EMDR and the body: when talking isn’t enough
Often, when people come to EMDR or somatic therapy, they have already tried other therapies beforehand. They’ve worked through understanding themselves, their past, and their patterns. However, the things that might not have shifted yet include the distressing physical sensations or disconnection in their own body.
Understanding isn't the same as change
Talk therapy is a core part of psychological practice and forms the foundation of the work we do. Making sense of your story matters. However, knowing why you feel a certain way and feeling different are two separate processes. Sometimes, they require a different approach to shift each part effectively.
A lot of what stress and trauma can leave behind is a state your body has learned, like the fight/flight/freeze/fawn response, often faster than conscious thought can keep up with. You can know you're safe, yet your nervous system can still disagree.
I've sat with people who can recite the "why" behind their anxiety or stress in perfect detail, yet their body still tightens the moment a certain situation comes up. It's a sign the work needs to happen somewhere insight alone can't reach.
Why EMDR and somatic work?
EMDR uses bilateral stimulation (eye movements, alternating tones, or tapping) to help the brain reprocess experiences that have gotten stuck. EMDR is based on the Adaptive Information Processing Model, which is based on the mind and body’s innate capacity to move toward healing. Somatic work goes a step further into the body itself: noticing sensations, tracking what happens physically as something difficult arises, and building the capacity to stay with it rather than shutting down or getting swept up in it.
I weave somatic awareness into EMDR and other evidence-based approaches across all phases of therapy. Your body needs to be able to tolerate activation without tipping into overwhelm before we ask it to process anything difficult. But it's also because it helps build awareness and connection with what’s happening in the body amid thoughts and emotions.
It can also be extremely helpful for strengthening existing resources within people, for example, by strengthening your capacity to connect with internal compassion, creativity, or confidence.
For these reasons, I’ve come to prefer this way of working with clients, especially for those who’ve experienced trauma and stress. I also find that it resonates with a lot of people almost as soon as I describe it.
What this looks like in practice
Not every session will involve a body scan or a formal exercise. And no, I won’t just constantly ask… “and where do you feel that in your body?”
It means I'm paying attention to more than your words, to what's happening in your body while you're saying them, whether you're present or perhaps somewhere else. That's what shapes the pace of the work, and when we're ready to move into reprocessing.
For some people, this is what finally shifts something that talk therapy alone hadn't touched. For others, especially with longer-standing patterns, it means starting more slowly. This might look like building the capacity to stay with sensation safely before any reprocessing happens.
If this sounds familiar
If you've already done the work of understanding your story, and your body still hasn't caught up, that's worth taking seriously rather than pushing past. It doesn't mean you need to start over. It usually just means the next step needs to happen somewhere talking alone doesn't reach.
I offer EMDR therapy and somatic (sensorimotor) psychotherapy, both in person in Coffs Harbour and via telehealth, Australia-wide. If you're wondering whether this might fit what you're working through, an initial conversation is the best way to find out.
I'm Maejoy Obach, a Clinical Psychologist and Accredited EMDR Practitioner. My work is grounded in kapwa - the belief that healing happens in connection, not in isolation. I offer trauma informed, relational therapy in Coffs Harbour and via telehealth across Australia, including EMDR Intensives for people wanting more focused, concentrated work. If anything here resonates, I'd love to hear from you.
