Integrating EMDR Therapy in Addiction Treatment: Insights from Experts

Alicia Rowley, LMHC,  and Katrina Serfling, LMHC, EMDR Approved Consultants, provide valuable guidance for using EMDR therapy to treat addictions. Here’s a consolidated view of their approaches and experiences:

Understanding Addictions and EMDR

Addictions often start as solutions to deeper issues and gradually become problems themselves. As therapists, our goal is to utilize EMDR alongside addictions protocols to help our clients, regardless of our specialties in addiction work.

Key Considerations in Treatment

Assessment and Flagging Behaviors:

Identifying where to begin with a client involves understanding their readiness to change and the severity of their symptoms. Hope Payson’s training on treating substance abuse with EMDR therapy suggests a color-coded system during assessment:

  • Red flags indicate immediate risks like suicidal thoughts or severe dissociation, requiring possibly intensive interventions or referrals.
  • Yellow flags allow for cautious progress, focusing on affect tolerance and coping skills.
  • Green flags show readiness for deeper EMDR reprocessing.

Preparatory Techniques:

AJ Popky’s DeTur Protocol is invaluable for addressing triggers and cravings during the preparation phase. Extended Resourcing, as outlined by Roy Kiessling, helps reinforce clients’ coping mechanisms, enabling them to handle triggers without relapsing.

Utilizing DeTur:

Despite initial concerns, the DeTur protocol for desensitizing triggers proves to be a safe and effective method when performed in the therapeutic setting. It helps clients manage cravings and prepares them for encountering triggers in real-life situations.

Stages of Change:

Utilizing the stages of change model helps tailor interventions to each client’s readiness. For clients in the early stages, addressing the benefits of their addictive or compulsive behaviors through protocols like Jim Knipe’s maladaptive positive feeling state protocol can be enlightening and non-judgmental.

Interweaves and Processing Techniques:

Interweaves, such as the Two-Handed Interweave developed by Robin Shapiro, help clients balance the pros and cons of their behaviors, facilitating progress to more active stages of change.

Integrating Ego States and Internal Family Systems (IFS):

Ego State and IFS therapies help clients differentiate between their addictive behaviors and their core selves, promoting a healthier internal dialogue and reducing shame.

Conclusion

EMDR therapy offers a robust framework for addressing the complex dynamics of addiction. Whether it’s enhancing resource development or reprocessing traumatic memories, EMDR can be adapted to meet the unique needs of clients struggling with addictive behaviors. 

We encourage therapists to explore these techniques and consider further training, such as that offered by Hope Payson, LCSW  to deepen their understanding of EMDR in addiction treatment

We hope this post inspires you to integrate these EMDR strategies into your clinical practice to support clients through their recovery journeys.

Alicia Rowley, LMHC, CADC: alicia@aliciarowleycounseling.com and Katrina Serfling, LMHC, CADC: katrinaserfling@humantohumancounseling.com

For more insights and resources, 

1. Access  Hope Payson’s training  Addressing Substance Use Disorders and Behavioral Addictions with EMDR Therapy and her powerful documentary created with Recovering Community Movies: Uprooting Addiction: Healing from the Ground Up 

2. Popky, A.J. The Detur Protocol in Shapiro, Robin (2005) EMDR Solutions: Pathways to Healing, pp 167-188

3. Kiessling, Roy Extended Resourcing EMDR Consulting Free Resources; in Luber, Marilyn, Ed., Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) Scripted Protocols: Basics and Special Situations, Chapter 12; in Shapiro, Robin (2005) EMDR Solutions: Pathways to Healing 

Bonnie Mikelson  LISW