EMDR Therapy at The Fullbrook Center

A Trauma Treatment Approach Rooted in Compassion

At The Fullbrook Center, a women’s trauma and substance use treatment center in Texas, we understand that healing from trauma requires more than just insight—it requires deep, experiential transformation. That’s why EMDR therapy (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) is a core part of our trauma treatment approach. Recognized by the World Health Organization and the American Psychiatric Association as an effective treatment for posttraumatic stress disorder, EMDR offers women a safe, structured way to process the past and move forward with clarity, confidence, and hope.

What Is EMDR Therapy?

EMDR is not traditional talk therapy. Instead, it uses a structured protocol involving “bilateral stimulation”—typically guided eye movements—to help reprocess traumatic memories that have remained “stuck” in the body and mind. By stimulating both sides of the brain while focusing on an upsetting event, the therapy helps reduce the emotional intensity of the memory, allowing for new insights, resolution, and healing.

Why EMDR Works: The Science Behind Reprocessing Trauma

At its core, EMDR therapy works because it helps the brain do what it was naturally designed to do: heal. When someone experiences a traumatic event, the brain’s normal memory processing system can become overwhelmed, causing those moments to become “stuck” in the nervous system. Instead of being stored like a typical memory—with a beginning, middle, and end—these experiences remain fragmented, emotionally charged, and easily triggered. The brain keeps reacting as if the trauma is still happening.

EMDR uses a structured protocol and bilateral stimulation—most often through guided eye movements—to help the brain resume its natural processing function. In a typical EMDR session, clients focus on a specific memory while simultaneously engaging in controlled eye movements or other forms of bilateral stimulation (such as tapping or auditory tones). This process activates both hemispheres of the brain, allowing it to “digest” the memory more completely.

As a result, the emotional intensity of the memory decreases. The memory doesn’t disappear—but its emotional grip loosens. The fear, shame, and helplessness often associated with the memory begin to fade, and in their place, new positive beliefs can emerge: “I am safe now.” “I did the best I could.” “It wasn’t my fault.”

Research shows that EMDR reduces activity in the amygdala (the part of the brain responsible for fear) while increasing engagement in the prefrontal cortex, where logic, regulation, and new meaning are formed. In other words, EMDR helps shift traumatic memories from raw emotional charge into integrated understanding.

For many of the women we serve, traumatic events have shaped the way they see the world and themselves. These experiences may be decades old, but their effects are still present—in Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) symptoms, in chronic pain, in emotional numbing, and in deeply held beliefs of shame, fear, and powerlessness. EMDR helps women move from survival to reflection, from pain to purpose. When combined with compassionate support, EMDR can be a life-changing tool for women who are ready to reprocess the past, reclaim their sense of safety, and begin again.