EMDR Consultation Isn't Just Talking Through a Hard Case With a Colleague
You already have people you can call when a session goes sideways. A trusted coworker, a group chat with other trauma therapists, maybe a friend from your basic training cohort. That kind of talking-it-through has real value. It's not consultation.
EMDR consultation is a distinct professional relationship, not a conversation between peers. EMDRIA describes consultants as encouragers, gatekeepers, and knowledge holders who are expected to evaluate a consultee's use of standard EMDR therapy and recognize when a case calls for a modification to the model. That's a different job than commiserating about a hard week. A consultant is looking at your case conceptualization against the AIP model, checking whether your use of the eight phases and three prongs holds together, and telling you honestly when it doesn't.
What this actually looks like
In practice, structured consultation means:
Case conceptualization, not just case description. Where does this client's presentation fit the AIP model, and where is it more complicated than that.
Protocol fidelity checks. Are you actually following the eight phases, or have you drifted into something that feels like EMDR but has lost the structure that makes it work.
Stuck point diagnosis. Blocked processing, looping, abreaction that won't settle. These have patterns. A consultant who's seen enough of them can usually tell you what's actually happening faster than you can find it on your own.
Honest feedback, including the feedback that's uncomfortable to hear. A consultant who only validates isn't doing the job.
None of that happens in a hallway conversation. It happens because both people showed up expecting it.
Where I fit into this
I'm an EMDRIA-Certified Therapist and a Consultant-in-Training (CIT), which means I'm currently completing my own consultation-of-consultation hours under an EMDRIA Approved Consultant on the way to full Approved Consultant status.
Here's the part worth being direct about, because I'd rather you know this going in than find out later: if you're working toward EMDRIA Certification, EMDRIA currently allows up to 15 of your required 20 consultation hours to come from a CIT. The remaining hours, and your consultant letter of recommendation for certification, need to come from a fully credentialed EMDRIA Approved Consultant. I can be the person who does most of that work with you. I can't be the only signature on the application. If that split matters to your timeline, it's worth planning for from the start rather than discovering it at the end.
What that CIT status does mean is that I'm actively in consultation about my own consultation, which is its own layer of accountability. Someone more experienced is reviewing how I'm supporting my consultees, the same way I'm reviewing your case conceptualization. It's fidelity checking, applied one level up.
Who this is for
EMDR consultation with me works well if you:
Have completed EMDRIA Approved Basic Training and want structured, ongoing feedback as you build EMDR into your practice
Are working toward EMDRIA Certification and need documented consultation hours
Are EMDR-trained and hitting stuck points you can't resolve solo
Want a consultant who will tell you when a case is outside standard protocol territory, not just cheerlead you through it
If that's where you are, let's talk about your consultation goals and see if we're a fit.
Sources: EMDR International Association (EMDRIA), "The EMDR Therapist Journey: From Training, to Certification, and Beyond"; EMDRIA Approved Consultant in Training™ FAQs, emdria.org.
