Attachment-focused EMDR
Standard EMDR assumes you arrive with enough internal steadiness to go toward a difficult memory. For people whose difficulty began in their earliest relationships, that assumption often doesn't hold — and that's precisely where attachment-focused EMDR was developed.
What's different
Developed by Laurel Parnell, this approach front-loads the resourcing. Rather than moving quickly to a target memory, we spend real time building internal steadiness first — and we keep returning to it throughout, rather than treating preparation as a phase you complete and leave behind.
I'm a member of The Parnell Institute and this is how I work with most developmental and relational trauma.
Why it matters if standard EMDR overwhelmed you
A common story: someone tried EMDR, got flooded, and concluded EMDR isn't for them. More often the preparation was simply too short for what they were carrying.
If that's your experience, it's worth another conversation before you write the method off.
Repair, not just processing
Where standard EMDR processes events, attachment-focused work also addresses what was missing — the steadiness, protection or attunement that wasn't reliably there. That's a different task, and it needs a different structure.
Often the right fit when
- Your difficulty began early, in your first relationships
- Previous EMDR left you flooded or shut down
- There's no single event — it's a climate you grew up in
- You struggle to feel safe with people even when you objectively are
If EMDR hasn't worked for you before.
Book a free 15-minute consultation.