What Should You Notice Between EMDR Sessions?

What Should You Notice Between EMDR Sessions?

Short Answer: Between Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) sessions, you can simply notice whether anything seems different in your thoughts, emotions, body sensations, memories, dreams, reactions to triggers, or how the original target feels. You do not need to constantly monitor yourself or look for evidence that EMDR is working. Information processing may continue between sessions, and some changes may become noticeable naturally during everyday life. If something stands out, you can make a brief note and revisit it later.

Key Takeaways

• Notice meaningful changes rather than monitoring yourself all day.
• Pay attention to how previously difficult memories or triggers feel when they naturally come up.
• New thoughts, insights, memories, dreams, emotions, or body sensations may sometimes appear.
• Improvements can be just as useful to notice as things that still feel difficult.
• You do not need to deliberately test the target or repeatedly bring it to mind.
• A brief note can help you remember something worth reviewing later.
• In therapist-guided EMDR, between-session changes are normally reviewed during reevaluation.
• With self-guided EMDR, noticing patterns over time can help you decide what feels relevant when you return for another session.

Why Pay Attention to Changes Between Sessions?

EMDR processing may continue after a session ends.

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs notes that new information processing can continue between sessions while people generally continue with ordinary daily life.

The EMDR International Association also describes reevaluation as looking at what changed after the previous session, including changes in symptoms, behavior, reactions to triggers, thoughts, insights, dreams, and the target memory itself.

That does not mean you need to watch yourself closely all day.

Instead, the idea is to notice what naturally stands out.

Notice How the Target Memory Feels

One useful thing to notice is whether the memory you worked on feels any different when it comes to mind naturally.

You might notice that it feels:

• Less vivid
• Less emotionally charged
• More distant
• Easier to think about
• About the same as before

You do not need to deliberately bring up the memory several times a day to check it.

If it comes to mind on its own, simply notice your response.

During therapist-guided EMDR, reevaluation specifically includes asking what comes up now when you think about the previously processed memory.

Notice Your Reaction to Familiar Triggers

Everyday situations can sometimes show changes more clearly than thinking about the session itself.

You might encounter:

• A place
• A person
• A conversation
• A sound
• A reminder
• A situation that previously bothered you

and realize that your reaction is different.

For example:

“That usually makes me very tense, but today it did not bother me as much.”

or:

“I still noticed the trigger, but I recovered more quickly.”

Reevaluation in EMDR includes looking at changes in reactions to present-day triggers connected with the target memory.

If you are addressing phobias, you might notice whether a feared situation brings up a different level of fear or avoidance.

Notice New Thoughts or Insights

You may sometimes have a different thought about what happened.

For example:

“Maybe I was not responsible for everything.”

“I handled that better than I used to think.”

“That experience is over now.”

These kinds of new associations or insights can emerge during or after EMDR processing. Veterans Affairs guidance describes EMDR as involving new insights, connections, and changes in how the target is experienced.

You do not need to decide immediately whether a new thought is important.

Simply notice it.

Notice Emotional Changes

Your emotional response may also shift.

You might notice:

• Less sadness
• Less anger
• Less embarrassment
• Less guilt
• More calm
• More neutrality
• A different feeling altogether

Or you may notice no clear emotional change yet.

All of that is useful information.

The point is not to achieve a particular emotion between sessions.

It is simply to observe whether your response is changing naturally.

Notice Body Sensations

EMDR pays attention not only to thoughts and feelings but also to physical sensations connected with a target.

Between sessions, you may notice changes such as:

• Less tightness
• Less tension
• A different sensation
• A familiar sensation appearing with a trigger
• No noticeable body reaction where one used to occur

Body sensations are part of EMDR assessment and processing, and the body scan phase specifically looks for remaining sensations linked to the target.

You do not need to perform repeated body scans at home.

Just notice what stands out naturally.

Notice Whether Your Behavior Changes

Sometimes a useful change appears in what you do rather than what you feel.

For example, you might notice that you:

• Avoid something less
• Speak up more easily
• Feel less hesitant in a familiar situation
• Handle a conversation differently
• Return to an activity you previously avoided

EMDR reevaluation can include changes in behavior and how those changes are showing up in everyday life.

These changes may be subtle.

You may only recognize them afterward.

Notice New Memories or Associations

Another memory may sometimes come to mind between sessions.

It could seem clearly related to the original target, or the connection may not be obvious.

You might simply think:

“That reminds me of something else.”

You do not need to immediately process the new memory.

EMDR guidance recognizes that new material and additional associations may arise between sessions.

If the memory seems worth remembering, a short note is enough.

Notice Dreams if They Stand Out

Dreams can also be part of between-session observations.

You do not need to expect them, and you do not need to keep a complete dream journal.

But if a dream seems clearly connected with the material you have been working on, you might note it.

The EMDR International Association includes dreams among the types of experiences that may be recorded between sessions.

A simple entry such as:

“Dream about old workplace.”

may be enough. If your EMDR work relates to childhood trauma, a brief note about a dream involving an earlier experience may help you remember what to discuss later.

Notice What Has Not Changed

Between-session observation is not only about improvement.

You may realize:

“That trigger still feels about the same.”

or:

“The memory is still upsetting.”

That can also be useful information.

Reevaluation helps determine what has changed, what has not, and whether the same target needs more processing or attention should move elsewhere.

No immediate change does not automatically mean the session was unsuccessful.

Notice Positive Changes Without Testing Them

If something feels better, you do not need to repeatedly check whether the improvement is still there.

For example, if you notice that a memory feels less intense, you do not need to bring it up again every few hours.

You can simply think:

“That feels different.”

and continue with your day.

Constant testing can turn noticing into monitoring.

The goal is to observe natural changes, not repeatedly provoke the target to measure yourself.

Do You Need to Watch for Changes Every Day?

No.

EMDR is not generally assigned as daily homework between sessions. Veterans Affairs specifically notes that EMDR does not require routine homework or practice assignments between appointments.

You may go several days without noticing anything unusual.

That is fine.

If something meaningful happens, you can notice it then.

Should You Write Changes Down?

You can, especially if you think you may forget them.

The EMDR International Association recommends that people may keep a log or journal of thoughts, situations, dreams, and memories that arise between sessions.

The entry can be extremely short.

For example:

• “Less tense in meeting.”
• “Memory came up but felt farther away.”
• “New thought about responsibility.”
• “Dream about childhood home.”
• “Trigger still felt strong.”
• “Did something I normally avoid.”

You do not need a detailed report.

What Should You Avoid Turning This Into?

Try not to turn between-session noticing into constant self-surveillance.

You do not need to repeatedly ask:

“Am I better yet?”

“Is this because of EMDR?”

“Should I be noticing more?”

“Did that thought mean something?”

The most useful observations often occur naturally while you are living your normal life.

Veterans Affairs guidance specifically encourages allowing between-session changes to unfold naturally while continuing ordinary activities.

What Happens With These Observations at the Next Session?

In therapist-guided EMDR, the next session normally includes reevaluation.

You may review:

• How the original target feels now
• What changed since the previous session
• Current reactions to triggers
• New thoughts or insights
• Dreams
• New memories or associations
• Changes in behavior
• Anything that still feels unfinished

The therapist and client then use that information to decide whether to continue with the same target or move on.

You do not have to arrive with a complete report.

A few observations can be enough.

What If Nothing Seems Different?

That is okay.

Some changes are obvious.

Others are subtle.

And sometimes you may not notice a meaningful change between particular sessions.

You do not need to create an observation just because you think there should be one.

At the next session, it is perfectly reasonable to say:

“I did not notice much difference.”

That is useful information too.

What If You Notice Something Days Later?

That still counts as a between-session observation.

You might be several days past the session when a familiar situation happens and you suddenly realize:

“I responded differently this time.”

You can make a brief note then.

There is no fixed timetable for when changes must become noticeable.

What About Online Therapist-Guided EMDR?

The same principles apply.

After an online EMDR session, you can simply return to your regular life and notice whether anything stands out later.

Because the next appointment is also online, you may find it convenient to keep a few notes on your phone or computer.

You could create one simple document and add only meaningful observations.

There is no need to continually track yourself between video appointments.

What About Self-Guided EMDR?

Between-session noticing is also relevant with Virtual EMDR, the structured self-guided online program.

Virtual EMDR users choose their own session timing and manage their pacing, pauses, and available visual or audio bilateral stimulation settings.

After a session, you might casually notice:

• Whether the target feels different later
• Whether a familiar trigger produces a different response
• Whether a new thought or memory comes up
• Whether a body sensation changes
• Whether something you normally avoid feels easier

If something seems meaningful, you can record it and revisit it before a future self-guided session.

You do not need to continuously monitor yourself or immediately begin another session because something new appeared.

Conclusion

Between EMDR sessions, you do not need to constantly look for signs that something is happening.

Instead, pay attention when something naturally stands out.

You might notice:

• A memory feels different.
• A familiar trigger produces less of a reaction.
• A new thought or insight appears.
• A body sensation changes.
• A dream or related memory comes up.
• Your behavior in a familiar situation shifts.
• Something still feels exactly the same.

These are the kinds of changes that can later be reviewed during reevaluation.

At the same time, Veterans Affairs guidance emphasizes that people can generally continue normal daily life and let between-session changes happen naturally.

Notice what stands out, make a brief note if it seems useful, and then keep living your normal life. You do not need to spend the time between EMDR sessions monitoring yourself.