I think EMDR doesn't work for everyone. I tried it and it literally had no impact on me at all. I even tried hypnosis and that didn't work either. The power of suggestion is all these cognitive tools are - EMDR. Eye movement has zero impact on the brain and traumatic memories. The best way to process the trauma is to write about it and read it with a therapist, then process it verbally. There are a lot of charlatans out there who make silly promises that they have the answer (like EMDR) but I view those techniques as the equivalent of selling snake oil.

I'm about cognitive and dialectical processing of traumatic information.

Also, breathing and walking. Deep breathing exercises, drumming, painting, writing fare much better for me personally, than EMDR ever did. I tried that along with Tai Chi and even had a Reiki Master come to my hospital room to supposedly clear my body and mind of the trauma I sustained from being hit by a truck. Did absolutely nothing for me. But, once I got back on a bicycle a year later, I freaked out, but then tried it a few more times until I can now get on a road bike with no emotional response.

So, a CBT "exposure" therapy approach works best for me. Not EMDR. There's no scientific studies done on patients with EMDR. It is pseudoscience at its best. It makes a promise but has no scientific data to support itself with.

The best therapy for trauma is CBT exposure therapy. Stop hiding from your trauma. You can't process it unless you face it. Even the Buddhists taught me that when I studied with Buddhist monks the 2 years I lived in southern China. I use walking meditation to directly address my trauma. I can't sit still about it, so I walk. And let me tell you -- it works!

Healing Trauma with Meditation - Tricycle: The Buddhist Review

( FYI: There is zero wrong with strong emotions from trauma. Zero. You are not one dimensional. If you are a human, your emotional palate runs the gamut. If you are afraid of your shadow, you are in trouble. The only way to heal, is to face your fears. Your trauma. I struggle to do it, but I do it. It's what works for me. I can't isolate. I can't pretend I'm fine. I won't heal if I do those things. )

Next, I wrote down and read aloud all of my feelings and memory of being hit by a truck with a therapist. Hell, I even screamed and cried. It exhausted me but it was the only way I could release that trauma, that pain. Not in how I moved my eyes rapidly back and forth while thinking about my accident. That kept the trauma trapped for me. So, EMDR didn't work.

I guess it just depends on what your interest level is. I have tried all alternative methods of healing and found what works best for me; percussion, writing, drawing, painting, speaking, walking, reading. I still have trauma from that accident. I used to scream bloody murder when I hear tires screech on pavement from a truck or car.

Now, I just tense up and have a little anxiety attack and remember the accident. I know that EMDR would never help me with it because I tried and it did not work. I hope EMDR works for you. Sorry for my anti-EMDR experience but I wanted to give you my perspective.