EMDR: The Science Behind the Therapy

Episode 11 - The Science of EMDR Therapy with Children and Teens

EMDR: The Science Behind the Therapy explores the latest clinical research and practical applications of EMDR therapy hosted by Andrew M. Leeds, PhD, Director of Training for Sonoma Psychotherapy Training Institute. This podcast highlights the latest contributions to EMDR research, practice and training. Each episode breaks down current studies, emerging protocols, and implications for clinical practice. Whether you’re an EMDR-trained therapist, a mental health professional, or simply curious about trauma treatment, this podcast brings you science-based insights you can trust.  In this month’s episode, I will first summarize six key studies to sketch the arc of the research evidence—and then I’ll be joined by Carolyn Settle to explore both the science of EMDR therapy with children as well as its application with children and teens. I will close the episode with a recently published study of young children that used defined protocols and fidelity ratings.   To access any of the original research papers mentioned in the podcast, you will find a complete list of references and links to each of these studies in the June 2026 blog on ⁠SonomaPTI.com⁠. You will also find a listing of 14 Books on EMDR therapy with children and teens, 5 EMDR Grant Funding Sources and 2 sources for advanced ⁠child and adolescent training with Carolyn Settle.⁠ You can also go directly to SonomaPTI.com, click on the Blog section on the far right of the menu bar and then select the ⁠June 2026 ⁠listings. References for this episode at: https://www.sonomapti.com/blog/index_files/EMDR_Research_News_June_2026.html [https://www.sonomapti.com/blog/index_files/EMDR_Research_News_June_2026.html] Read the latest EMDR Research blog: ⁠⁠https://www.sonomapti.com/blog/⁠⁠ [https://www.sonomapti.com/blog/⁠⁠] Find our EMDR therapy training programs: ⁠⁠https://www.sonomapti.com/basic-emdr-training/⁠⁠ [⁠⁠https://www.sonomapti.com/basic-emdr-training/⁠⁠] Subscribe to my newsletter: ⁠⁠https://www.sonomapti.com/newsletter/⁠⁠ [⁠⁠https://www.sonomapti.com/newsletter/⁠⁠] Follow me on LinkedIn: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewleeds/⁠ [⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewleeds/⁠]

Episode 10 - From Hypertension to Domestic Violence: EMDR at the Heart of Trauma Care

EMDR: The Science Behind the Therapy explores the latestclinical research and practical applications of EMDR therapy hosted by Andrew M. Leeds, PhD, Director of Training for Sonoma Psychotherapy Training Institute. This podcast highlights the latest contributions to EMDR research, practice and training. Each episode breaks down current studies, emerging protocols, and implications for clinical practice. Whether you’re an EMDR-trained therapist, a mental health professional, or simply curious about trauma treatment, this podcast brings you science-based insights you can trust.  In this episode, we explore how EMDR therapy is being tested and refined across a wide range of clinical frontiers. You’ll learn about large-scale meta-analyses on the treatment of depression, anxiety, and childhood trauma, early interventionprotocols for recent critical incidents, and innovative applications for treating hypertension and addictive sexual behavior that link symptom change to shifts in autonomic regulation. We will consider a psychoanalytic understanding of EMDR therapy that speaks directly to clinicians grounded in Freudian and Kleinian models, and we’ll close with a powerful, integrative EMDR-based approach to treating the enduring impact of domestic violence against women. Taken together, these reports invite us to think more deeply about how EMDR operates not only on distressing memories, but on developmental trajectories, relational patterns, and the mind–body systems that sustain suffering and resilience. As you listen, I invite you to consider how these findings might inform your own clinical decision making, from case formulation and modality choice to how you talk with your clients about what EMDR therapy can reliably offer and what it cannot yet promise.   References for this episode at: https://www.sonomapti.com/blog/index_files/EMDR_Research_News_May_2026.html [https://www.sonomapti.com/blog/index_files/EMDR_Research_News_May_2026.html]   Read the latest EMDR Research blog: ⁠https://www.sonomapti.com/blog/⁠ [https://www.sonomapti.com/blog/] Find our EMDR therapy training programs: ⁠https://www.sonomapti.com/basic-emdr-training/⁠ [https://www.sonomapti.com/basic-emdr-training/] Subscribe to my newsletter: ⁠https://www.sonomapti.com/newsletter/⁠ [https://www.sonomapti.com/newsletter/] Follow me on LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewleeds/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewleeds/]

Episode 9 - EMDR: Scaling Healing From War Zones to Waiting Rooms

EMDR: The Science Behind the Therapy explores the latest clinical research and practical applications of EMDR therapy hosted by Andrew M. Leeds, PhD, Director of Training for Sonoma Psychotherapy Training Institute. This podcast highlights the latest contributions to EMDR research, practice and training. Each episode breaks down current studies, emerging protocols, and implications for clinicalpractice. Whether you’re an EMDR-trained therapist, a mental health professional, or simply curious about trauma treatment, this podcast brings you science-based insights you can trust.  This month, we explore how EMDR therapy is being adapted and scaled to meet trauma where it lives: in hospitals, clinics, homes, and war zones. From meta-analytic evidence on brief, often online group EMDR interventions for healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic, to innovative group protocols that help overstretched public health systems reach people on long waiting lists, these studies show how EMDR can be delivered efficiently without sacrificing depth or safety. We look at parents of children with neurodevelopmental disorders receiving intensive group EMDR over three days, older adults using EMDR to reclaimmovement and daily functioning from chronic pain and kinesiophobia, and Ukrainian clinicians applying EMDR-informed, low-threshold trauma support in the midst of ongoing war. We conclude with a conceptual deep dive into the EMDR Toolbox Method for complex PTSD and dissociation, which offers a structured way of mapping internal states and guiding treatment in highly complexpresentations.  Together, these reports trace a consistent theme: EMDR therapy as a flexible, scalable approach capable of reaching large and diverse populations while still honoring theindividual stories and nervous systems behind the data. References for this episode at: https://www.sonomapti.com/blog/index_files/EMDR_Research_News_April_2026.html [https://www.sonomapti.com/blog/index_files/EMDR_Research_News_April_2026.html]   Read the latest EMDR Research blog: ⁠https://www.sonomapti.com/blog/⁠ [https://www.sonomapti.com/blog/] Find our EMDR therapy training programs: ⁠https://www.sonomapti.com/basic-emdr-training/⁠ [https://www.sonomapti.com/basic-emdr-training/] Subscribe to my newsletter: ⁠https://www.sonomapti.com/newsletter/⁠ [https://www.sonomapti.com/newsletter/] Follow me on LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewleeds/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewleeds/]

Episode 8 - How EMDR Therapy Works: The Science of Healing and Neuroplasticity

This episode explores the question “How does EMDR therapy work?” with its focus on EMDR’s use of bilateral eye movements. Other forms of bilateral stimulation are also discussed including kinesthetic stimulation, such as the Butterfly Hug and bilateral auditory stimulation. Drawing on insights from his textbook, A Guide to the Standard EMDR Therapy Protocols (2nd ed.) and an EMDRIA Conference presentation, Dr. Andrew Leeds reviews the latest research studies that clarify and strengthen our understanding of EMDR therapy’s six key mechanisms of action. Listeners can access a related video, courses, and a free PDF through links in the show notes or from the March 2026 blog post at AndrewLeeds.net.   EMDR: The Science Behind the Therapy explores the latest clinical research and practical applications of EMDR therapy hosted by Andrew M. Leeds, PhD, Director of Training for Sonoma Psychotherapy Training Institute. This podcast highlights the latest contributions to EMDR research, practice and training. Each episode breaks down current studies, emerging protocols, and implications for clinical practice. Whether you’re an EMDR-trained therapist, a mental health professional, or simply curious about trauma treatment, this podcast brings you science-based insights you can trust.    References and links for this episode at: https://www.sonomapti.com/blog/index_files/EMDR_Research_News_March_2026.html [https://www.sonomapti.com/blog/index_files/EMDR_Research_News_March_2026.html]   Watch or download the video for Dr. Leeds’s EMDRIA Conference presentation on “Mechanisms of action in EMDR therapy”: https://sonomapti.gumroad.com/l/xzlDL [https://sonomapti.gumroad.com/l/xzlDL]   Download the free PDF from Dr. Leeds’s EMDRIA Conference presentation on “Mechanisms of action in EMDR therapy”: https://andrewmleedsphd.gumroad.com/l/glnz [https://andrewmleedsphd.gumroad.com/l/glnz]   Read the latest EMDR Research blog: ⁠https://www.sonomapti.com/blog/⁠ [https://www.sonomapti.com/blog/] Learn about our EMDR therapy basic training program: ⁠https://www.sonomapti.com/basic-emdr-training/⁠ [https://www.sonomapti.com/basic-emdr-training/] Earn EMDRIA Credits: https://www.andrewleeds.net Subscribe to my newsletter: ⁠https://www.sonomapti.com/newsletter/⁠ [https://www.sonomapti.com/newsletter/] Follow me on LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewleeds/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewleeds/]

Episode 7 - EMDR Therapy for Adolescents

EMDR: The Science Behind the Therapy explores the latest clinical research and practical applications of EMDR therapy hosted by Andrew M. Leeds, PhD, Director of Training for Sonoma Psychotherapy Training Institute. This podcast highlights the latest contributions to EMDR research, practice and training. Each episode breaks down current studies, emerging protocols, and implications for clinical practice. Whether you’re an EMDR-trained therapist, a mental health professional, or simply curious about trauma treatment, this podcast brings you science-based insights you can trust. The February 2026 podcast reviews 14 new research reports. This includes 6 studies on adolescents, 3 meta-analyses, 2 randomized controlled studies, a laboratory study of a potential alternative to bilateral stimulation, a theoretical model on the role of exposure in trauma therapies, and a study protocol on the EMDR treatment of depression. All this and more in Episode 7 of EMDR: The Science behind the Therapy. References for this episode at: https://www.sonomapti.com/blog/index_files/EMDR_Research_News_Month_2026.html [https://www.sonomapti.com/blog/index_files/EMDR_Research_News_Month_2026.html] Read the latest EMDR Research blog: ⁠https://www.sonomapti.com/blog/⁠ [⁠https://www.sonomapti.com/blog/⁠] Find our EMDR therapy training programs: ⁠https://www.sonomapti.com/basic-emdr-training/⁠ [⁠https://www.sonomapti.com/basic-emdr-training/⁠] Subscribe to my newsletter: ⁠https://www.sonomapti.com/newsletter/⁠ [⁠https://www.sonomapti.com/newsletter/⁠] Follow me on LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewleeds/ [⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewleeds/]