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Trauma-informed therapy
EMDR therapy: reprocessing the memories underneath an addiction
Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing helps the mind settle distressing memories so they lose their emotional charge. At Sierra it is offered as part of trauma-informed treatment, for people whose addiction sits on top of unresolved trauma.
Checked for accuracy on 28 July 2026. Next review due July 2027. This page is general information about our programme and is not a substitute for advice about your own situation.
EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing) is a structured, trauma-focused therapy that helps you reprocess distressing memories so they feel less raw and intrusive. At Sierra Recovery it is used as part of trauma-informed treatment, alongside the wider residential programme, because for many people the substance was a way of managing a memory or feeling that was never fully processed.
What EMDR therapy is
EMDR is a psychotherapy developed in the late 1980s by the psychologist Francine Shapiro. It works from a simple idea: some difficult life events do not get fully filed away by the brain, and stay “stuck” resurfacing as flashbacks, intrusive thoughts, anxiety or a body that stays on high alert. EMDR uses bilateral stimulation, usually guided side-to-side eye movements, tapping or sound, while you briefly hold a memory in mind. Over a set of these, the memory tends to become a more neutral recollection rather than something that hijacks the present. EMDR is recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) and by the World Health Organization as a treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder.
How EMDR works at Sierra
EMDR always begins with a careful assessment and a personalised plan, so that difficult memories are only approached once you have the coping strategies in place to stay grounded. Your therapist then guides sets of bilateral stimulation while you recall the target memory, pausing between sets to notice what has shifted in your thoughts, images and body. As a session progresses, positive beliefs are strengthened in place of the negative ones, and the body is checked for any tension that is still being held. Sessions can run a little longer than standard therapy appointments, and the number needed varies from person to person depending on the nature of the trauma.
At Sierra this work does not sit on its own. Our methodology, the Regulation Model, understands addiction as a learned way of regulating an unbearable internal state. EMDR is one of the ways we reach the material underneath that state, working alongside the addiction curriculum rather than after it, and alongside our wider offering of individual and group therapy and holistic sessions such as yoga, mindfulness, art and equine therapy.
The eight phases of EMDR
EMDR is delivered across eight phases: history-taking and treatment planning, preparation, assessment, desensitisation, installation of positive beliefs, a body scan, closure so each session ends with you feeling settled, and re-evaluation at the start of the next. The pace is set with you, and a memory is only considered reprocessed once you can hold it with a sense of calm.
EMDR, trauma and addiction
Many people reach for alcohol or drugs to quiet the pain of a traumatic experience, and over time that coping strategy can become an addiction in its own right. EMDR targets the trauma that feeds the using, helping you process the memories and beliefs that drove you towards a substance, so the emotional distress they carry begins to ease. If this is your experience, you may find our page on trauma and addiction a useful place to read further.
Is EMDR right for everyone?
EMDR is not the right starting point for everyone, and there is no shame in that. Because it can bring difficult memories to the surface, it works best once you feel stable and safe enough to sit with them. If you are still in an unsafe situation, or in a very fragile place, other work may need to come first. This is exactly why EMDR at Sierra is only offered after assessment, and only when the timing is right for you. Sierra is a registered health centre; it is not a hospital or a detox unit, and detox is completed elsewhere before you are admitted, with qualified nurses part of the team during your stay.
If you are considering treatment where trauma and addiction are worked with together, our English-speaking team can talk it through with you confidentially. The residential programme is a published £9,900 for 28 days, with no referral fees, drawing on the PROMIS clinical model adapted to Sierra, as run in the UK since 1986. You can see what a stay involves on our admissions page and the full cost on our pricing page, or speak to our admissions team.
Questions people ask
What is EMDR therapy?
EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing) is a structured, trauma-focused psychotherapy. Using guided side-to-side eye movements, tapping or sound while you briefly recall a distressing memory, it helps the mind reprocess that memory so it feels less raw and intrusive. It is recommended by NICE and the World Health Organization for post-traumatic stress disorder.
Does Sierra Recovery offer EMDR?
Yes. EMDR is offered at Sierra as part of trauma-informed treatment, alongside the wider residential programme and our other therapies. It is always preceded by a careful assessment and a personalised plan, so that difficult memories are only approached once you feel stable enough to work with them.
Can EMDR help with addiction?
For many people the substance was a way of coping with an unresolved traumatic memory. EMDR targets that underlying trauma, helping you process the memories and beliefs that drove the using so their emotional charge begins to ease. At Sierra this runs alongside the addiction curriculum rather than after it. You can read more on our trauma and addiction page.
Is EMDR suitable for everyone?
Not always, and there is no shame in that. Because EMDR can bring difficult memories to the surface, it works best once you feel safe and settled enough to sit with them. If you are still in an unsafe situation or in a very fragile place, other work may need to come first. This is why EMDR at Sierra is only offered after assessment and when the timing is right for you.
Is EMDR included in the residential programme, and what does it cost?
EMDR is part of Sierra's trauma-informed treatment within the residential programme, which is a published £9,900 for 28 days with no referral fees. Sierra is a registered health centre, not a hospital or detox unit; detox is completed elsewhere before admission, with qualified nurses on the team during your stay.
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