What Christian Women Should Know About EMDR Therapy
A Spiritually Grounded Guide to Healing
If you’ve been struggling with anxiety, stress, or painful memories that just won’t go away, you may have heard about something called EMDR therapy. It stands for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing Therapy—and while that might sound complicated, it’s actually a gentle and powerful way to help your mind and heart heal from past pain.
As a Christian woman, you might wonder: Is this type of Therapy OKAY for Christian Women?
The answer is yes. EMDR doesn’t replace God—it works alongside your faith. In fact, it honors how God designed your brain and body to heal. EMDR includes 8 steps to helping you feel more whole, greater peace, and deeper connection with Christ.
What Is EMDR Therapy?
EMDR is a special type of therapy that helps people heal from hard or painful memories. It’s different from just talking about your problems. EMDR uses something called bilateral stimulation, such as moving your eyes back and forth or tapping from one side of your body to the other. This helps your brain process painful memories and reduce the emotional weight they carry.
Think of it like this: Your brain is like a file cabinet. Sometimes, when something painful happens, the memory gets “filed” in the wrong place—where it stays open and feels incredibly raw. EMDR helps your brain file that memory in the correct file, so it no longer controls how you feel or act.
And the best part–You don’t have to relive every detail of what happened. EMDR focuses on helping your body and mind finally feel safe and free.
A Faith-Based Approach to EMDR
As a Christian, you can trust that EMDR doesn’t go against Scripture. God made your brain and nervous system with the ability to heal—just like He made your body to heal from a cut or broken bone. He invites us into restoration, not just spiritually, but emotionally as well.
Psalm 147:3 says, “He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.”
EMDR is one way God can work through therapy to help heal the deep wounds we carry. Through these eight steps, your Christian Therapist will support the healing of your past.
Phase 1: History Taking – Telling Your Story Safely
In the first phase of Christian EMDR therapy, your therapist gets to know you and your story. You’ll talk about what’s been bothering you—maybe anxiety, trauma, or something from childhood. You don’t have to share every detail, just what feels safe.
Your therapist will help you find the “target” memories—specific events that may be linked to your current struggles. This could be something like, “I felt rejected,” or “I never felt safe growing up.”
As a Christian therapist, I also invite God into this process. We can pray, pause, and ask for His guidance as we explore what your heart has been carrying.
Phase 2: Preparation – Building Your Toolbox
Before any deep healing work begins, you need to feel safe and supported. This phase is all about learning tools to calm your body and mind.
Your therapist will teach you how to:
Utilize breathing techniques to calm your nervous system
Create and utilize a “calm space” to regulate when needed
Structure a mental “container” to hold the items that you’re preparing to process in session
This step helps you build trust with your therapist and learn how to stay present—even when tough memories come up.
As a Christian, this phase can also include prayer, Scripture, or imagining Jesus with you in your safe place. You're never doing this work alone.
Phase 3: Assessment – Targeting the Pain
In this phase, you and your therapist will choose one memory to work on. It’s usually a memory that still feels upsetting today.
You’ll look at:
What image or thought stands out from that memory
What negative belief you still hold about yourself (like “I’m not enough” or “I’m not safe”)
How true a positive belief feels to you (like “I’m loved” or “I am safe now”)
How your body feels when you think about the memory
This step helps you see how your thoughts, body, and emotions are connected. And it sets the stage for healing that memory along a deeper pathway.
Phase 4: Desensitization – Reprocessing the Memory
Now you begin the actual EMDR process. Your therapist will guide you through sets of bilateral stimulation—like following a ball on a screen with your eyes, body tapping, or listening to tones that alternate left to right.
As you do this, your brain starts to “reprocess” the memory. You may notice thoughts, images, or emotions coming and going. That’s normal. You don’t have to control the process—just notice what comes up.
With each set, the memory usually becomes less intense. The pain starts to lose its grip.
And as a believer, you can invite God into this moment: “Lord, help me see this memory through Your truth.”
Many women feel the presence of Jesus in these sessions—comforting, guiding, and even re-writing their truth.
Phase 5: Installation – Strengthening the Truth
Once the memory feels less upsetting, you focus on the positive belief you want to hold instead.
For example:
Old belief: “I’m powerless.”
New truth: “I am strong, and God is with me.”
Your therapist helps your brain and body “install” this new truth through more bilateral stimulation of following a ball with your eyes or body tapping. You begin to feel it not just in your head—but in your heart, your body, and your spirit.
This is where many clients experience a shift from fear to peace. The lies begin to lose their power, and God’s truth takes root.
Phase 6: Body Scan – Listening to Your Body
Even when your thoughts feel better, your body might still hold tension or pain. In this phase, your therapist will guide you to gently scan your body from head to toe and notice anything that feels tight, heavy, or off.
If anything uncomfortable shows up, that may be a sign of more healing to do—and your therapist will help you process it until your body feels calm again.
This step reminds us: God cares about our bodies, too. He created us as whole beings—body, mind, and spirit—and healing touches all of these areas.
Phase 7: Closure – Ending Each Session Well
At the end of every session, your therapist makes sure you feel grounded and safe before you leave. Even if the memory isn’t fully processed yet, you’ll use calming tools like deep breathing or your safe place imagery to help you feel steady.
In addition to practicing your “Calm Space” activities of grounding, you might also journal, pray, or read Scripture between sessions to stay connected to God’s peace.
Closure is about honoring the healing work you’ve done and trusting that God is still working—even when you’re not in the therapy space.
Phase 8: Reevaluation – Checking in and Moving Forward
In this final phase, your therapist checks in with you to see how you’re feeling. Has the memory stayed less upsetting? Is the positive belief still strong?
If more work is needed, that’s okay. Healing is a process—not a race. Your therapist will help you decide what to work on next.
This phase reminds us that God doesn’t rush your healing. He’s patient, kind, and gentle with us through this time.
Is EMDR Right for You?
If you’ve been carrying pain, anxiety, or memories that feel too heavy to handle alone—EMDR might be the next step for you. It’s not a quick fix, it’s not always easy, but it is incredibly powerful. When EMDR Christian Therapy meets your past triggers and God is invited into this healing, deep restoration is possible.
You were not created to live in constant fear, shame, or stress.
God designed your mind to heal.
He offers peace, not as the world gives, but as only He can give (John 14:27).
Online Faith Based EMDR Therapy in Ohio, Michigan, Maryland, and Florida
If you’re curious about starting EMDR or want to explore Christian therapy that honors your faith and story, I’d love to walk with you.
I offer online Christian therapy, EMDR, and EMDR intensives for women seeking healing from trauma, anxiety, or painful life experiences.
Please reach out and schedule your free consultation telephone call. We will connect and explore the best treatment approach for you. Not sure you’re ready to get started yet? That’s okay too. Take some time to read more Blog articles on the healing process and reach out with any questions you may have.
Christ sees you and wants you to have the full freedom he died for.
