The Touchstone Institute

Through discussion, demonstration, and self-reflection, this course will take participants on a deep dive into the purpose of each phase of the standard protocol in EMDR and how to consider creative adaptations of each phase so everyone will have success, client and clinician alike, while maintaining fidelity to the standard protocol. 

EMDR clinician listservs and social media discussions are rife with questions like, “I have a client who has some sort of difference from the norm  … how might I approach this?” This description of the client is usually different in some way from the models presented in our basic training demonstrations, often a white female presenting native English speaking, able-bodied, well-resourced, neurotypical, EMDR clinician herself, who has selected a low SUD target and who has already experienced a lot of EMDR as a client. Then we go back to our office/Zoom with clients who aren’t like this, and we wonder why standard protocol doesn’t proceed like those demos! 

The first thoughts might be, what’s the protocol, or what’s the interweave to accomplish making this look more like the demo? In actuality, what we really need is an adaptation of the standard protocol – think about a metaphor of people in wheelchairs traversing a sidewalk from the street, the question is not how to get the wheelchair up the curb, we need an adaptation, a curb cut. After this curb cut is installed, we find that it helps many more people than just wheelchair users; it also helps bikers, people with strollers, unsteady walkers, everyone. 

By the end of this course, participants will know how the clinician can maintain confidence in administering the 8 phases of standard protocol, and how one can think resourcefully to negotiate using standard protocol in innovative ways for the person in front of you, including during the perinatal/reproductive years, with baby present in session, sense differences, body differences, among others. We will explore transference and countertransference issues that might get in the way, no matter if the client is very much what we expect or very different than those we experienced in the past. 

We know from research that the two most important efficacy factors in therapy are the therapeutic relationship and the language fluency of the therapist; this workshop will give you the conceptualization you need and the skills to calm your own nervous system in novel experiences with clients to make sure you achieve success with every client every time. 

Registration deadline: March 4, 2026

This course takes place live on Zoom. Check out this link for Zoom requirements.

For more information on our work at The Touchstone Institute, visit our website.