EMDR has 8 phases. The amount of time spent in EMDR therapy for addiction will vary based on individual patient needs and history. Like other types of drug and alcohol addiction treatment, EMDR can be used in both an individual and a group setting. The full treatment process includes the following phases:

1. History and treatment planning – a thorough evaluation by a therapist detailing the client’s history and treatment plan.
2. Preparation – the therapist defines expectations for the treatment and there is discussion of underlying trauma and the role it plays in the client’s addiction. This helps the client to better understand how the treatment will take place and help him or her to heal.
3. Assessment – a memory that evokes a negative self-belief is identified and the therapist works with the client to develop a positive thought process or statement to counteract or contradict the negative belief that was previously discussed. During assessment, the client gains an internal sense of self-control and realizes his or her ability to overcome negative thought processes and patterns. Processing and reprocessing a single trauma can take an average of 3 sessions with a therapist. This is the process of identifying negative beliefs such as “I am helpless,” or “I am unlovable,” and replacing them with positive cognition of what is actually appropriate and creates an internal sense of control such as “I am safe now,” or “I am loved.”
4. Desensitization – the therapist uses eye movements, as previously discussed, to encourage the client focus on the negative patterns thought processes discussed during assessment and allow other similar thoughts to come into the mind naturally. The therapist guides the client to a solution and then, when the series of eye movements are stopped, the therapists asks the client to block out the negative thoughts or whatever he or she was focused on.
5. Installation – during this phase, the client is to build upon and increase the strength of the positive believe or solution that was identified as a replacement for the negative thoughts. If the client was abused as a child, and felt powerless, desensitization would involve the client reprocessing the fear and shame that came from being abused and then realizing that as an adult he or she has strength that he or she did not have as a child, and therefore, they now have positive cognition such as, “now I am in control.” If the client does not feel strong and in control, installation may include taking a self defense class or learning other skills to help them believe in their strength.
6. Body Scan – now that the client has a positive solution associated with the traumatic experiences he or she may have suffered through, the therapist will ask the client to bring up the negative targets that previously caused that “frozen in time” feeling. The therapist will monitor to determine whether there is any residual tension when thinking about the trauma. If there is no tension, and positive self-beliefs are all that come up when the client is triggered, EMDR is considered a success.
7. Closure – the therapist ends every treatment session with closure, ensuring that the client feels better when he or she walks out of the treatment session than he or she did when entering treatment.
8. Reevaluation – each new therapy session begins with the therapist checking to make sure the client is maintaining the positive results that came from previous sessions. Any new areas of trauma that arise are identified and reprocessed to help the client maintain relief from the trauma.