An Overview of Our EMDR Training Program

This Course in Accredited by the EMDR International Association

Learning EMDR is something that takes time. It is not that the concepts are difficult, it is just that there is considerable material to become familiar with in the process, and it is a process. We have designed the course to help you master it a little at a time. EMDR has numerous protocols and procedures. This is where the challenge lies. The only way one becomes adept at this mode of therapy is to do it and practice it. This will result acquiring the necessary skills. While becoming familiar with the protocols is relevant to mastering EMDR , one also must be able to use their clinical judgment in making decisions in EMDR sessions. Therefore, having more years of clinical experience may make the ability to master EMDR easier. However, we have taught clinicians from all levels of experience, and we have helped them to use EMDR.

The course is taught in 2 parts. Part 1 is designed to help the participant master the basics of EMDR therapy. It is important that we provide you with a foundation to learn and become adept with this treatment modality. The manual is written in such a way that all the procedures and protocols are discussed in considerable detail. This makes it very easy to use the manual as an easy reference for incorporating this into one's practice. We do not teach this in a manner that is robotic. It is important that we teach you as clinicians and therefore, one is able to think and make good clinical decisions while mastering EMDR. Initially, it may feel mechanical as you become more familiar with EMDR. In time though, it will become more fluid.

Part 2 teaches more advanced techniques such as working with select populations, the cognitive interweave, and discussions on how to treat more complex cases such as complex PTSD, personality disorders, and dissociation. It should be stated that if one does not have experience in treating such disorders they would need additional training beyond this course. It is outside the scope of this course to be able to teach everything that would be needed to treat such difficult types of presentations. EMDR is not a stand-alone therapy. What this means is that just because one has studied EMDR, it does not mean they can treat disorders they have not been trained to treat outside of EMDR.

Students may be concerned about remembering all that is taught in the 3-day courses. The manual that you will receive as part of the course has been written in such a way that it will guide you step-by-step through each phase of the EMDR Training Course.

As previously stated this course is taught in two parts. Part 1 teaches the basics so that the potential clinician can master a foundation of EMDR and its approach. Part 2 teaches more advanced techniques for working with more difficult situations. The new clinician to EMDR we'll be able to use it after Part 1. However, this will be with less complicated types of cases. For example, depression, anxiety, simple PTSD and other less complicated types of disorders would lend itself well to the Part 1 clinician.

The format for both courses includes a morning lecture covering didactic material. This material is related to the concepts, theoretical constructs, and protocols associated with EMDR. The afternoon is a hands-on practicum where the attendees learn to use EMDR by practicing with each other.

All students are required to obtain the textbook "Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing: Basic Principles, Protocols, and Procedures," by Francine Shapiro, Ph.D. part 1, chapters 1–8 should have been read before the training. For Part 2, chapters 9–11 should have been read. The course manual will be available electronically upon completion of registration and payment.