Where did your therapist learn EMDR? You should know!

You need to make sure your EMDR therapist is a real EMDR therapist. Many "training" organizations are not approved by the EMDR International Association (EMDRIA), and what they teach looks nothing like EMDR. You should also know if your therapist's level of training in EMDR, and what they have advanced training in dealing with. Are they part of the EMDR community, in which ideas and skills are shared? Do they have an EMDRIA Approved Consultant to guide them through the process of learning? There are various levels of skill in EMDR, starting with a Basic Training; however, a Basic Training from a good organization like the EMDR Institute can be of more value than years with a bad organization that is not EMDRIA Approved.

Many therapists claim to be EMDR therapists on psychologytoday.com, for instance, but the type of training is rarely specified. Training in EMDR, with an EMDRIA-Approved organization, at a level to produce proficiency requires a significant financial investment on the part of the therapist, usually thousands of dollars and years of training. A non-approved organization might offer a certificate for a few hundred dollars and a weekend of training.

Learn where your EMDR therapist was trained, and make sure they are at least members of EMDRIA with an EMDRIA-Approved training. The EMDR Institute feels that even some EMDRIA-Approved trainings are deficient, but there is at least a standard. To find therapists, go to www.emdria.org, and to find people with a specific Institute training, go to www.emdr.com.