EMDR Phase 2 Explained: Why Preparation Is the Phase That Makes or Breaks Your Healing

May 12

This blog is adapted from one of our recent podcast episodes. You can take a listen at the button above.

If you've ever started EMDR therapy and felt like something went wrong, like the process felt too intense, too fast, or like you weren't ready, there's a good chance Phase 2 didn't get the attention it deserved.

EMDR Phase 2, known as the Preparation phase, is the most skipped phase in EMDR therapy. It's also the phase most responsible for clients dropping out before they ever experience real healing. This blog post breaks down exactly what happens in preparation, why it matters so much, and what both clinicians and clients need to know before moving forward.

Key Takeaways

In this blog post, you'll learn:

Why EMDR Phase 2 is the most commonly skipped and why that's a problem
The difference between Safe Place, Container, and the three resource figures
How psychoeducation prepares clients for what EMDR actually feels like
Why bilateral stimulation during resourcing is now being debated in the research
What clients can expect from a well-run preparation phase
How the Netherlands research on intensives is changing how clinicians think about preparation

Why So Many Clients Drop Out of EMDR (And What It Has to Do with Phase 2)

EMDR has a reputation for being powerful, and it is. But powerful doesn't always mean easy. When clients leave EMDR before it works, preparation is often at the root of it.

Phase 2 is where the groundwork gets laid. It's where a client learns what EMDR is, builds trust with their therapist, develops tools to manage difficult emotions, and practices the actual mechanics of bilateral stimulation. When this phase is rushed or skipped, clients can find themselves in processing sessions without the foundation to handle what comes up.

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Think of it this way: you can get all the titles of what parenthood involves in a newborn class before your baby arrives. But you really understand it when you come back to class after the baby is home. History taking gives you the titles. Preparation gives you the tools. Assessment — which comes next — is where you dig fully in. These phases loop and build on each other, and rushing past preparation short-circuits the whole process.

How Phases 1, 2, and 3 Work Together

Before going deeper into Phase 2, it helps to understand how it fits with the phases on either side of it.

Phase 1: History Taking is about getting the big picture - the titles of someone's story, not the full book. Clinicians are already paying attention here to how regulated a client becomes just by naming certain experiences. That information directly shapes what preparation needs to look like.

Phase 2: Preparation is where clients actually get ready to process trauma. This is where resources are built, trust is established, and logistics are practiced.

Phase 3: Assessment is where the deeper history gets filled in, but only because the client is now equipped to go there.

A common mistake clinicians make is combining history taking and assessment before preparation is complete. Clients aren't ready for that level of depth yet. These phases are circular, not linear, and preparation is what makes the deeper work possible.

What Happens in EMDR Phase 2: Preparation

Phase 2 covers five core areas. Here's what each one looks like in practice.

1. Psychoeducation

Psychoeducation is exactly what it sounds like: educating clients on the psychological process. In this phase, that includes:

How trauma affects the brain and body
What EMDR is (and what it isn't - it's not hypnosis)
What to expect during processing sessions
What might come up between sessions, like vivid dreams or memories surfacing more frequently

This normalization piece matters. Clients who understand the process are less likely to be blindsided by it and more likely to stick with it.

2. Resourcing

Resourcing is what most people think of when they hear "EMDR preparation." It's the process of building internal anchors a client can return to when things get hard.

The most commonly taught resources are Safe Place and Container, and I use them together. Before a client visits their Safe Place, they use their Container to set aside anything that doesn't belong there.

Container is an imagined (or real) object that holds whatever a client needs to put away - an emotion, a memory, a physical sensation. I have had clients visualize a weighted shipping container sinking to the bottom of the ocean. I’ve also heard about grandmother's indestructible 1970s Tupperware. Whatever holds things securely works.

Safe Place is a real or imagined location or a combination where the client feels completely at ease. Interestingly, water shows up in almost everyone's safe place. One gentle guideline I use: try to keep Safe Place just for you. Even seemingly safe people can carry complicated associations, and keeping Safe Place as a solo space protects its effectiveness.

3. The Three Resource Figures

These are my personal favorites, and for good reason. They're some of the most powerful tools in EMDR resourcing.

Nurturing Figure — Someone who offers unconditional love, warmth, and comfort. Grandmothers come up constantly. I have said if I could line my office walls with photos of the grandmothers my clients have described, I would.

Protective Figure — Someone who provides strength, safety, and security. In my practice, spouses often step into this role for clients who are in solid marriages. Husbands tend to show up in a more physical protective role; wives often step in verbally, advocating for the child-self in a memory.

Here's something remarkable: sometimes these figures can come into the actual session. A husband, for example, might be invited in and asked if he had been present during a childhood trauma what he would have done. The impact of hearing that answer is difficult to overstate.

Wise Figure — Someone who offers clarity, guidance, and perspective. This resource is especially helpful when a client is stuck on a negative belief about themselves. "I am not worthy" becomes easier to challenge when I can ask: What would your grandma say about your worth, if she could see everything that just unfolded in front of her?

One important clinical note: know these figures. I don’t just identify them and move on. I learn them — their personality, their history with the client, their voice. That preparation is what makes them useful in the room.

Installing the Client as Their Own Resource Figure

One of the most powerful moves in resourcing is installing the client as their own nurturing, protective, or wise figure. Adult me can show up for 8-year-old me in ways that child never had. That kind of self-resource can be transformative.

The general order for finding resource figures: real person from the client's life (including the client themselves) → a figure from a book, film, or story → the therapist, as a last resort.

4. Affect Regulation and the Therapeutic Relationship

Throughout preparation, the therapist is monitoring how regulated the client can stay, even just talking about general history. Grounding techniques, breathing exercises, and body-based calming tools are introduced and practiced here.

Equally important is building trust. EMDR asks clients to be extraordinarily vulnerable. That can't happen without a solid therapeutic relationship, and that relationship is intentionally cultivated in this phase.

A stop signal is also established - a clear way for the client to communicate that they need to pause. My default: if using buzzers, drop them. If using eye movements, close your eyes. It's a simple but essential form of client agency.

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5. BLS Practice (Bilateral Stimulation Practice)

Before processing begins, clients practice the actual mechanics of bilateral stimulation. This includes eye movements, tactile buzzers, and sometimes tapping. Not everyone tracks eye movements well, and knowing that in advance means having a plan for Phase 3 and beyond.

A note on the research: current studies suggest that using bilateral stimulation during resourcing may not be as beneficial as previously thought. The stimulation itself isn't harmful, but its value alongside resource-building is being questioned. My take: keep doing what you're doing until better data says otherwise.

What the Netherlands Research Says About Preparation

There's strong, consistent data coming out of the Netherlands on EMDR, and some of it suggests preparation can be less intensive than traditionally practiced. Here's the important context: that research is almost entirely based on multi-day EMDR intensives, often in inpatient settings where clients stay on site.

In that environment, clients don't need as much rapport-building with an individual clinician because they trust the institution and the process - sometimes because neighbors or family members have gone through it in a publicly funded healthcare system. They also don't need the same level of resourcing because they're not returning home between sessions. The structure itself provides the containment.

That context matters. For most outpatient clients in the U.S., that infrastructure doesn't exist — and preparation remains essential.

EMDR Phases Are Circular, Not Linear

One of the most important reframes in this episode: the eight phases of EMDR are not a straight line you move through once and leave behind. They're a loop you return to as needed.

A client who has a great week, who walked into a grocery store without panic for the first time in years, that experience is a resource. It can be installed right then, in session, as evidence of capacity and growth. A client who hits a difficult memory in Phase 5 might need to loop back to Phase 2 to rebuild a Safe Place that no longer feels safe. That's not a setback. That's the process working.

Clinicians: expect to return here. Clients: this is normal and good.

What This Means If You're Considering EMDR

If you're a potential EMDR client, you don't need to memorize any of this. But knowing it exists gives you something valuable: the ability to ask your therapist informed questions.

Questions worth asking:

How do you approach the preparation phase?
What resourcing tools will we build together?
How will I know when I'm ready to move into processing?

A well-trained EMDR therapist will welcome those questions. If they rush past them, that's worth paying attention to.

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Frequently Asked Questions About EMDR Phase 2

How long does EMDR Phase 2 (Preparation) take?

There's no fixed timeline. For some clients, preparation takes a few sessions. For others, particularly those with complex trauma or limited affect regulation skills, it may take longer. What matters is that the client genuinely has the tools they need before moving into processing, not that preparation was completed quickly.

What is a Safe Place in EMDR?

A Safe Place is a real or imagined location where a client feels completely calm and secure. It's built collaboratively with the therapist and becomes an internal anchor the client can return to during and between sessions. Water appears in almost everyone's Safe Place, though the details are always personal.

What is a Container in EMDR?

A Container is an imagined object used to temporarily hold emotions, memories, or body sensations that a client isn't ready to address in a given session. The Container doesn't make those things disappear - it gives them a place to wait so the client isn't overwhelmed.

What are the three resource figures in EMDR?

The three resource figures used in EMDR preparation are the Nurturing Figure (unconditional love and comfort), the Protective Figure (strength and safety), and the Wise Figure (clarity and perspective). These figures — real, imagined, or even the client themselves — become internal resources the brain can draw on during processing.

What is bilateral stimulation (BLS) in EMDR?

Bilateral stimulation refers to any input that alternates between the left and right sides of the body or brain. In EMDR, this is most commonly eye movements, tactile buzzers, or tapping. Walking, bouncing alternate legs, and tossing a ball between hands are all forms of bilateral stimulation. In Phase 2, clients practice BLS so the mechanics are familiar before processing begins.

Can EMDR be done without a long preparation phase?

Research from the Netherlands shows that preparation can be abbreviated in intensive, inpatient EMDR settings where clients are on-site with full support. In standard outpatient therapy, however, a thorough preparation phase remains important for client safety and treatment effectiveness.

What's the difference between EMDR resourcing and EMDR processing?

Resourcing (Phase 2) is about building internal tools — Safe Place, Container, resource figures — that help clients stay regulated. Processing (Phases 4–6) is where traumatic memories are actually desensitized and reprocessed. Resourcing comes first and supports everything that follows.

Related Resources

Hello. Hello. Hello, friends, welcome to the podcast where we simplify everything about mental health. Just kidding. But here's what we are gonna do. We're gonna sit down together a licensed mental health professional, that's me and a regular old Joe as my husband Garth would describe himself. We're gonna talk about the nitty gritty of EMDR, some nervous system mapping, how couples can help each other heal. What's healthy parenting actually look like? Maybe a little bit of good old banter mixed in. All with the goal of making mental health a little bit simpler for you. Quick note, because my lawyer says that I have to, I'm a therapist, but not your therapist. Unless I am. Even if I am. This is still just a podcast. Okay, now have a good listen. Hello friends. Thank you for joining us once again. We are in our series. What are the eight phases of EMDR? And today we are in the second phase preparation. Here we go. I am joined by. Garth. Hey, surprise, shocker. To discuss this we are gonna be talking about why phase two is the most skipped phase in EMDR and why so many clients drop out of EMDR because phase two is not treated with the reverence that it deserves. Prepare, prepare, prepare, prepare, prepare, prepare. Oh gosh, what's the saying that I'm missing? Preparing. Not preparing is preparing to fail, but it's not that. Yeah, something like that. Oh my goodness. I'm gonna have to look this up afterwards. Okay. Garth, take us away with some bant. Alright. Today for bant, I want to know Cassandra, what your favorite activity as an adult to do is like, I dunno, I was just thinking today we've got our kids. And their, their little worlds are just, just what we allow them to do, right? Mm-hmm. But, but when you become an adult, you can do whatever you want. If you want to go stare at pigeons in the park, you can. Yeah. No one's stopping you from doing that as long as you're not hurting anybody else pretty free out there. So, can I tell you something? I'm learning about myself and other adults. Yeah. This kind of gets into like my other business a little bit. Okay. Okay. But we are not playing enough. Yeah. No, we're not. Okay. Everybody just running around. Everybody's just running around. We are not playing enough. Because when you ask me that question mm-hmm. So many things come to my mind. Mm-hmm. And they're not things that I'm doing very often. Hmm. Well throw some out there. What are things that you just like doing? Okay. One thing that I've loved recently mm-hmm. Is so much of our weekend is spent running after our 4-year-old who's learning to ride her bike. Mm. Mm-hmm. And like just being that active with her, like girlfriend can move now. Yeah. Yeah. Daddy has to keep telling her to slow down so it can keep up. It's, there's something about that that just feels so playful and fun. Mm-hmm. And like, it's different than her being in a stroller and running with her. Mm-hmm. Like, it's, I don't, I don't know. I haven't quite put my finger on it, but that's really fun. I don't swim as much as I would like to. Mm-hmm. I really love to swim. So I think active things like that. Mm-hmm. I have really enjoyed recently, and I'm asking for it. So much that I'm noticing that our 4-year-old is starting to, like, we're maybe doing it a little bit too much, which I didn't know was possible for her. Do you know what I'm gonna say? Go to parks? No, no. Reading the Harry Potter series. Oh yeah. We've been doing a lot of reading. I am so in love with it that I'm finding myself asking like, Hey, can we sit down with a cup of coffee? Mm-hmm. And like, can you read Harry Potter to us? That feels playful to me. Yeah. And, yeah, I'm loving it so much that I'm noticing that she's like, okay it's my best friend's birthday this week and I'm going over to her house with two paint by numbers. I'm really excited about that. Yeah, it feels very playful. They're actually not that bad at Michael's. Expensive wise. Yeah. Yeah. Like I found some $5 ones, but they didn't have numbers. And I was like, we don't need that in our lives. We need numbers, we need, we need numbers, very specific directions. And so then I found some that were $10 that have numbers, and I'm like, I can see this being some play that I fall in love with. So, yeah, right now in this moment, my favorite playful thing Yeah. Is chasing after our 4-year-old on her bike. Yeah, it's hard to beat that. Pretty fun. Feels very pretty fun. Very playful. Feels very fun. Yeah, it's just good stuff. How about you? What's your favorite right now? Hmm, man. Is it watching pigeons? No. No. It might be our four year olds, though. She is very interested in birds and animals of all sorts. She is I'd say for me, I, I, again, I like to be outside and do things too. Fishing. Mm-hmm. Went fishing with the, the. The child earlier this spring. We have four of them, but she is the dragon. Well, she's the one that went fishing with me. I knew you knew who I was talking about. I did. Yeah, so fishing is fun. I, I do like me some Dungeons and Dragons. Yes. So that's, that's a fun thing. That's playful thing. It's definitely the, it's definitely the most social thing that I do. Yeah. On a regular basis. And yeah. So that's it. Okay. What is it about Dungeons and Dragons that you think like that kind of play really drew you in as an adult? Hmm. Well, it's. It's creative and imaginative. And for all those d and d heads out there, I like to be the dungeon master. So I kind of create the story and shepherd everyone through it. So it's a bit like writing. Mm-hmm. Like, like writing a book or you know, you just have to keep everything on. On the rails as much as you can, and there's that fun aspect of it where it's kind of hard to keep everybody pointed in the same direction, but giving them exciting things for their characters to chase after is fun. Yeah, you're a really good DM and I can say that. That's one of the only unbiased things I can probably say about anybody in our family, because I don't do DD, so I'm just going off of like other people's Yeah. Feedback. Yeah. Yep. So, okay. I have already said that we are chatting about why preparation matters that folks that. Leave EMDR oftentimes leave EMDR because this phase was not taken seriously enough. I wanna walk us through before we really get rolling. What the other pieces of this episode are gonna be. We are going to talk about how psychoeducation plays a role how resourcing plays a role, and the primary resources that we go to in EMDR. How we as clinicians need to be monitoring, affect regulation skills. We are going to. Obviously be working to establish the therapeutic relationship, just like we would in any form of mm-hmm. Of therapy. Mm-hmm. And then we're just also practicing the logistics of this BLS practice, bilateral stimulation practice. So things like, even though no one has I'm sorry. Even though someone does not have, excuse me, maybe, like an injury to their eye. Yeah. That doesn't mean that they can track eye movements very well. Mm-hmm. And I'll tell you, I'm somebody who really stinks at it, like personally as a client. Yeah. And so that's something to keep in mind that's often looked over in this phase is we need to be preparing for that. Mm-hmm. Because in the assessment phase, we need to have a game plan. If eye movements aren't gonna consistently work for this person, what are we gonna do about that? Yeah. Okay. I also wanted to make sure as we got rolling here that we talked about these first three phases in combination together. Okay. So we've had an introductory episode to the eight phases, and then we've also talked about history taking and treatment planning. And I just wanna make sure that I explain this thoroughly because I'm not sure that I have history taking preparation, assessment. They flow together really well. History taking, we're kind of dipping our toe. We're getting maybe titles. Of what happened with this individual, not the whole book. We're starting to assess for how we're going to approach this. Mm-hmm. We talked about that in the last episode, but it is important to remind ourselves that we haven't done preparatory work yet, and. As we're considering what we're addressing with a client in history taking, we should really be mindful of that. So these three phases together, it's almost like, okay, we do some history taking, then we actually get the client ready to manage their trauma. Mm-hmm. Then we more fully understand their history. Mm-hmm. Because they're now ready to allow us to more fully understand it with them. In the assessment phase. Right. Does that make sense? Mm-hmm. Yeah. So I think that sometimes we make the mistake of lumping assessment and history taking together prior to doing preparatory work. Mm-hmm. That's a mistake. Yeah. People aren't ready for that. Yeah. I've made that mistake. We need to be mindful of, I think most people, whenever they're getting started, as clinicians and working in EMDR have the tendency to lean towards, I'm gonna get a really thorough assessment of this person because that's what they've been trained. To do. Sure. Yeah. And that is you know, they're doing that with good intention, but we can go too far mm-hmm. Without getting to this preparation phase. Yeah. Does that make sense? Yeah, for sure. Okay. So as somebody who like sits outside of the mm-hmm. EMDR world, well, it makes sense that you would learn things and then you would want to be preparing for them kind of concurrently. Rather than like, I have all of the history, now it's time to do all the preparation. You, you kind of need to bounce back and forth and do 'em at the same time to some degree. Can I make a comparison? Sure. I think it. It's kind of like how I think newborn classes should be set up. Like I think whenever people are pregnant for the first time, they should go to or they should be offered a newborn class. Mm-hmm. And then you, like, you get the titles of what you're gonna be doing with the newborn, not the whole book. Mm-hmm. And then you have the newborn. Yeah. And you come back to class. And you come back to class. Yeah. Yeah. It's one of those situations where like you really need the loop. Assessment is almost looping back around to history, taking, digging in more, and really developing a more thorough plan. We'll talk more about that in the next episode. Okay, so psychoeducation. Psychoeducation is just what the word sounds like. We're educating the client on the psychological process, how trauma affects the brain and body, what EMDR is and what it is not. Mm-hmm. Things like hypnosis. A lot of clients are coming in. With the idea that it's very similar to hypnosis. We're walking through that with them, what to expect during processing, so what to expect in later. Mm-hmm. Phases of EMDR and then normalizing what's going to come up in between sessions. Okay. Things like you might have vivid dreams you know, the pieces of the trauma may pop up for you more often through throughout your time in between sessions. Okay. So when people think of preparation, they think of resourcing. In fact, sometimes we use preparation and resourcing interchangeably for this phase. Okay. So the next part that I want to go over is resourcing. But it's resourcing isn't all that happens in this preparation phase. It's a big piece of it. And whenever we think of resourcing, usually people think of safe, calm, place, and container. Those are the two most common resources that EMDR clinicians are trained in utilizing. And the way that I utilize. I use the terminology Safe place and container is I use them in conjunction with one another. Okay? So when someone is going in, when we practice it, when someone is going into Safe Place, they are utilizing their container prior to going into Safe Place. Now, that doesn't mean they can't utilize their container. At any point. Yeah. But I wanna explain what container and Safe place is, and then I think it'll make sense why I use them in conjunction with one another. Please. That's what I was just gonna ask. Yeah. I said to me that, I mean, I, I can somewhat envision what maybe those mean, but Right. Tell me more, again, straightforward titles. Right. They are what they sound like the container is. Can't, what do I need to put in this container, whether it be an emotion, a body sensation, a thought, other memories that I am not addressing today, whatever it is, what is a container that I would imagine would hold this better than anything? Mm-hmm. Yeah. So I have had people describe a shipping container that's that we add weights to and it sinks to the bottom of the ocean. Hmm. I've had people describe their grandmother's Tupperware from, you know, good cookout, food, right. From the 1970s that just seemed to keep going and going. Mm-hmm. And nothing was getting outta that thing. Yeah. You know, so it can be a, a large spectrum as far as what we actually visualize. It can be a real or imagined object. Okay. Same thing with Safe Place. It can be a real or imagined place or a combination of the two. It's interesting, I haven't looked to see if there's research on this. Mm-hmm. Water is. Almost always included in someone's safe place. Really. Yeah. So water is almost always included in someone's safe place. Here's something personally that I do and that I think a lot of clinicians do, is I have some rules around safe place that people, that other people not come into safe place. Mm-hmm. The reason that I do that is even if someone is seemingly safe. Oftentimes there can be little connections to a lot of people. Yeah. Yeah. Now I have had people ask for instance, I'll have Christian clients that will say like, can Jesus join me in, in safe place? Mm-hmm. And so we'll take a good look at like, you know, Jesus in and of himself was a safe person. Mm-hmm. Is there any religious trauma connected? Sure. Yeah. To him at this time. Mm-hmm. And if there's not great, like, you know, yeah. So, sometimes there are exceptions mm-hmm. To that, but for the most part I ask like, let's try to keep it just you. Mm-hmm. In the safe place. I've had some people who, you know, or like I, I. Would really like my husband to, to be in the safe place, right? Mm-hmm. And I know enough about that relationship to know that's probably not gonna kick me in the rear later on. Yeah. And so, we'll, we'll do that, but most often I like it to be a place where it's just the client. Yep. And again, I think the title in and of itself describes it pretty well. I am trying to move quick. This is a heavy episode. It is, it is very loaded. Mm-hmm. It has a lot going on. I want to move away from safe place and container because I wanna move on to my favorites. Okay. And my favorites are nurturing figure, protective figure, and wise figure. Okay. I use nurturing and protector by far. More often than wise, but I use all three of them. Mm-hmm. And I'm gonna give you quick definitions, nurturing figure unconditional love, warmth, comfort. I've used a lot of grandmas. Mm-hmm. I have said before, if I could have in my office a wall of. Pictures of grandmas that have loved my clients well. Mm-hmm. Yeah. And not break anyone's confidentiality. That would be such a beautiful thing. Yeah. I have vicariously just loved so many grandmas mm-hmm. That have, been that nurturing figure. It's been solid figures. Yeah. Yes. Yeah. For my clients. So, we use the terminology installed, and I'll go over that in a moment. Installed a lot of grandma's as nurturing figures. Mm-hmm. Protector figures. They provide a sense of strength, safety, security to manage fear and anxiety. Love, love, love. When we in adulthood are able to find spouses mm-hmm. That. Are able to do that for us. Yeah. And obviously I'm primarily working with women in my EMDR work, and oftentimes if they are in solid marriages, their husbands will be protective figures. I've had wives be protective figures too. Mm-hmm. And usually with husbands it's more of like a physical dynamic and with wives it's more of a verbal. Mm-hmm. Wife comes in and like verbally stands up for mm-hmm. Child. Yeah. During a a memory, here's the really, really cool thing. Sometimes these nurturing figures and protective figures can actually come into the office and play an active role. Mm-hmm. So what that looks like is I'm working with a client on. I'm trying to come up with a theoretical example. Their trauma from when they were five years old. Yeah. They were physically harmed by someone. Mm-hmm. And husband comes in and I turn to husband and there's some prep before this. Sure. Right? Yeah. But I turn to husband and I say, if you were there in this moment. What response would you have? Yeah, so powerful. Mm-hmm. Such a cool, cool thing. And then wise figure offers guidance, clarity, and perspective. This is really helpful when someone has a negative cognition that they're really having trouble moving past. Mm-hmm. So I am not worthy. Okay? Mm-hmm. And again, I'm just gonna use grandma as an example 'cause I just love it. What would grandma say about your worth? Yeah. If grandma were sitting here with us right now. Yeah. And she saw everything. That you just processed, play out in front of her. Mm-hmm. What would she still say about your worth? Mm-hmm. Here a note to clinicians. It is really important that you make it your business to understand these nurturing figures, protective figures, and wise figures. This is why I have fallen in love with so many grandmas. Yeah. Because I do not wanna be in a situation where I don't know grandma well enough. Mm-hmm. And something comes up and something comes up and I say, what would grandma say here? Mm-hmm. When I say, what would grandma say here? I know what grandma would say here. Mm-hmm. Yeah. Is that, yeah. Does that track? And when I say no, of course I've never met grandma. Mm-hmm. But you know that grandma was unconditionally loving Yes. Or was always a place of peace or, yeah. Yes. Something along those lines. So there is some work behind this. Mm-hmm. It's not as easy as saying like. Pick somebody who is most nurturing to you in your childhood. You can start there. Yeah, for sure. But then you need to actually dig in and understand this person. So that's an important note. I used the word earlier, I said installing. Mm-hmm. Of the things that we do in EMDR from the basic protocol, the original basic protocol, installing resources is becoming the, i I think please nobody quote me on this, but I think installing resources is becoming the least supported by research. Okay. As far as things that we do from the basic protocol. So installing means that we have like buzzes where we're providing slow tactiles mm-hmm. Stimulation much slower Yeah. Than the stimulation that we provide in later phases of e mdr r where we're desensitizing and reprocessing. Mm-hmm. We may be providing really slow eye movements. Oftentimes it is tactical Yeah. That we're using when we're tactile. Yes. Yeah. Not tactical. No, not tactical. Yeah. I do that all the time. Yeah, that's okay. Thank you for correcting me. That's we need to be tactile and we, now, I can't even say it. We need to be tactical in our use of tactile. There we go. Yeah. Stimulation. So. Do I think we should jump into doing anything different? No, because do I think that it's harmful to be providing tactile stimulation? Yeah. While someone is walking through resourcing phases? No. Yeah. I don't think it's harmful. It's not doing any harm. It's not doing any harm. But how much benefit it's bringing is kind of up for debate a little bit right now. That's up for debate right now. And so that is what it is. The. Resourcing is absolutely beneficial. Mm-hmm. But just the tactile, it just does the bilateral stem stimulation mm-hmm. Next to the resourcing really make a difference. Right. That's up in the air right now. Keep doing what you're doing. Yeah. Until you hear otherwise. Yeah. Okay. I, oh, one last thing before we move on from that. My goodness. This is gonna be a long episode if you're hanging with us. Thank you. One of my favorite things to do is to install. Clients as their own wise figures, nurturers protectors. That's cool. It is so cool. So powerful. So one thing, probably how it comes up the most often for me is I will say so I'll use myself as an example. Okay. What would Mom Cassandra do here? Mm-hmm. Yeah. How would Mom Cassandra respond here? Yeah, because Mom Cassandra is. Almost a completely different person than 8-year-old Cassandra. Yeah, very different. She's certainly. And not that that means that I don't carry every part of me with me. Mm-hmm. Because that is also true, but she's certainly differently capable. Yeah. Differently abled mm-hmm. Than 8-year-old Cassandra. Mom Cassandra can nurture 8-year-old Cassandra mom. Cassandra can protect. Mm-hmm. Monica Cassandra can provide wisdom. That is very cool. Yeah. Here's something we need to think about if we can. Install a nurturing figure, protective figure, wise figure by using a real person in our life. I wanna do that. Mm-hmm. Including the client themselves. Right. If we can't do that, can we use a figure in a book? Mm-hmm. So anything that the client relates to, I stumble though seriously though. Yeah. If we can't do that, we're gonna go kind of down this hierarchy. Mm-hmm. So real person including self, figure. Mm-hmm. Of some kind. Yeah. And then lastly, therapists themselves. Mm-hmm. If we have to go there. Yeah. I will say something like, I want to tell you if I were there in that moment mm-hmm. What I would do. Yeah. I try to avoid that if at all possible. Sure. But it's in my back pocket. Mm-hmm. Okay. Affect regulation skills. We are going over grounding techniques, breathing exercises, body-based calming. We, this is part of why history taking is. Before preparation, we're monitoring as we go through history taking, how dysregulated are they becoming. Mm-hmm. Even just naming some of these things without really digging deep mm-hmm. Into them. Yeah. That, that's the thing right? Is all of these phases play off of each other. Sure. So you've gotta be paying attention during history taking to how is this gonna show up? Mm-hmm. Later for me in preparation, how regulated can this person remain? Yeah. We won't go into like different breathing exercises and things that I recommend. That's some really simple psychoeducation obviously establishing the therapeutic relationship. We're building trust. It doesn't make sense to ask somebody to be super vulnerable before we build that trust. We are also establishing a stop signal. Mm-hmm. I have a general stop signal for everybody. This is just something that I don't individualize necessarily as much as it's recommended to. Okay. I don't know. It is what it is. I tell folks that if we are doing, bilateral stimulation. Mm-hmm. That if they are holding the buzzes, they drop them. And that if we are doing eye movements, that they close their eyes. Now, I don't want them, if you're a clinician listening, I don't want them to become dissociative. So if I, if they close their eyes, I will almost immediately say. I've stopped eye movements. Can you open your eyes back up? Mm-hmm. And then I'm working on grounding exercises with them, but a stop signal is the client's indication to the clinician I am done. Yeah. Right now, yeah. We are not going any further. It's good to have good to have that, that bailout button, if you will, to just say, I can't do this anymore. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Gotta have that seems important. And then last practical thing that we talked about earlier, BLS practice. I'm awful at maintaining eye movements for a long period of time. I tell clients as they're coming in, like, it's you know, I've only seen a few people that are worse at this than me. But that means that I. I have an understanding of what we might need to do mm-hmm. In order to manage that. Right. So, we're practicing eye movements and for me that means I'm doing hand movements 'cause I don't use a light bar anymore. Mm-hmm. So we're practicing eye movements. We are practicing using for me it's buzzies. Mm-hmm. For some people it's tapping. We don't typically practice audio because I rarely have to use it. Mm-hmm. So, again, something that I'm not necessarily doing like exactly by the book, if I see a need for audio bilateral later. Yeah, we loop back around to it. Client gives feedback on the process. I'm monitoring the process. Mm-hmm. How well are they doing tracking with eye movements? Are they able to keep up at a pretty high speed? Are they able to cross you know, both sides of their vision? Mm-hmm. Things like that. Any questions? I know I'm moving. And grooving BLS strategies, can you give us the definition for that again? Bilateral stimulation. Okay. Yeah, I thought that's what it was, but yep. Acronyms. Yeah. Acronyms all over the place. And we won't get into it right now but. BLS like when you think of what provides bilateral stimulation mm-hmm. Tossing a ball back and forth between each of your hands. Mm-hmm. Provides bilateral stimulation. Yeah. Walking provides bilateral stimulation. Well, I'm sitting here doing it right now, bouncing my legs. Yes. Alternate lead back and forth. Back and forth. Back and forth. Yeah. Yeah. So, again, this is getting away from the basic protocol. Mm-hmm. But keeping in mind that like. Especially with kids. Mm-hmm. That there are alternate forms of Yeah. BLS. Yeah. There are specific EMDR protocols that have techniques within them where kids will like scratch out a picture. Mm-hmm. And so they're instructed on kind of how to do that. Mm-hmm. But like they're moving their hand back and forth and watching their hand that's providing bilateral movement. Right. Yeah. So there's lots of different ways to mm-hmm. To do this. But in general, for me, because I'm working with adults, when I'm in the preparatory phase, I'm testing out eye movements. Mm-hmm. And bylaw or, tactile. Tactile. Yeah. Okay. Oh, we are running. Yeah. Last thing that I wanted to go over is a couple things that are maybe a little controversial. Okay. Ooh, I know, right. Hot goss. Let's go. Okay. I talk often about how solid the data is coming out of the Netherlands. Mm-hmm. Yeah. Really? It's really solid. Yeah. I hear about it all the time. I know. We're on vacation, and this is all I'm talking about. No. One thing I want us to consider is that most of the data coming out of the Netherlands mm-hmm. Is intensive data. Yeah. And there are some things that function differently. Around intensives, especially intensives that are in a more inpatient setting. Mm-hmm. So in the Netherlands, they are doing multi-day intensivess. Yeah. Some context there. Yeah. They're doing the multi-day intensives, multi-day intensivess and individuals are often staying on site. Mm-hmm. Yeah. So one of the things that's coming out of their research is that preparation is not. As necessary. Mm-hmm. Well there are a few things that are not as necessary in, in that setting. Sure. Right. Yeah. So one of the things that we talked about in the preparation phase was even just like building rapport. Mm-hmm. You don't need to build as much rapport with your individual clinician mm-hmm. When you're walking into an intensive and you respect the entity providing that process. Mm-hmm. And you respect the overall process. Yeah. Right. Right. Like there's a deep trust and, and even an understanding in that process, because again, this is publicly funded healthcare. Mm-hmm. And so you maybe have a neighbor who's mm-hmm. Walked through this. Mm-hmm. Right. Whereas for most people that we're working with, that is not the case. Right? Yeah. They maybe have somebody, I, I say that. I get a good number of calls now of like, my friend's done e mdr R. Yeah. Yeah. But they don't really have a, like a deep understanding of it. Mm-hmm. So anyway, all of that to say rapport is built differently in that situation. Mm-hmm. And also if covering a huge amount of material. In a few days and they are literally staying on site. Mm-hmm. With support. Yeah. You are the resource, right? Yeah. Right. Yeah. You don't need resources because you're not going back to your home. Sure. Or to work or wherever You are there with a single-minded purpose, and that is to do EMDR therapy and you have supports. Life is not happening in between Yeah. These sessions. Mm-hmm. Right. So, I agree with like all of the data that I'm seeing coming outta this research. Yeah. Except for we need to put less emphasis on mm-hmm. Preparation STA stages. Now you just think that's situational though, right? That they're saying that because of the model they have set up with the, the intensives? Well, I think what they're seeing in their data is. We absolutely can place less emphasis on this phase because it is not as needed. Well, yeah. In their environment it's absolutely not. Right. It's due to the environment. Yeah. They you doing it in. Yeah. Okay. In mine it is. Yeah. And I think too, it, it has pushed me to not live in preparation as long mm-hmm. For some people. Mm-hmm. Okay. Because I think I can have a tendency to do that. And it is still needed and it's still valuable. Yeah. Here's the other thing that kind of plays off that, remember, the EMDR phases are not linear, they're circular. So if a client comes in and they talk about something wonderful they've done that day mm-hmm. Reinforce that. Mm-hmm. So what I mean by that is you are already, like, you've you know, closed up and, and ended at a certain spot. The session before, I'm butchering explaining this, but somebody comes in and they, I always use this example, but walked into a grocery store and didn't have any feelings of panic. Mm-hmm. Utilize that experience as a resource. Mm-hmm. And we use this language earlier in the episode, install that. Mm-hmm. So again, research is indicating that bilateral stimulation during preparation phase may not be as helpful as we once thought it was. Who cares? Yeah. It's not hurting anything. Yeah. Continue to use it until we have really good data that indicates otherwise. Yep. And, and install that experience. Does that make sense as well? Absolutely. Yeah. So this is a circular process. You can and will come back to this phase. Mm-hmm. And, and maybe before you were supposed to, it's not always gonna look clean, right? It's not always gonna look like, okay, we, we went through all the phases with this target and now we move on. Sometimes it's gonna be like you get to later phases and you realize, whoa, buddy. Mm-hmm. We need to come back to phase two. That's okay. Yeah. Safe place is not as effective as it used to be because this memory brought up this thing that made safe place not feel as safe anymore. Mm-hmm. We need to go back and adjust that. Fine. Yeah. Fine, fine, fine. Yep. Don't look at these phases as set linear phases. Yep. You have to be able to, to loop back for sure. Okay. I'm gonna summarize for us. You ready? Summarize in phase two, we are providing psychoeducation. We are providing resourcing, which is what most people think of when they think of phase two. We've got safe place and Container, which I use in conjunction with one another. And then my favorite nurturing figure, protective figure and wise figure. We went over quite a bit of like how you can actually utilize those and how cool those can be. There are a lot of other resources. You can take whole trainings on increasing mm-hmm. Your resourcing toolkit. Yeah. If you feel like that's an area as a clinician where you need to pick up some things. We talked about observing affect regulation in a client establishing the therapeutic relationship and also BLS practice. Now, how does this apply if you were a potential client? So some of these episodes as we go through this series especially. Mm-hmm. I think it's gonna be more aimed at like the clinical process. Okay. And what a clinician needs to know. But I think as a client, a potential client, it kind of, it arms you? Yeah. In knowing like, what would I discuss with my clinician, my EMDR clinician? Yeah. And what would I expect them? Their kind of basic knowledge Yeah. To be. Mm-hmm. On this. So I, I think that EMDR, the acronym is like being thrown a lot around a lot right now. Mm-hmm. Yeah. And like people in the public are becoming so much more aware of it than they were five years ago, but then there's not any like deep understanding of it. Yeah. And on one hand I don't want clients to come in and get too cognitive with it. Mm-hmm. And too much in their, their heads over it. But on the other hand, I think there is something to how empowering it is for somebody to come in and actually know what this process looks like, like, right? Mm-hmm. Yeah. There's a balance there. Yes. Yeah, there is. And so if you're a client listening, I know this, had a very clinical focus and this series is going to, mm-hmm. The eight phases of EMDR series, I think is going to have that clinical focus. And you don't need to know every part of this. Sure. But having an idea of what you're going to be able to experience and being able to ask your clinician thoughtful, educated questions, I think is important. Yeah. Always. Okay. Anything to wrap us up? Nope. I need to go take a nap. Me too. Me too. I feel like I just ran through that. We did, we covered a lot. This one was content heavy and like a lot of these episodes are going to be mm-hmm. I mean this is like the nitty gritty of what it actually looks like. We are sitting at 37 minutes now, right now. Oh boy. Now boo. Yeah. So thank you so much for listening. We will be on to assessment in the next episode as we continue our, what are the eight phases of VMDR series? Have a great day. Bye-bye. Well, that's all folks. 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