[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.23.4″ _module_preset=”default” da_disable_devices=”off|off|off” locked=”off” global_colors_info=”{}” da_is_popup=”off” da_exit_intent=”off” da_has_close=”on” da_alt_close=”off” da_dark_close=”off” da_not_modal=”on” da_is_singular=”off” da_with_loader=”off” da_has_shadow=”on”][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”4.16″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” locked=”off” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.16″ custom_padding=”|||” global_colors_info=”{}” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_heading title=”EMDR Therapy for Anxiety in St. George, UT” _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” title_level=”h2″ title_font=”|700|||||||” global_colors_info=”{}”][/et_pb_heading][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”]
In my last post, we talked about how EMDR therapy helps you stay grounded and calm while healing. Now let’s go one step further—what actually happens in an EMDR session?
If you’ve been feeling anxious and wondering whether EMDR therapy could really help, here’s what the process looks like from start to finish.
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When you begin EMDR therapy for anxiety, you’ll typically move through these stages:
1. Exploring your history of anxiety and your unique triggers
2. Building and practicing coping skills
3. Identifying a specific stressor or “target” you want to heal
4. Using soothing eye movements or tapping to reduce distress
5. Strengthening positive feelings and beliefs
6. Making sure your body is no longer holding the anxiety
7. Using your coping skills before leaving the session
Most clients don’t complete all of these in one session—it’s more of a journey. Typically, EMDR therapy involves 8–12 sessions to address one or two specific targets.
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Let me make this more real for you with a bit of my own story.
In the spring of 2024, I herniated a disc in my lower back while training for a half-marathon. Mind you, I was only running/walking for 15 minutes 3 days a week – and most of that was walking! I only got a few weeks into my training before I had to stop completely.
After months of escalating pain, I needed emergency surgery. The surgery helped, but I was left with nerve damage that sometimes shows up… well, whenever it wants and in many different forms. Recently, I’ve been experiencing severe cramping in my legs at night.
Now – imagine this… If I were doing EMDR therapy with, say, DeLayna Stout, one of our EMDR therapists here in St. George, we’d begin by going over my history and identifying my healing targets. For example:
● I felt misunderstood and thought, “I don’t even know myself,” when my first symptoms showed up.
● Feeling helpless – I thought, “I am lost,” when I cried at the doctor’s office.
● Being anxious at bedtime, anticipating the pain returning – my brain tells me “I am helpless. I can’t do this anymore.”
Together, we’d explore my thoughts, emotions, and body sensations around each target—and use eye movements or tapping to help my nervous system release the stored anxiety.
This is the “get-to-the-root-of-it” kind of healing that EMDR makes possible.
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EMDR therapy won’t change the facts of what’s happened to you—just like it can’t undo my nerve injury—but it will change the way your body, heart and mind respond to those memories.
And what about you? You may be healing from:
● The loss of a loved one
● A painful divorce
● Emotional, physical, or spiritual abuse
● Sexual assault
● Infertility, miscarriage, or a traumatic birth
Here’s how I like to describe it. Imagine your story as a pie, cut into four equal parts:
● 25% is what happened to you
● 25% is what you believe about yourself in that moment
● 25% is how you feel emotionally
● 25% is how your body reacts
You can’t change what happened—but EMDR helps you heal the other 75%
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For many women, anxiety didn’t appear out of nowhere. It’s been building quietly — in the pressure to stay composed, to make everyone else comfortable, and to keep functioning no matter how heavy it gets.
Somewhere along the way, your nervous system learned that being fine was safer than being honest. And when your body is always braced for the next demand or disappointment, anxiety becomes the background noise of daily life.
This is where EMDR therapy begins to rewrite the story.
EMDR doesn’t just look at symptoms; it helps your mind and body understand why they developed in the first place. It honors the years of emotional labor, people-pleasing, and perfectionism that were once survival strategies — and then gently helps you release them.
At Guided Wellness Counseling, we often tell our clients: You’ve spent years holding it all together. EMDR helps you finally let go — without falling apart.
Through this process, women start to feel what calm actually feels like again. Not forced calm. Not numbing. But a deep, embodied sense of safety that says, I can exhale now.
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The beauty of EMDR therapy is that it doesn’t just help you manage anxiety; it helps you transform your relationship with it.
For women who’ve been told they’re “too emotional” or “too sensitive,” EMDR offers something radical — a space where your emotions aren’t just accepted, they’re honored. Your body’s responses make sense. Your tears, your fears, your hyper-awareness — they all have a reason, and EMDR helps you uncover it with compassion, not judgment.
During EMDR therapy, your therapist helps your nervous system learn what safety feels like. This rewiring is subtle but powerful — it’s how you begin to trust your own body again, your own intuition again, yourself again.
And once you start trusting yourself, everything changes:
● You stop apologizing for needing rest.
● You stop doubting your strength.
● You start believing that peace isn’t selfish — it’s sacred.
You can’t heal by becoming smaller. EMDR helps you expand into the woman you were always meant to be — grounded, confident, and free.
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You’ve made it through a lot of information, so let’s come full circle.
EMDR therapy is both customizable and predictable. That means our team of EMDR therapists will meet you exactly where you are, create a structured plan that supports your nervous system, and walk with you every step of the way.
At Guided Wellness Counseling, we’ll help you explore your goals and match you with the right therapist for your healing journey. You don’t have to do this alone.
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You can start with a complimentary, 15-minute phone consultation. During this call, I’ll ask:
● What brings you to therapy? What inspired you to reach out?
● Have you tried anything that’s worked?
● What haven’t you liked? What hasn’t worked?
With this information in mind, we’ll answer all your questions and match you with a therapist on our team – the best fit for your needs and goals. Together, the two of you will discern if EMDR is the right fit for you or if you’ll explore other options – your therapist has a range of skills to offer you.
If nothing else, remember this: You can heal. It’s not too late. You’re not overreacting. And you absolutely, positively deserve to feel calm again.
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