Psychotherapists don’t generally talk publicly in close detail about their work with individual clients.

However, a number of people I have supported with EMDR have generously agreed to put their experiences into words, offering a little insight and guidance to others considering this path.

Here is a selection, starting with the most recent, and with special thanks to the writers both for the thoughts and for inspiring shared journeys.

I used to think I was a rotten apple. I knew I wasn’t rotten to the core, but nonetheless, I was a bad apple. Affecting badly everything I touched.

Today, after our therapy, I discovered I am a fish. Capable of regenerating new cells, getting rid of sick ones in order to become healthy again.

I truly thank you. I shall miss you and our sessions.

That last client achieved this space after just six EMDR sessions, in what we term “adjunct” EMDR in parallel to her mainstream, weekly therapy.

Another client, also after just a few sessions, put her experience this way.

I found EMDR very unusual at first but with the safety and warmth of Mark’s guidance,  the process was very powerful and extraordinary. I definitely got a lot out of it!

I am grateful to Mark,  and to EMDR,  for having transformed my life.

It’s not uncommon in EMDR to work with clients who have become quite stuck in other forms of therapy that might have lasted for years.

After four years of being in therapy,  I became aware that I was suffering from severe form of trauma with PTSD symptoms.

Although conventional therapy was very helpful for most of this period,  it reached a point that it made matters unmanageable for me. I was struggling to function with my daily routines both at work as well as in my personal life.

I suffered from insomnia and I struggled to remember things. I often felt paralysed with a sense of dread and terror. The world was a dangerous and scary place and I felt drained and helpless.

Fortunately EMDR alleviated these symptoms. EMDR is intense but effective,  non-voyeuristic but most insightful. And it works.

Many clients find EMDR quite challenging at first, and not all stay the course. But those who do almost always find the journey an often unexpectedly enriching and life-changing experience.

It was like going on a journey,  a very difficult one,  but Mark facilitated this process with so much wisdom,  warmth and grace.

EMDR can be very hard and challenging work. But with courage,  warmth and engagement,  great distances can be travelled.

I experienced EMDR as poignant grounding and healing. Mark’s gentle and focused approach was consistent,  safe and containing.

At times the path was tiring and rocky …. at others fun and humorous. A positive experience which helped me transform areas of my life which had remained stuck for many years. Highly recommended.

There really is something about EMDR that’s different from other therapies. Not a miracle cure,  at least mostly,  but taking people to places that other approaches find it harder to reach.

I would like to recommend the EMDR methods to everybody who is looking for integration of their whole personality.

For me personally the EMDR sessions with Mark helped to undercover and to reconnect with my early childhood experience. In the safe,  comfortable environment of the therapeutic sessions I was able to recall childhood events including even nightmares which I dreamt in my childhood.

The EMDR sessions deeply influenced my future choices such as a change of profession. Mark is very gentle but very well organised – providing the structure and setting goals of the therapy. He led me extremely well through past experience.

The quickest and the most effective therapy which I have ever experienced. Deeply moving,  not always easy,  opening dark,  repressed,  and sometimes unwanted feelings – I recommend it highly!

And here is a comment very specifically on EMDR as a way of addressing old distress.

The beauty of EMDR is that it takes you quickly & easily into the exact place & time of both known & previously unknown trauma.

This enables the therapist to effectively reprogramme the emotional conflict connected with a trauma & release the negative charge around it.

Personally I have become more balanced,  relaxed and at peace with myself thanks to EMDR.

How do therapist and EMDR interact? This was one person’s experience:

Many thanks for guiding me through the EMDR process with much felt warmth,  tenderness,  support and authenticity.

I know you say the therapist does very little in EMDR but I would beg to differ! It was a very powerful process. My heartfelt thanks.