, and how your body tends to react when things get hard. I'll walk you through exactly how EMDR works before we ever start, so none of it catches you off guard.
When we do begin, it's quieter than most people expect. You bring a moment or a feeling to mind, and I guide a gentle back-and-forth (your eyes following my hand, or taps you hold in each palm) while you notice whatever surfaces. We go in short sets and pause to check in. You talk as much or as little as you want, and if anything starts to feel like too much, we slow down or stop.
Sessions run 50 minutes, and we always leave time to land somewhere settled before you head back into your day.
What sets this work apartHow I practice EMDR
EMDR and somatic therapy
Standard EMDR follows a clear protocol, and that structure matters. But because trauma lives in the body as much as the mind, I practice EMDR and somatic therapy together, tracking what's happening in your nervous system as we go, not only what's in your thoughts. Trauma isn't only a memory to reprocess; it's how your body learned to protect you, often before you had words for any of it.
That matters most with complex trauma: the kind that didn't come from one bad day, but built up slowly, inside relationships, over years. It usually needs more than a protocol; it needs someone paying attention to how you brace, when you disappear, and what helps you feel steady enough to stay. It's also how I work with childhood trauma, at whatever pace feels safe.
EMDR therapy for couples
EMDR isn't only something I do one-on-one. I bring EMDR into couples work too, something few couples therapists offer. When an old wound keeps surfacing between partners (a betrayal, a loss, something that happened long before you met), EMDR can reach the root of the reaction, not just the argument on the surface. We work with it together, at a pace both nervous systems can trust, so the past stops running the relationship.
What is attachment-focused EMDR?
A lot of what we call attachment issues (bracing for people to leave, going anxious or shutting down when someone gets close) traces back to early experiences the nervous system never fully processed. Attachment-focused EMDR reaches those older templates directly, so your system can learn, deeper than insight, that closeness doesn't have to mean danger.
What a course of EMDR looks likePreparation. Before we go anywhere near a difficult memory, we build steadiness and resources, so your system has somewhere solid to stand.
Processing. We work with the memory in short sets, checking in as we go. You stay in control the whole time, and we stop whenever you need to.
Integration. We make sure what shifted holds: the memory stays in the past, and the new, calmer response carries into daily life.
Who It's ForIs EMDR right for you?
I work with single-incident trauma (an accident, assault, or medical event), complex and childhood trauma, PTSD and C-PTSD, anxiety, panic, and phobias, grief and traumatic loss, and betrayal. In everyday terms, EMDR might be a fit if…
You've done talk therapy and understand your patterns, but they haven't budged
A specific event still feels close, like it just happened
Certain situations set off a reaction far bigger than the moment calls for
You go numb, freeze, or leave your body when things get hard
Flashbacks, intrusive memories, or nightmares interrupt your days
You carry shame or self-blame you can't reason your way out of
Anxiety or panic shows up without an obvious cause
You're stuck in a pattern you can name but can't change
“Trauma is not what happens to us, but what we hold inside in the absence of an empathetic witness.”
— Peter A. Levine
Working TogetherEMDR at a pace your nervous system can trust
EMDR can sound like something that gets done to you. It isn't. You're present and in charge the whole way through, and we only move toward the hard material once there's enough steadiness underneath to hold it.
There's no rushing this part.
My work is collaborative and anti-oppressive. I pay attention to the larger forces (culture, family, migration, the things you were taught to carry) that shaped how your body learned to protect itself. You already know more about your life than anyone else in the room. My job is to help your system finally believe the danger has passed.
Getting StartedHow to begin
01
Reach out
Book a consultation or send a note through the consultation form. I reply within 48 hours.
02
A free consultation
We’ll have a brief phone call so you can ask questions, get a feel for how I work, and decide if it feels like a good fit.
03
Your first session
We begin. The first few sessions focus on understanding your history, your goals, and what’s happening in your life right now.
QuestionsCommon questions about EMDR
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EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) is a well-researched therapy that helps your brain reprocess stuck, painful memories so they lose their charge. Using gentle bilateral stimulation (usually your eyes following my hand, or taps you hold), it lets the brain do something close to what it does in REM sleep: sort, file, and settle what got frozen. It isn't hypnosis; you stay awake, aware, and in control the whole time. EMDR is included in the American Psychological Association's treatment guideline for PTSD.
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Both help you process trauma through the brain-body connection. In fact, brainspotting grew out of EMDR. The main difference is structure: EMDR follows a defined protocol with bilateral stimulation, while brainspotting uses a fixed eye position to access what's held. I practice EMDR, alongside somatic work.
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It depends on what you're carrying. A single recent event can sometimes settle in a handful of sessions; trauma that built up over years usually takes longer, and we'll spend real time building steadiness before any reprocessing begins. I'll be honest about what I'm seeing, and we'll check in on progress as we go.
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Not exactly, but they're close cousins, and I use them together. EMDR works with memory and the nervous system; somatic therapy works directly with what's happening in your body. Because trauma lives in the body as much as the mind, I bring the two together, tracking sensation while we use EMDR to reach what talk alone can't.
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Yes. You don't need a clear, detailed memory for EMDR to help. We can start from a felt sense, a belief about yourself, or the way your body reacts now. The nervous system holds what happened even when the story is blurry. We work with what's actually present, not with forcing a memory that isn't.
You don't have to have it figured out to start
Book a free 20-minute consultation. Tell me what's been stuck (or just that something is), and we'll see whether EMDR is the right next step.
Couples therapy in Pasadena, South Pasadena, Eagle Rock, Highland Park & online across California