EMDR Therapy in Illinois: What It Is, How It Works, and Who It Helps

When people first hear “EMDR,” they usually have one of two reactions. Either they’ve heard it mentioned in passing and want to know more, or they’ve seen some clip online of someone moving their eyes back and forth and thought, “What in the world is that?”

Both reactions are completely fair. EMDR is one of the most research-supported treatments available for trauma, PTSD, and anxiety — but it’s also one of the most misunderstood. So I want to break it down in plain language: what it actually is, what happens during a session, and whether it might be right for you.

I use EMDR in my telehealth practice across Illinois, and it’s one of the tools I trust most when working with clients who are carrying something heavy.

What Is EMDR Therapy?

EMDR stands for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. It was developed in the late 1980s by psychologist Francine Shapiro, and since then it’s become one of the most extensively studied treatments for trauma and PTSD in the world. The World Health Organization, the American Psychological Association, and the Department of Veterans Affairs all recognize it as an effective treatment.

Here’s the simplest way I can explain what EMDR does: it helps your brain finish processing something it got stuck on.

When something traumatic or deeply distressing happens, the memory doesn’t always get stored the way normal memories do. Instead of filing away in the background, it stays raw — linked to the same emotions, physical sensations, and beliefs you had in the moment it happened. So years later, a smell, a tone of voice, or a certain look on someone’s face can pull you right back into that feeling. Your brain hasn’t fully processed what happened. EMDR helps it do that.

The “eye movement” part refers to bilateral stimulation — a rhythmic, side-to-side activation of both sides of the brain — which happens while you hold a distressing memory in mind. This is thought to be similar to what happens during REM sleep, when the brain naturally processes and integrates the day’s experiences. We’re essentially giving the stuck memory a second chance to be filed away properly.

Why I Use EMDR in My Practice

I want to be honest with you about why I use EMDR: it works when other things haven’t.

I’ve worked with clients who have spent years in traditional talk therapy, who have genuine insight into why they feel the way they feel, who can tell me exactly what happened to them and connect it logically to their current struggles — and they’re still struggling. The knowing hasn’t translated into healing.

EMDR works at a different level. It doesn’t require you to have the perfect words for what happened. It doesn’t require you to re-live the trauma in graphic detail. It works through the body and the nervous system, not just through narrative and intellectual understanding.

I also use EMDR because it’s particularly well-suited to the kinds of wounds I see in South Asian clients — wounds that often don’t have clean narratives. Intergenerational trauma, the slow erosion of growing up feeling like you were never enough, the acute terror of partition stories carried in the body across generations. These things aren’t always easy to put into words, but they live in the nervous system. EMDR can reach them.

The 8 Phases of EMDR Treatment — Simplified

EMDR isn’t something that happens in one session. It’s a structured process with eight phases. Here’s what those phases actually look like in plain language:

Phase 1: History-Taking and Treatment Planning

We talk. I learn about you, what’s brought you in, and what you want to work on. We identify the specific memories or experiences that are driving your current distress. You don’t have to share every detail — we just need to understand what we’re working with.

Phase 2: Preparation

Before we do any actual processing, I make sure you have what you need to stay regulated during sessions. This includes teaching grounding techniques and coping skills. We don’t rush into the hard stuff until you feel safe enough to approach it.

Phase 3: Assessment

We identify the specific memory we’re going to process. I’ll ask you to identify the image that represents the worst part of it, the negative belief about yourself that comes with it (like “I’m not safe” or “I’m worthless”), the emotion it brings up, and where you feel it in your body. This isn’t about analysis — it’s about pinpointing what we’re targeting.

Phases 4–7: Desensitization and Reprocessing

This is the active part. While holding the memory in mind, you follow bilateral stimulation — typically side-to-side hand taps or tones through headphones in telehealth sessions. I’ll check in frequently and guide what happens next. Your brain does the work; I’m just facilitating the process. The goal is to watch the distress level around the memory drop, and for new, healthier perspectives to naturally emerge.

Phase 8: Reevaluation

At the start of each subsequent session, we check in on how you’re doing and what’s shifted. EMDR isn’t a linear path — sometimes one memory leads to another, and we follow where it goes.

What Actually Happens During a Session

I want to demystify this because the descriptions can make it sound strange.

You’re sitting comfortably — in your own space, on your couch, wherever you do telehealth. I ask you to bring to mind a specific memory or image. While you hold it, I guide you through sets of bilateral stimulation: in telehealth, this might be tapping your knees or shoulders alternately, holding buzzers that vibrate from side to side, or following audio tones through headphones.

Then I stop and ask, “What came up?” Sometimes it’s an emotion. Sometimes it’s a new thought or image. Sometimes it’s a memory you haven’t thought about in years. We don’t analyze what comes up — we just notice it and go back in for another set.

This continues until the distress connected to the memory has significantly reduced and a healthier belief about yourself feels genuinely true. The whole thing is guided, paced, and much calmer than people expect.

You might feel tired after a session — the brain has done real work. You might notice memories surfacing between sessions. This is normal and part of the process.

EMDR vs. Traditional Talk Therapy — What’s Different

Traditional talk therapy — cognitive behavioral therapy, psychodynamic work, even a lot of supportive counseling — works through language, insight, and behavioral change. You talk through what happened, make connections, challenge distorted beliefs, and practice new ways of thinking and responding. This is genuinely valuable work, and I integrate it into my practice.

EMDR is different in that it targets the stored traumatic memory itself. Rather than building coping strategies around a wound, it goes after the wound directly. The goal isn’t to manage your triggers better — it’s to fundamentally change how the memory is stored so that it no longer activates the same distress response.

Think of it this way: if you have a splinter, you can learn to walk differently to avoid irritating it, you can build up calluses around it, you can take pain medication. Or you can take the splinter out. EMDR is more like taking the splinter out.

That said, EMDR and talk therapy work well together. I use both, often in the same course of treatment.

Who Benefits from EMDR Therapy?

EMDR was originally developed for PTSD, and it remains one of the gold-standard treatments for post-traumatic stress. But the research and clinical experience have expanded well beyond that. EMDR is used effectively for:

• PTSD and complex PTSD — whether from a single traumatic event or repeated, ongoing trauma
• Childhood trauma — abuse, neglect, or growing up in an unsafe or emotionally chaotic environment
• Single-incident trauma — accidents, assaults, medical emergencies, sudden loss
• Anxiety and phobias — particularly when they’re rooted in a specific frightening experience
• Grief and loss — especially grief that feels stuck or complicated
• Performance anxiety — athletes, performers, and professionals whose anxiety is tied to specific past experiences of failure or humiliation
• South Asian identity trauma — the accumulation of never quite belonging, family enmeshment, chronic shame, intergenerational wounds

If you’re carrying something that talk therapy hasn’t been able to fully reach, EMDR is worth considering. I work with clients navigating trauma and PTSD as well as anxiety that has roots in past experiences — and EMDR is often part of how we get there.

Can EMDR Work via Telehealth?

Yes. And I say that with confidence, not just as a practical workaround.

The research on telehealth EMDR (sometimes called e-EMDR) has grown substantially, and it shows comparable outcomes to in-person treatment for most clients. The key is the bilateral stimulation — and there are several effective alternatives to in-person eye movements for telehealth:

• Tactile buzzers — handheld devices that alternate vibrations. These can be ordered online and are inexpensive.
• Self-tapping — alternating taps on your knees, shoulders, or hands. Simple and effective.
• Audio bilateral stimulation — alternating tones through headphones.
• Following a visual on screen — I can share a stimulus on the screen for you to track.

What matters is that the bilateral stimulation is present and consistent. The delivery method matters less than you might think.

For my Illinois clients, telehealth EMDR means access to specialized trauma treatment no matter where you are in the state — Chicago, Naperville, Peoria, downstate, wherever you’re at.

Is EMDR Right for You?

Here are some signs that EMDR might be worth exploring:

• You have a memory or set of memories that still feel raw, even years later
• You have anxiety, panic, or strong emotional reactions that seem out of proportion to what’s happening now — and you suspect they’re connected to something older
• You’ve done talk therapy and gained insight, but something still feels stuck
• You find it hard to talk about certain things — you shut down, dissociate, or flood with emotion
• You’re carrying trauma that you’ve never really processed

EMDR isn’t right for everyone in every phase of treatment. If you’re currently in a mental health crisis, we’d focus on stabilization first. And some people need more preparation time before approaching traumatic memories directly. All of that is part of the process, and I tailor the approach to where you actually are.

If you’re curious, the best first step is a conversation. I offer a free consultation where we can talk about what you’re carrying, what you’ve tried, and whether EMDR or another approach might be a good fit.

I offer EMDR therapy via telehealth across all of Illinois. If you’re ready to explore whether this is the right approach for you, schedule a free consultation. You don’t have to keep managing around the wound.

About the Author

Sukhi Sandhu is a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor specializing in PTSD, trauma, anxiety, and culturally-responsive therapy. She provides telehealth services throughout Illinois.

Learn more about POM Therapy Collective