Substance use disorders frequently sit on top of unprocessed trauma. EMDR is one of the most evidence-supported trauma therapies in modern mental health — and at RECO Intensive in Delray Beach, EMDR is available as part of the standard clinical offering for clients whose addiction includes a significant trauma history.
What EMDR looks like at RECO Intensive
EMDR is conducted in individual sessions with a clinician trained in the modality (not in group). After a screening and stabilization phase to ensure clinical readiness, processing sessions use bilateral stimulation — typically guided eye movements, sometimes tactile or auditory — to help the brain reprocess traumatic memories. The work is structured around eight phases laid out by EMDR's original protocol.
Unlike traditional trauma therapy, EMDR doesn't require detailed retelling of the trauma. Many clients find it easier and faster than talk-based approaches.
The EMDR process at RECO
- History and treatment planning — identifying processing targets
- Preparation — resourcing, safety, stabilization skills
- Assessment — selecting the target memory and its associated thoughts/feelings/sensations
- Desensitization — bilateral stimulation while attending to the memory
- Installation — strengthening the adaptive belief
- Body scan — clearing residual physical tension
- Closure — returning to stable functioning between sessions
- Re-evaluation — assessing progress and selecting next targets
Who EMDR serves best
Clients with PTSD, complex trauma, single-incident trauma, or significant childhood adversity that drives substance use. Clients whose previous trauma therapy hit a wall. Veterans and first responders (often in combination with our specialty tracks). Anyone whose addiction is partly a way of managing trauma the body can't hold without numbing.
How EMDR integrates with the rest of treatment
EMDR is one modality among several in a coordinated treatment plan. The EMDR clinician coordinates with the primary therapist, the psychiatric provider, and the case manager. Trauma work is sequenced clinically — usually beginning after the first few weeks of stabilization, not at intake.
Why the RECO approach is different
Many programs reference EMDR as a service but offer it only with a referral or only intermittently. We have trained EMDR clinicians on the active treatment team, and the work is fully integrated with addiction-specific care — a combination that's harder to find than it should be.