EMDR Isn’t Just for Big Traumas
When most people hear about EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing), they picture something dramatic — a therapy for veterans, survivors of abuse, or people with flashbacks and nightmares.
But what’s less well known is that EMDR also helps with the quieter, more subtle wounds, the kind that leave no obvious scar, but still shape how we live, relate, and feel about ourselves.
“It wasn’t that bad… but I still carry it”
Many people come to therapy saying things like:
“I had a good childhood, but…”
“It’s not trauma, really. I just can’t seem to let go of it.”
“I don’t know why I overreact in these situations, I just do.”
Often, they’re carrying memories or relational experiences that were painful, confusing, or deeply shaming but not “big” enough to call traumatic in the traditional sense.
EMDR can help process and shift these smaller t traumas like:
Repeated criticism or emotional neglect
Being bullied or left out
Moments of humiliation, fear, or powerlessness
Breakups, betrayals, or unresolved grief
When experiences get “stuck” in the nervous system
Sometimes, even when we understand something logically - “It happened years ago,” “I know they didn’t mean to hurt me” - the emotion still feels current. It’s as if the body and brain didn’t fully process it at the time.
EMDR helps reprocess those experiences so they lose their emotional charge. They become part of the past, rather than something you keep reacting to in the present.
Gentle, structured, and surprisingly effective
EMDR doesn’t require you to retell your whole life story or relive trauma in detail. It’s a structured process that works with your brain’s natural capacity to heal, often in less time than traditional talk therapy alone.
If you're struggling with something that “wasn’t that bad” but still hurts, holds you back, or plays on repeat. EMDR might help you move forward.
Dr Sam Reawood
Reawood Psychotherapy