EMDR Therapy for Trauma and Addiction in San Diego, CA

For a lot of people, the substance was never really the starting point. It was the thing that made an unprocessed trauma bearable. When that is the case, treating the addiction without touching the trauma underneath tends not to hold, because the original wound is still there driving the use. EMDR, short for eye movement desensitization and reprocessing, is one of the most established therapies for working through that kind of trauma. Assure Recovery Center does not provide EMDR in-house, but for clients whose addiction is rooted in trauma, we connect you with trusted EMDR providers and treat the addiction alongside that work, so both halves get addressed rather than just one.
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What Is EMDR, and How Does It Help With Addiction?

EMDR is a structured trauma therapy in which you briefly recall a disturbing memory while following a back-and-forth stimulation, usually the therapist’s finger moving side to side, sometimes taps or tones. That bilateral stimulation appears to help the brain reprocess a memory that has been stuck, so it loses its raw, intrusive charge. You are awake and in control the entire time, and unlike some approaches, EMDR does not require describing the trauma in detail or reliving it.

The connection to addiction is the part the field increasingly recognizes. Trauma and substance use overlap heavily: among people in treatment for a substance use disorder, an estimated 20 to 50 percent have a lifetime PTSD diagnosis, and many more carry trauma that never rose to a formal diagnosis. When substances are functioning as a way to numb traumatic memories or quiet the symptoms, trauma-focused therapies like EMDR are the recommended approach for treating the two together. By taking the charge out of the memories that trigger use, EMDR can reduce the pull toward the substance at its source rather than only managing the cravings.

Therapist working one-on-one with a client in EMDR therapy.

Signs Trauma May Be Driving Your Addiction

EMDR is not for everyone in recovery. It is specifically useful when trauma sits underneath the substance use, and a few patterns tend to point that way.

You might recognize using substances mainly to numb emotional pain or push down specific memories, rather than to chase a high. Nightmares, flashbacks, or intrusive thoughts about a past event are common signals, as is having intense, outsized reactions to certain triggers, places, or people. Persistent shame or guilt, feeling emotionally numb or disconnected, trouble trusting people, and avoiding anything that stirs up the memory all fit the same picture. When several of these line up with the substance use, the addiction is often a symptom of the trauma rather than the root problem, which is exactly the situation EMDR is built for.

What Happens in an EMDR Session?

EMDR follows a structured eight-phase process, and it does not begin with diving into the trauma. The early phases are about history and preparation, including building coping and grounding skills before any memory is touched, which is what keeps the work from becoming overwhelming.

Once that groundwork is set, a session centers on holding a specific memory in mind while following the bilateral stimulation in short sets. Between sets, you notice whatever comes up, and over time the memory’s emotional intensity drops. The therapist then helps replace the negative belief tied to it, something like “I am in danger” or “it was my fault,” with a truer, steadier one, and closes with grounding so you leave settled rather than raw. Sessions usually run 60 to 90 minutes, and you stay fully conscious and in control throughout. Difficult emotions can surface, and that is normal, which is why the preparation phase and a steady therapeutic relationship matter so much.

Therapist working one-on-one with a client in EMDR therapy.

Why EMDR Often Requires Some Stability First

One honest point that many pages skip: timing matters with EMDR, especially in addiction recovery. Processing trauma stirs up intense material, and doing that before someone has a steady footing in recovery can backfire and raise relapse risk. For that reason, EMDR is usually introduced once there is some stability and sobriety in place, not in the first chaotic days, and people with certain conditions may need more stabilization before starting.

This is part of why EMDR works best as one component of a broader plan rather than a standalone fix. At Assure, we treat addiction and build that early stability through the therapies we provide directly, like cognitive behavioral therapy and dialectical behavior therapy, and we coordinate EMDR with a trusted provider when you are ready for it. That sequencing, stabilize first, then process the trauma, is what makes the trauma work safe and effective.

How EMDR Fits Into Treatment at Assure

Because we refer out for EMDR rather than providing it on-site, our role is to handle the addiction treatment and the coordination, so the trauma work and the recovery work stay connected instead of happening in two disconnected places.

That means the addiction care happens through our programs, at whatever level fits, while EMDR is layered in with an outside provider at the right point in your recovery. You might be in our partial hospitalization program for intensive daily structure early on, step down to our intensive outpatient program as you stabilize, or continue in outpatient care for the longer haul. Trauma frequently underlies use across substances, which is why this comes up for people in treatment for opioid, alcohol, and stimulant addiction alike.

If trauma is part of your story and you think it may be feeding the substance use, that is worth saying on your first call. Our admissions team will listen, talk through whether EMDR makes sense for your situation, and explain how we would coordinate it alongside treatment. Reach out when you are ready, and we will take it from there.

Client engaged in EMDR therapy for trauma and addiction treatment in San Diego, CA.

FAQs About EMDR for Addiction

Here are the questions people most often have about EMDR. If yours is not here, our admissions team is the best next step.

No, and that is one of the things that sets it apart. EMDR does not require describing the event in detail or staying immersed in it. You briefly bring the memory to mind in short sets while following the bilateral stimulation, then step back between sets. The goal is to drain the memory’s emotional charge, not to force you back through the experience.

Talk therapy works largely through discussing and understanding an experience. EMDR works more directly on how the memory is stored, using bilateral stimulation to help the brain reprocess it. Many people who have not gotten relief from talking about their trauma respond to EMDR because it targets the memory itself rather than the narrative around it. It is often used alongside talk-based therapies, not instead of them.

No. A formal PTSD diagnosis is not required. EMDR can help with distressing memories and unresolved trauma that fall short of full PTSD, including the kind of difficult experiences many people in addiction recovery carry. What matters is whether unprocessed memories are contributing to the substance use, which is something an assessment can help clarify.

It varies widely with the person and the trauma. Some people notice meaningful shifts within a handful of sessions, while complex or layered trauma can take several months. Because EMDR works best once recovery is stable, the timeline also depends on where you are in treatment. An EMDR provider sets the pace based on your readiness rather than a fixed schedule.

​Dawn Olmsted, LMFT

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