Why Does EMDR Encourage You to Notice What Comes Up Next?

Why Does EMDR Encourage You to Notice What Comes Up Next?

Short Answer: EMDR encourages you to notice what comes up next because processing can involve changes in thoughts, images, feelings, memories, and body sensations. Rather than deciding in advance what each response should mean, you briefly report or observe what you notice after a set of bilateral stimulation. This helps the work follow the experience as it unfolds. There is no single correct response, and you do not need to produce a new memory or insight after every set.

Key Takeaways

• Noticing what comes up next helps EMDR follow changes in the experience being processed.
• A response can be a thought, image, emotion, physical sensation, or simply that nothing new stands out.
• The instruction is an invitation to observe, not a request to analyze or force a particular result.
• What comes up next can help guide the direction of processing without needing to make sense of every response immediately.

What Does “Notice What Comes Up Next” Mean in EMDR?

During EMDR, a person focuses on a selected experience while following the session process. At intervals, they are asked to notice what is present in their awareness. That may be a thought, an emotion, an image, a physical sensation, or a change in how the original experience feels. The instruction is about observing the current response, not searching for a particular result.

The phrase “what comes up next” keeps the question open. It asks what the person notices now, after the previous part of the work, rather than what they think they ought to notice. The response can be brief and ordinary. It does not need to be a major realization.

This matters because a memory or concern does not always feel exactly the same from one moment to the next. Noticing allows the person to stay aware of those changes without deciding beforehand what direction they should take.

In practice, the invitation usually comes after a short period of bilateral stimulation, such as following moving visual cues. You take a moment to recognize what is most noticeable before the next part of the exercise. The response does not have to be related to a new memory. It might concern the original event, how you feel about it now, or a small change in the way you picture it.

The wording is intentionally broad because people experience memories in different ways. Some notice images first, while others are more aware of thoughts or feelings. Paying attention to your own response makes the instruction useful without asking everyone to experience processing in the same way.

Why Does EMDR Ask You to Notice Instead of Predicting What Should Happen?

If someone expects a particular feeling to disappear, they may concentrate on checking whether that feeling has changed. Meanwhile, something else about the experience may have become more noticeable. An open invitation to observe makes room for either possibility.

For example, someone might expect to feel calmer about a difficult conversation but instead notice that the words they remember are less important than the expression on the other person’s face. The point is not that one detail is better than another. It is that the person can describe what actually stands out without forcing the experience into an expected pattern.

EMDR does not require a scripted sequence of thoughts or feelings. Noticing what appears helps keep the work responsive to the person’s experience rather than to a prediction about how processing should unfold.

Expectations can also change what a person pays attention to. If the only question is whether an upsetting feeling has disappeared, other observations can be overlooked. A person might notice that the feeling is still there but that the memory seems farther away, or that a different part of the event now stands out. Both observations describe what is happening without claiming that one response is required.

This is especially useful when the experience does not change in a straight line. A feeling can seem stronger during one interval and less prominent during another. The open prompt gives the person room to report each response as it occurs rather than trying to make the session match an imagined sequence.

How Does Noticing Help the Processing Continue?

Each observation provides a simple reference point for what the person is experiencing at that moment. A familiar feeling may still be present, a detail may seem less vivid, or attention may have shifted. Recognizing that current response helps the person continue from what is actually noticeable.

The instruction does not require stopping to explain every observation. In therapist-guided sessions and self-guided online programs such as Virtual EMDR, a brief acknowledgment can be enough before continuing. This allows you to stay attentive without turning every pause into an extended discussion.

Noticing also makes room for gradual change. A response may be subtle enough that it would be missed if the person looked only for a dramatic shift. Paying attention to the current experience allows small changes and unchanged responses to be recognized equally.

The brief pause also creates a practical rhythm. You focus on the selected experience, complete a set of stimulation, notice the current response, and then continue according to the session instructions. That pattern helps distinguish the processing exercise from simply thinking about a memory for an extended period. The observation is part of the process, not a separate assignment that needs a lengthy answer.

What Kinds of Responses Count as Noticing?

A person might notice that an image seems less clear, that an emotion remains, or that attention has moved to another part of the experience. Thoughts, physical sensations, and familiar details can all be useful observations.

There is no hierarchy in which an unexpected memory counts more than an ordinary thought or a physical sensation. The instruction is not asking for the most interesting thing that happened. It asks for an accurate description of what stands out now.

Even when several things are present, the person does not have to list them all. Naming the clearest or most immediate response can be enough. This keeps noticing practical and prevents the pause from becoming a task of cataloging every detail.

Physical responses can be ordinary and specific. Someone might notice that their shoulders feel less tight or that they are holding their breath. Another person might notice a sentence running through their mind or a different image from the same event. These are examples of observations, not signs that a particular outcome has been reached.

Sometimes the most noticeable response is about the present moment rather than the remembered event. You might realize that your attention wandered or that you are listening to a sound in the room. Simply recognizing that is more useful than inventing a connection to the memory. The purpose is to describe the experience accurately.

Why Is Noticing Different From Analyzing?

Noticing means identifying a current experience, while analyzing means trying to explain its cause or meaning. Both can have a place in reflection, but the prompt to notice what comes up next does not call for an immediate explanation.

Trying to account for every thought can draw attention away from the current response. A person may become occupied with deciding whether an observation is important, accurate, or connected to something else. The simpler task is to recognize what is there.

This does not mean a person must avoid understanding their experiences. It means understanding does not have to be completed between every part of the session. Observation can come first, with broader reflection left for a more appropriate moment.

For instance, noticing that a person's expression comes to mind is different from deciding immediately why that expression matters. The second question might be worth reflecting on later, but it is not necessary to answer it before continuing. Keeping the two activities separate can make the pauses between sets simpler and more natural.

Analysis can also lead to repeated checking. A person may ask whether a thought is meaningful enough or whether a particular feeling proves that the session is working. The noticing prompt does not ask for that kind of judgment. It asks for a description of the current experience, including responses that seem ordinary or familiar.

What If Nothing Seems to Change?

It is possible to finish a part of the session and notice no clear difference. The same image may remain, the same emotion may be present, or nothing in particular may stand out. This is still an honest response to the prompt.

The person does not need to invent a new thought or search for a forgotten memory to provide an answer. Saying “nothing different” or “the same feeling is there” describes the experience accurately. The invitation to notice is not a demand for evidence of progress after every interval.

There can be several consecutive intervals in which the response sounds similar. You might keep picturing the same scene or noticing the same feeling. That does not require you to change your answer just to make it sound different. The instruction remains the same, and an unchanged response is still information about what you are experiencing.

It is also possible to notice a difference only when looking back over a longer portion of the session. A memory might seem slightly less immediate than it did at the beginning, even if no single interval felt especially different. There is no need to monitor for this constantly. The prompt works best when each observation is allowed to be straightforward.

How Can You Describe What Comes Up Without Overexplaining?

A short description is often sufficient. You might notice less tension, the same remembered moment, or no clear change. Each response communicates what is present without requiring a long account.

It can help to describe the experience before trying to interpret it. Instead of explaining why an image appeared, the person can simply note that it appeared. Instead of deciding whether a feeling means the work is finished, they can say whether the feeling is still there.

Plain language is useful because the prompt is meant to be manageable. A person does not need technical vocabulary, a detailed explanation, or a polished answer. The important thing is that the observation matches what they actually notice.

If several responses appear at once, you can start with the one that stands out most clearly. You do not have to put every image, feeling, and thought into a complete account. A brief description keeps attention on the current experience and makes it easier to move into the next part of the session.

You can also use everyday words rather than searching for the exact psychological term. Saying that a memory feels closer, that you feel less irritated, or that the same thought keeps returning communicates what you notice. The value comes from accuracy, not from using specialized language or finding a memorable phrase.

Conclusion

EMDR encourages people to notice what comes up next because thoughts, feelings, memories, and physical responses can change during processing. An open-ended prompt allows the person to observe those changes without deciding in advance what should happen.

The next response might be a new association, a familiar sensation, a shift in how the memory feels, or no noticeable change. None needs to be forced. Paying attention to what is actually present helps keep the work grounded in the person’s experience.