Can you do EMDR yourself or online?
This post is for educational purposes and isn’t a substitute for professional mental health care. If you’re in crisis, call or text 988 (in the U.S.) or contact your local emergency services.
Summary
EMDR can be done online with a trained therapist, and early research suggests it can work well. Doing the full process on your own is different. There isn’t research showing it’s safe or effective for trauma, and the studies that tested self-guided tools involved screening, clinician oversight, or milder stress rather than deep trauma. Simple self-applied tools like the Butterfly Hug can be useful between sessions, but they work best when a therapist has taught you how to use them.
Key Findings:
Online EMDR with a trained therapist is a promising option. Early studies, including a randomized controlled trial of group EMDR by video, support it. The research is still young, and researchers describe it as limited.
Doing full EMDR alone hasn’t been shown to be safe or effective for trauma. A 2020 review found only one small study of self-help EMDR. Participants in it still had regular contact with a psychologist, and some felt worse before they felt better.
Small self-applied tools can support your healing, but they aren’t a replacement for it. Many EMDR therapists teach the Butterfly Hug because their clients find it helpful, though it hasn’t been studied as thoroughly as EMDR itself.
You’ve been thinking about EMDR therapy in Fort Collins, CO for a while now. You’ve done some research, and you may even have a few therapist recommendations. Yet you’re wondering if you could just do this yourself. You know you want relief, and trying it on your own doesn’t seem like such a bad idea. There are plenty of apps and online programs that offer bilateral stimulation, and I understand why that option is appealing.
What you are wondering is reasonable and the answer has two parts.
A quick note on how to read the research
Before we get started, there are some things about research that are important to know. When I say “early research,” I mean studies that are small, new, or built in ways that make it hard to be certain what caused the results. The strongest studies compare people who got a treatment with people who didn’t, and they put people into those groups by chance so the groups are fair. That comparison is what lets researchers say a treatment itself made the difference, instead of time passing or people just expecting to feel better. Most of the studies on doing EMDR online or alone are earlier-stage than that, so I’ll tell you what each one can and can’t show.
Is online EMDR effective?
In this section, I am referring to EMDR done with a therapist, virtually. Doing EMDR through video sessions with a trained therapist is a real, legitimate option, and the research is encouraging.
A survey of therapists at a German EMDR institute found that video-based EMDR was practical to deliver during the pandemic.
A small early study of 24 people tested a scripted online EMDR session and reported positive results. It didn’t compare them with a group that went without treatment, so it can’t prove the treatment was the cause.
A stronger study had frontline and emergency workers do group EMDR over video. People were randomly placed into groups, and one group waited a month for treatment, so researchers could compare the two.
The researchers are honest that studies of online EMDR are still limited. So I won’t promise it works exactly like in-person therapy for everyone. But the early signs are good, and what matters most stays the same: a trained person is guiding you, watching how you respond, and adjusting in real time.
Is it safe to do EMDR on your own?
There are a lot of apps and websites out there that offer bilateral stimulation. There are even self-help books that claim to help someone heal trauma on their own. Here, I advise caution.
In 2020, researchers searched the scientific literature for studies on self-help EMDR and found only one. It was small, with 15 people who had PTSD, and it had no comparison group. It also wasn’t truly solo, because participants had weekly contact with a clinical psychologist. Many of them improved, and 55% no longer met the criteria for PTSD afterward. But eight people had more flashbacks and intrusive memories during the program, and three felt worse overall by the end, though that had improved by the follow-up. The authors said plainly that this study can’t tell us whether EMDR with no support at all is safe.
They also pointed out that nobody has proven self-EMDR is harmful. The research simply isn’t there in either direction, and experts disagree. Even Francine Shapiro, who created EMDR, supported using the preparation techniques on your own, while saying the work of processing a memory should be done with a trained therapist.
Other studies tested self-guided tools, but under conditions that don’t look like real life:
A 2022 small early study: 31 adults did a single session with a self-guided EMDR program. They were carefully screened first. People with a diagnosed condition, people taking psychiatric medication, and people who were suicidal were left out, and four who scored too high on distress were referred for professional care. Clinicians were in the room in case they needed to step in. People said they felt better right afterward, but there was no comparison group and no check-in later to see if it lasted.
A laboratory study: A self-applied EMDR stress program lowered stress in healthy volunteers. That’s encouraging, but stress in a lab isn’t the same as trauma.
App data: An analysis of 500 app users found that people rated their distress lower after sessions. That was all self-reported, with no comparison group and no information about whether anyone was harmed.
Even the people who built these tools were careful. In the 2022 study, the authors said this kind of program should be used with a trained clinician’s supervision until much larger studies are done.
Why this matters most for complex trauma and anxiety
EMDR isn’t just eye movements or tapping. A full course of EMDR includes understanding your history, preparing and learning ways to steady yourself, and then processing the memories, all with someone who can slow things down if you start to feel overwhelmed.
When memories are layered, when trauma happened over years, or when your nervous system is already on high alert, the structure of EMDR therapy is what keeps healing from feeling like being flooded. The studies above mostly involved people with a single event, milder symptoms, or lower distress. That is not the same as the complex trauma many of my clients carry. For you, the guide matters as much as the method.
Can I do the Butterfly Hug on my own?
The butterfly hug is a tool taught by some therapists in the preparation phase of EMDR therapy. It is designed to be used for calming in between sessions. It can also be used during the desensitization phase as a form of bilateral stimulation, in place of the traditional eye movements.
You cross your arms over your chest and alternately tap your hands against your upper chest, like butterfly wings, while you notice what’s happening in your mind and body without judging it. This back-and-forth movement is the same kind of “bilateral” stimulation used during a therapy session. The people who developed the technique describe it mainly as something learned and used within therapy, often so clients can steady themselves when distress spikes between appointments.
I’d call it a promising tool for calming, not tool for resolving trauma. The support for it comes mostly from therapists’ experience in the field, and carefully designed studies of the Butterfly Hug itself are still lacking. Other small techniques, like the ones studied in the lab, can help you feel more grounded in a hard moment. They aren’t treatment for a history of trauma.
What to know about EMDR therapy in Fort Collins, CO?
I think about what changes for my clients once the old memories lose their grip. The alarm that used to go off at the smallest trigger gets quieter. The inner critic softens. Sleep improves. You stop bracing for the next thing and start to feel more grounded and present.
I offer EMDR in person and online in Colorado, and we move at a pace that feels safe for you, starting with building the steadiness and support you need before we touch anything painful.
If you’re curious whether EMDR is right for you, I’d love to talk it through. You can schedule a free 20 consultation at the link or contact me to ask any questions you have about EMDR therapy.?
References
Farrell, D., et al. (2023). Group early intervention EMDR as video-conference psychotherapy with frontline/emergency workers: An RCT. Frontiers in Psychology, 14. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1129912
Farrell, D., et al. (2022). Proof-of-concept study of EMDR therapy as a videoconference psychotherapy. Frontiers in Psychology. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2022.901855
Therapists’ experiences with videoconference-based EMDR (2021). Frontiers in Psychology. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2021.748712
Waterman, L. Z., & Cooper, M. (2020). Self-administered EMDR therapy: Potential solution for expanding the availability of psychotherapy for PTSD or unregulated recipe for disaster? BJPsych Open, 6, e115. doi:10.1192/bjo.2020.92
Goga, N., et al. (2022). An efficient system for EMDR therapy: A pilot study. Healthcare, 10(1), 133. doi:10.3390/healthcare10010133
Jarero, I., & Artigas, L. (2021/2023). The EMDR therapy Butterfly Hug method for self-administered bilateral stimulation.
About the Author
Megan Silberhorn. LPCC is a therapist and owner of Megan Silberhorn Counseling in Fort Collins, Colorado. She specializes in anxiety, complex trauma, and supporting women through the emotional and physical challenges of mid-life and perimenopause. If you're ready to stop white-knuckling it alone, she'd love to hear from you.