There is a particular kind of courage required to search for trauma therapy. It is quiet courage — the kind that happens at midnight, with a phone screen glowing in the dark, while you type words you’ve never said out loud. It is the courage of someone who has tried to feel better before, maybe through traditional talk therapy, maybe through sheer willpower, and who is still carrying something they cannot seem to put down.
If that is you, this guide is written for you.
EMDR therapy — Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing — has quietly become one of the most powerful, evidence-backed treatments for trauma, PTSD, anxiety, and a wide range of experiences that leave lasting marks on the nervous system. And for those searching for EMDR therapy in Nashville, this guide is designed to be the most honest, thorough, and compassionate resource available — answering not just what EMDR is, but how it works, what to expect in a session, how long healing takes, and how to find the right therapist for your specific needs.
Simply Being Therapy is a boutique, trauma-informed practice rooted in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded by Dr. Barbie Hessel — LCSW, MA, SEP, CPATP, RSP, and EMDR Level II certified — Simply Being Therapy brings together some of the most sophisticated and compassionate trauma treatment approaches available anywhere. Dr. Hessel and her team believe that healing is not only possible; it is the natural direction of a supported nervous system.
This guide covers everything you need to know: what EMDR is and how it was developed, the neuroscience behind bilateral stimulation, the eight phases of an EMDR session, realistic timelines for treatment, who EMDR is most effective for, and how Simply Being Therapy’s integrative model deepens and accelerates the healing process. By the end, you’ll have the clarity and confidence to take your next step.
What Is EMDR Therapy? Understanding the Science and the Story
Few therapeutic approaches have accumulated as much evidence as quickly as EMDR — and yet, for many people encountering it for the first time, the name alone raises more questions than it answers. Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. It sounds technical, even a little mysterious. Let’s strip that away.
EMDR was developed in the late 1980s by psychologist Dr. Francine Shapiro, who noticed something unexpected during a walk in a park: that moving her eyes back and forth while thinking about distressing thoughts seemed to reduce their emotional charge. That observation, rigorously tested and refined over decades, became the foundation of one of the most transformative psychotherapy approaches in modern clinical practice.
At its core, EMDR is a structured, evidence-based psychotherapy originally developed to treat Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. What makes it different from conventional talk therapy is something fundamental: EMDR does not require the client to narrate their trauma in detail. It does not ask you to find the right words for something that may have happened before you had words at all. Instead, it works directly with the way traumatic memory is stored in the brain and body — and helps the nervous system do what it was always designed to do: process, integrate, and move forward.
Today, EMDR is endorsed as an effective PTSD treatment by the American Psychological Association (APA), the World Health Organization (WHO), and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. It is recognized and regulated by the EMDR International Association (EMDRIA), which certifies therapists and maintains rigorous clinical standards. This is not a fringe approach. It is not experimental. It is one of the most thoroughly validated trauma treatments in existence.
To understand why EMDR works, it helps to understand the theory behind it: the Adaptive Information Processing (AIP) model. According to this model, the human brain has a natural capacity to process experiences and integrate them into the broader network of memory and meaning. When something overwhelming happens — something too fast, too painful, too frightening, or too relentless — that natural processing system can become disrupted. The memory gets “frozen” at the momentof overwhelm, stored not as a coherent narrative of something that happened in the past, but as a raw, fragmented experience that continues to feel present. A smell. A sound. A tightening in the chest. A flash of image. A belief — I am not safe. I am not enough. I am at fault.
EMDR works by helping the brain’s information processing system resume its natural function. Through a specific set of protocols involving bilateral stimulation (explained in the next section), the therapist helps the client access and reprocess traumatic material in a way that the brain could not do on its own. The result is not that the memory disappears — it happened, and it remains. But it shifts: from something that hijacks the present to something that belongs, integrated and no longer raw, in the past.
At Simply Being Therapy, EMDR is offered as part of a comprehensive, trauma-informed approach that recognizes the full complexity of human experience. Understanding what EMDR is lays the groundwork — but understanding how it works at the level of brain and body is where the real insight begins.
How EMDR Therapy Works: Bilateral Stimulation and the Healing Brain
If you’ve ever asked “but how does it actually work?” about EMDR, you are in good company. It is both the most reasonable question and the one that most people find hardest to get a satisfying answer to. The mechanism is elegant — and, in some ways, beautifully intuitive once you understand it.
The defining feature of EMDR is bilateral stimulation (BLS): rhythmic, alternating stimulation of the left and right sides of the brain and body. In a clinical setting, this can take three primary forms:
1. Visual BLS — The client follows the therapist’s moving finger, a light bar, or a moving dot on a screen with their eyes, tracking from left to right in a steady rhythm.
2. Auditory BLS — Alternating tones are played through headphones, pulsing gently from left ear to right ear.
3. Tactile BLS — Small handheld devices called “tappers” deliver gentle alternating vibrations to each hand, or the therapist taps alternately on the client’s knees or hands.
All three forms serve the same purpose: to engage both hemispheres of the brain in a rhythmic, alternating pattern while the client holds a traumatic memory in mind. The result — documented across decades of clinical research — is that the emotional intensity of the memory typically begins to decrease, and new associations and perspectives begin to emerge naturally.
But why? The leading hypothesis, supported by EMDRIA’s research on EMDR and the brain, is that bilateral stimulation mimics — or in some way activates — the same brain processes that occur during REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep. REM sleep is when the brain consolidates and processes the emotional content of the day’s experiences, integrating what is important and filing away what is not. Many researchers believe that trauma disrupts this natural processing cycle. EMDR’s bilateral stimulation may essentially give the brain a second chance to do what sleep and time alone couldn’t accomplish.
“Clients often report that after EMDR processing, a traumatic memory feels more like a distant story than a present threat — something they can look back on without being pulled back into it.”
— Clinical observation reflected across EMDRIA-published practitioner accounts
Neurologically, studies have shown changes in both prefrontal cortex activation and amygdala reactivity following EMDR treatment. The prefrontal cortex — the part of the brain responsible for reasoning, regulation, and perspective — becomes more active. The amygdala — the brain’s alarm system, which fires disproportionately in trauma responses — becomes less reactive. In plain language: after EMDR, people can think more clearly and feel less threatened by memories that once felt overwhelming.
There is also a somatic dimension to EMDR that is easy to overlook but profoundly important. EMDR does not treat trauma as a purely cognitive event — something to be reasoned through or reframed. It attends to physical sensation alongside thoughts and emotions, recognizing that trauma is stored in the body as much as the mind. This is one of the reasons EMDR pairs so naturally with Somatic Experiencing, a modality we’ll explore in depth when we discuss Simply Being Therapy’s integrative approach.
The therapeutic relationship plays a crucial role in all of this. Bilateral stimulation does not work in a vacuum. The safety, attunement, and trust established between client and therapist create the conditions in which the nervous system is willing to approach difficult material at all. No amount of technique substitutes for a therapist who truly sees you.
With the neuroscience established, the next natural question is: what actually happens in a session?
The 8 Phases of EMDR Therapy: What to Expect in Every Session
This is the question most people are quietly asking when they search for EMDR therapy — what will it actually feel like to be in that room? The answer is both more structured and more human than many people expect. EMDR follows a precise eight-phase protocol, developed by Dr. Shapiro and refined over decades, that guides the entire course of treatment. Understanding these phases can transform anticipatory anxiety into something closer to readiness.
According to both EMDRIA and the American Psychological Association, the eight phases unfold as follows:
Phase 1 — History Taking and Treatment Planning
Your therapist will take time to understand your history, your current challenges, and what has brought you to therapy. This is not an interrogation — it is the beginning of a relationship. Together, you will identify the experiences and patterns that are most affecting your life, and your therapist will begin to develop a personalized treatment roadmap. The therapeutic alliance formed here is the foundation on which everything else will be built. History Taking and Treatment Planning are an aspect of building a strong therapeutic alliance and this phase varies in terms of time. For some clients, building safety can take longer than for others and this is entirely natural. At Simply Being Therapy it is Dr. Barbie’s philosophy that “slow is fast” and a strong foundation is imperative for the successful treatment of trauma.
Phase 2 — Preparation
Before any trauma processing begins, your therapist will ensure that you have the internal and relational resources to handle it. This phase involves explaining the EMDR process clearly, introducing stabilization tools such as the “safe/calm place” visualization, and establishing the signals and pacing agreements that will keep you in control throughout. For clients with complex trauma histories, this phase may extend across many sessions — and that is entirely appropriate. No processing begins until you are genuinely ready.
Phase 3 — Assessment
A specific target memory is selected for processing. You will be guided to identify the negative belief that feels true when you hold the memory in mind (for example: “I am powerless” or “I am not safe”), the positive belief you would rather hold (“I have survived. I am safe now.”), the emotions you feel, and where in your body you notice them. For some clients, where there is complex trauma or pre verbal trauma, the target may be the cognition itself. Your therapist will establish a baseline measure of distress using the SUDS scale — the Subjective Units of Distress Scale — a simple 0–10 rating that will be revisited throughout.
Phase 4 — Desensitization
This is the heart of EMDR processing. While holding the target memory, its associated emotions, physical sensations, and the negative belief in mind, you will follow the bilateral stimulation your therapist provides — whether eye movements, taps, or tones. In sets of stimulation followed by brief check-ins, you will notice what arises: images, thoughts, emotions, body sensations. You do not need to guide or analyze what comes up. Your therapist will simply ask, “What do you notice?” The workhappens in the nervous system, not in the analytical mind. Over the course of the session, most clients experience a natural decrease in the emotional intensity of the target memory. That said every session is different. You may feel less intensity after a session or your therapist might need to help guide you back to the memory or cognition for further processing.
Phase 5 — Installation
Once the distress level has dropped significantly, the focus shifts to the positive belief you identified in Phase 3. Using continued bilateral stimulation, your therapist helps you weave that positive belief into the processed memory — strengthening and deepening its resonance. Progress is measured using the VoCscale, the Validity of Cognition, which rates how true the positive belief feels on a scale of 1–7.
Phase 6 — Body Scan
Trauma lives in the body, and EMDR honors that. After processing, you will bring gentle attention to your entire body — scanning for any remaining tension, discomfort, or activation. If sensations are present, additional bilateral stimulation may be used to address them. The goal is for you to leave each session with a body that feels settled, not just a mind that has processed.
Phase 7 — Closure
Every session ends with closure — regardless of whether processing is complete. Your therapist will guide you back to a grounded, stable state using the coping tools established in Phase 2. If the processing remains unfinished (which is normal across multiple sessions), you will receive clear guidance on how to manage any material that might continue to surface between sessions. You should never leave an EMDR session feeling unmoored. Building internal resilience is woven into every stage of the process.
Phase 8 — Reevaluation
Each subsequent session begins here. Your therapist will check in on previously processed memories — how do they feel now? What has shifted? What remains? New targets are identified, and the map of treatment is updated accordingly. Healing is not linear, and reevaluation ensures that the approach remains responsive to your evolving experience.
One important reassurance: not every EMDR session involves active trauma processing. Especially early in treatment, many sessions are devoted entirely to history taking, stabilization, and resource building. This is not wasted time — it is the foundation that makes deep processing safe and possible.
How Long Does EMDR Therapy Take? Realistic Timelines and What Shapes Them
This is the question that lives underneath so many others. When people ask “how long does EMDR therapy take?” they are often really asking something more tender: “Is there an end to this? Is relief actually possible for me?” The answer is yes — and the more precise answer depends on a few important factors.
According to the APA’s EMDR treatment overview, EMDR is typically delivered one to two times per week, with a total of 6 to 12 sessions often cited as a general benchmark for single-incident trauma. Some clients experience meaningful relief even more quickly. Many may take longer and this is entirely natural. It is not a failure of the therapy or the client. It is a reflection of the complexity and individuality of human experience.
What shapes your treatment timeline?
The nature of the trauma is one of the most significant variables. Single-incident trauma — a car accident, a medical emergency, an assault, a natural disaster — typically responds well to EMDR in a shorter timeframe. When there is a clearly bounded event that the nervous system has been unable to process, targeted EMDR work can bring substantial relief within weeks to a few months. If the single-incident trauma is held within a nervous system that has endured other traumatic incidents, this becomes more complex.
Complex PTSD or developmental trauma — trauma that occurred repeatedly, over time, often in childhood, often within relationships that should have been safe — is a different landscape entirely. C-PTSD involves not just discrete traumatic events but the accumulated weight of relational wounds, disrupted attachment, shame, and a nervous system that learned early to operate in a state of chronic threat. For these clients, EMDR treatment is typically longer, often spanning six to eighteen months or more, with preparation and stabilization phases woven throughout the processing work.
Beyond the nature of the trauma itself, other factors shape the timeline:
• Nervous system capacity: A client who comes to therapy with strong stabilization skills, secure relationships, and an already-regulated nervous system will generally be able to tolerate processing more quickly than someone whose nervous system is still in a state of high activation or shutdown.
• Life circumstances: Ongoing stressors, safety concerns, or major life transitions can slow the pace of processing — not because the client is doing anything wrong, but because the nervous system appropriately prioritizes present-day survival.
• The integrative model: When EMDR is combined thoughtfully with other modalities — as it is at Simply Being Therapy — the preparation is often deeper and the integration more complete, which can mean fewer sessions are needed to achieve lasting change. Caring for your nervous system is not only something that happens in the therapy room — it is an ongoing, whole-life commitment. Learning to tend to your nervous system between sessions supports and accelerates healing.
It is also worth naming something honest: EMDR is not a linear process. Some sessions will feel profoundly transformative — a shift that changes something fundamental in the way a memory or belief sits inside you. Other sessions will feel quieter, more integrative, less dramatic. Both are essential. Healing happens in the full spectrum of these experiences, not only in the peak moments.
At Simply Being Therapy, every client receives an individualized treatment plan. There is no standardized timeline imposed on anyone, because no two people — and no two histories — are the same. The first step is always a consultation, where your therapist will take the time to understand your history, your goals, and what a thoughtful, appropriately paced treatment path might look like for you.
Who Is EMDR Therapy For? Trauma, PTSD, Anxiety, and the People Who Carry It
One of the most important things to understand about EMDR is that it was designed for a specific kind of suffering — and yet the range of experiences it reaches is remarkably wide. If you have wondered whether EMDR might be for you, the answer is almost certainly worth exploring. You may find that you begin therapy wanting to explore EMDR and that you and your therapist decide that another modality may be best or may be best at first.
PTSD and Single-Incident Trauma
EMDR was developed specifically to treat PTSD, and it remains one of the most rigorously validated treatments for it. Whether trauma stems from combat, a serious accident, an assault, a natural disaster, a medical crisis, or any other overwhelming event, EMDR addresses not just the symptoms — the flashbacks, the nightmares, the hypervigilance — but the root: the way the memory itself is stored. The EMDR International Association offers extensive documentation of EMDR’s efficacy for PTSD across populations and trauma types.
Complex PTSD and Developmental Trauma
For those who experienced repeated, prolonged, or relational trauma — childhood abuse or neglect, domestic violence, emotional unavailability from early caregivers, or chronic experiences of powerlessness — the picture is more layered. Complex PTSD (C-PTSD) involves not just individual memories but a deeply reorganized sense of self, a nervous system that learned to survive by staying on guard, and wounds that are relational at their core. Complex PTSD counseling in Nashville, TN is one of the most important services Simply Being Therapy offers. For these clients, EMDR is adapted: more time is spent in preparation, stabilization, and internal resource-building before active processing begins. The goal is never to push — it is to support.
Sexual Trauma and Assault
EMDR is particularly effective for the processing of sexual trauma, which so often involves not just the event itself but the layers of shame, self-blame, confusion, and fragmented memory that so frequently accompany it. Sexual trauma responses — the body’s strategies for surviving the unsurvivable — are not character flaws. They are intelligent adaptations. EMDR, in the hands of a skilled and trauma-informed therapist, can help gently unwind these adaptations and restore a sense of safety and wholeness. The clinicians at Simply Being Therapy, including those who specialize in sexual trauma, bring both clinical precision and deep compassion to this work.
Anxiety Disorders
Many people living with chronic anxiety have noticed that their anxiety doesn’t quite make sense in the present — that it seems disproportionate, driven by something older and harder to name. EMDR treats the root traumatic experiences that often underlie anxiety disorders: the moments when safety was breached, when the world proved unpredictable, when a younger version of you learned to brace for what might come next. EMDRIA’s research on EMDR for anxiety supports the efficacy of EMDR not just for PTSD, but for the broader anxiety landscape it so often feeds.
Depression, Grief, and Chronic Stress
When depression is rooted in unprocessed loss, profound grief, or relational trauma, EMDR can reach where cognitive interventions alone cannot. Similarly, chronic stress is rarely just about the present — it is often an amplified response to old wounds that make current pressures feel existential. Living in an overstimulated, complex world can activate the past in ways that are confusing and exhausting. EMDR helps differentiate the present from the past, reducing the intensity with which old paincolors current experience.
Who May Need a Different Starting Point
EMDR in its standard protocol is not always the right first step for everyone. Clients who are currently in crisis, experiencing active psychosis, or who are not yet in a stable enough place to approach traumatic material safely may need to begin with stabilization and foundational support before processing begins. This is not a barrier — it is good clinical judgment. A thorough assessment at the outset of treatment will always guide the path forward.
At Simply Being Therapy, EMDR is offered by a team of skilled clinicians — Dr. Barbie Hessel, Christi Sidwell, Dr. Katelyn Kalstein, Ashley Pfountz, Hannah Turner and Sarah Swaney — each bringing specialized training and deep expertise to their work. Clients are thoughtfully matched with the therapist whose background and approach best align with their specific needs and history.
EMDR at Simply Being Therapy: An Integrative Approach That Goes Deeper
Most EMDR practices offer EMDR. What Simply Being Therapy offers is something more: a deeply considered, integrative model that treats trauma not as a problem to be solved but as an experience to be witnessed, processed, and transformed — at every level of the human system.
At Simply Being Therapy, we believe that trauma is never just cognitive, just emotional, or just neurological. It is all of these, woven together, held in the body, carried in the nervous system, and organized in the internal world of parts and protectors that every human being develops in response to their history. This is why EMDR — as powerful as it is — is most transformative when it is offered within a broader integrative framework.
EMDR and Somatic Experiencing: A Natural Partnership
Somatic Experiencing (SE) is a trauma therapy developed by Dr. Peter Levine that works directly with the body and the nervous system — tracking physiological responses to trauma and supporting the release of incomplete survival responses that have been held in the body, sometimes for decades. SE and EMDR share a deep philosophical kinship: both recognize that trauma is stored somatically, not just cognitively, and that healing must reach the body to be complete.
Dr. Barbie Hessel holds the designation of Somatic Experiencing Practitioner (SEP) — the highest-level certifications in the SE field, requiring years of intensive training and supervised practice. This means that at Simply Being Therapy, clients are supported somatically before, during, and after EMDR processing. The body is not an afterthought — it is a full participant in the healing process. When EMDR sessions activate difficult material, SE skills help clients stay within their window of tolerance: processing without becoming overwhelmed, integrating without shutting down.
EMDR and Internal Family Systems: Preparing the Inner World
Internal Family Systems (IFS), developed by Dr. Richard Schwartz, offers a profound framework for understanding the internal system of “parts” that every person carries — the protectors, the managers, the exiles, the inner critic, the part that wants to be seen. In the context of trauma therapy, IFS is invaluable because it helps clients understand and work with the parts of themselves that may resist or fear trauma processing. A client may consciously want to heal, while a protective part of them is working hard to keep the traumatic material locked away — because for a long time, that protection was necessary.
When IFS “parts work” is integrated with EMDR, the result is a kind of internal negotiation before processing begins — ensuring that the client’s whole inner system, not just their conscious mind, is on board. When protective parts feel heard and respected, rather than bypassed or overridden, EMDR processing tends to go deeper, meet less resistance, and last longer. IFS prepares the internal landscape for EMDR to work most effectively. Dr. Barbie’s Hessel and Christi Sidwell are completing IFS certification.
EMDR and Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy: The Frontier of Healing
For clients with treatment-resistant trauma, depression, or PTSD — those for whom other approaches have provided incomplete relief — Simply Being Therapy offers something at the cutting edge of trauma treatment: the integration of EMDR with Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy (KAP). Dr. Barbie Hessel, Christ Sidwell, Dr. Katelyn Kalstein, and Sara Balter have all earned certifications in psychedelic and ketamine assisted therapy through highly recognized post graduate programs.
Ketamine, when administered in a clinical setting under careful medical supervision, creates a period of heightened neuroplasticity — a window in which the brain’s capacity for new learning, new connections, and new integration is significantly enhanced. When carefully timed EMDR processing is offered within or adjacent to this neuroplasticity window, the results can be profound. Protective structures that might otherwise require many months to soften become more accessible. Insights become more actionable. Integration deepens. You can explore more about this approach in Simply Being Therapy’s detailed writing on Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy and on the critical role of integration in KAP.
Simply Being Therapy is one of only a very small number of Nashville practices offering this integrated protocol — and it reflects Dr. Hessel’s commitment not to offering what is conventional, but to offering what genuinely works.
Why the Integrative Model Matters
Trauma is rarely simple. For many clients — especially those carrying complex, developmental, or treatment-resistant trauma — EMDR alone, however skillfully delivered, may not reach every layer of the wound. The integrative model at Simply Being Therapy is not about layering techniques for its own sake. It is about honoring the full complexity of the human beings who come through the door, and responding to each person with the full range of tools that might best serve their healing.
The practice is intentionally boutique in scale — small enough for deep personalization, skilled enough for the most complex presentations. This is a team of clinicians who have made trauma treatment their life’s work, and whose clinical approaches reflect that commitment at every level.
Finding the Right EMDR Therapist in Nashville, TN
You’ve arrived at what may be the most practical section of this guide — and in some ways, the most important. Understanding EMDR is one thing. Finding the right EMDR therapist for you, in Nashville, where you live, is another. Here is what to look for — and the questions worth asking.
Credentials and Training
When looking for an EMDR therapist, look for a therapist who has completed EMDR Level I and Level II training through an EMDRIA-approved program. Dr. Barbie Hessel holds EMDR Level II certification, alongside her broader credentials as an LCSW, SEP, CPATP, and RSP. Many of the Simply Being therapist have EMDR credentials.
Specialization in Your Type of Trauma
EMDR is not a one-size-fits-all protocol. A therapist who is skilled with single-incident trauma may not have the specific training to work thoughtfully with complex developmental trauma, sexual violence, or treatment-resistant PTSD. Ask prospective therapists directly about their experience with the kind of history you carry. A skilled trauma therapist will welcome that question — it is a sign that you are advocating for yourself, and they will tell you honestly whether they are the right fit.
A Body-Aware, Trauma-Informed Approach
Trauma lives in the body. A therapist who treats it purely as a cognitive or narrative problem — as something to be talked about and reframed — is working with an incomplete map. Look for a therapist who speaks the language of the nervous system, who understands stabilization, titration, and pacing, and who will never push you into processing before you are genuinely ready.
The Therapeutic Relationship
Research consistently shows that the therapeutic relationship — the quality of connection and safety between therapist and client — is one of the most powerful predictors of therapy outcomes. EMDR is no exception. You should feel seen, respected, and genuinely safe with your EMDR therapist. A good initial consultation is your opportunity to sense whether that connection is present. Trust that instinct.
Questions Worth Asking a Potential EMDR Therapist
• What level of EMDR training do you have? Are you EMDRIA certified.
• How do you approach complex PTSD or developmental trauma?
• Do you integrate other modalities alongside EMDR, and if so, which ones?
• How do you pace processing for clients who are highly sensitive or easily overwhelmed?
• What does your initial assessment process look like?
There are no wrong questions. A therapist who is right for you will have thoughtful, clear answers to all of them — and will appreciate that you asked.
Simply Being Therapy’s EMDR Team
At Simply Being Therapy, clients are never assigned to a therapist at random. Thoughtful matching is built into the process. The practice’s EMDR team includes Dr. Barbie Hessel (EMDR Level II certified, SEP, and clinical founder), alongside Christi Sidwell, Dr. Katelyn Kalstein, Hannah Turner, Ashley Pfountz, Nicole Nelson, and Sarah Swaney — each bringing their own areas of specialization and clinical depth. The practice serves adults, couples, and families throughout the Nashville area.
Simply Being Therapy therapists offer a complimentary 15-20 minute phone consultation. Your This first consultation is not a commitment — it is a conversation. It is a chance to ask your questions, share something of your story, and feel, without any pressure, whether this is the place and the person for your healing. To learn more about the human being who founded Simply Being Therapy, Dr. Hessel’s Founder Series writing offers a deeply personal window into the clinical philosophy and values that shape everything the practice does.
Learn more about Simply Being Therapy and the team that is ready to walk alongside you.
Healing Is Not Only Possible — It Is the Direction Your System Wants to Go
We began this guide acknowledging the quiet courage it takes to look for help. That courage — the kind that shows up in a search bar at midnight, that reads an entire guide to understand something unfamiliar — is itself the beginning of healing.
EMDR therapy is not a miracle, and it is not magic. But it is something remarkable: a structured, evidence-backed pathway to the places where trauma has lived in the body and nervous system, often for years. It works with the brain’s own processing capacity, not against it. It does not require you to perform or intellectualize your pain. It asks only that you show up, that you let yourself be supported, and that you allow the nervous system — with the right guidance — to do what it has always been designed to do.
At Simply Being Therapy, EMDR is offered not as a standalone technique, but as part of a deeply individualized, integrative approach — one that draws on Somatic Experiencing, Internal Family Systems, and Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy to meet clients where their healing actually needs to happen. Dr. Barbie Hessel and her team bring not just clinica sophistication, but genuine human care to every room, every session, every step of the journey.
The research behind EMDR therapy is clear: healing from trauma is real, measurable, and possible — across a wide range of experiences, histories, and nervous system presentations. You do not have to carry this alone. You never did.
Ready to Begin EMDR Therapy in Nashville?
Whether you are navigating trauma, PTSD, anxiety, or a complex past — you deserve a therapist who truly understands how to help.
At Simply Being Therapy, we offer EMDR therapy as part of a deeply individualized, trauma-informed treatment plan — tailored to you, your nervous system, and your goals. Our team brings advanced clinical training, genuine warmth, and an integrative approach that goes further than traditional therapy alone.
We invite you to take the next step. Book a free consultation with our team today or make an appointment. We will take the time to understand where you are, answer your questions honestly, and help you find the right path forward — at a pace that feels safe and right for you.
Want to learn more about the clinician behind Simply Being Therapy before reaching out? Meet Dr. Barbie Hessel — her story, her training, and her vision for what trauma healing can look like.