EMDR Therapy in Santa Ana, CA
Healing the Memories That Still Shape You
Compassionate EMDR therapy for trauma, anxiety, and depression, offered in person in Santa Ana and virtually throughout California.
A Proven Path Through Trauma
Some experiences do not stay in the past. They surface in the body, in a racing heart, in reactions that feel bigger than the moment, in thoughts that circle back when you least expect them. Living that way is exhausting, and it can feel like what happened still has a hold on your days.
EMDR offers a way through. When something overwhelming happens, the memory can get stuck, holding onto the same images, beliefs, and physical reactions long after the event is over. Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) uses gentle, guided side-to-side movements, sounds, or taps while you briefly bring the memory to mind, helping it lose its grip so it can settle into the past where it belongs. The goal is not to forget what happened. It is to remember it without it taking over your present.
EMDR is a structured, evidence-based therapy that helps the brain work through painful experiences that still feel close, even when they happened long ago. It was developed by psychologist Francine Shapiro and is recognized internationally, including by the World Health Organization, as a recommended treatment for trauma and PTSD.
Who Benefits from EMDR
When the Past Will Not Stay in the Past
Many people who come to us already know they are carrying trauma, and they are tired of the way it keeps shaping the present. Trauma can take many forms, and EMDR is built to address them directly.
Medical Trauma
Distressing experiences tied to illness, injury, procedures, or time spent in care.
War and Military Trauma
The lasting weight of combat, service, and experiences that do not leave when the deployment ends.
Childhood and Developmental Trauma
Difficult early experiences whose effects took root and grew alongside you.
EMDR can also ease anxiety and depression, particularly when they trace back to experiences that were never fully resolved. If you find yourself reacting to the present as though the past were still happening, this is the kind of support designed to help.
Wondering whether EMDR is right for what you are carrying? We're happy to talk it through with you.
What to Expect
Steady Ground Before the Deeper Work
EMDR is a process, and the early sessions are about building the foundation for it.
Build the Foundation
Your clinician takes time to know you and earn your trust, gathering a thorough history so the work ahead is shaped around your life, not a template.
Find Steady Ground
Before any difficult memory is touched, you build stability and a calm, safe place to return to. For clients who want it, this is where faith and a connection with God can become part of that steadiness.
Process the Memory
Only once that footing is in place does active processing begin, moving at a pace that respects what you can hold, until the difficult memories no longer carry the same weight.
Faith-Based EMDR Therapy in Santa Ana, CA
Faith Has a Place Here
Abundant Life Affordable Counseling is rooted in Christian values, and faith-based care is at the heart of this practice. With EMDR, faith has a natural home in the stabilization work, where your faith and your connection with God can become part of the calm and safety you build before deeper processing begins.
How much of this you want is always yours to decide. At the start of treatment, your clinician will talk with you about whether to welcome scripture, prayer, and spiritual reflection into the process, or to keep faith out of the room entirely. Both are honored fully.
People of all faiths, backgrounds, and walks of life are welcome here.
Our Care Model
Trained Clinicians, Close Supervision
EMDR is always provided by a clinician trained in the approach, working under the direct, individualized supervision of Kathleen Shanahan, a CAMFT Certified Clinical Supervisor. That close supervision is also what puts this kind of specialized care within reach. As clinicians build their hours toward full licensure under her guidance, you receive skilled, attentive support at a fraction of what trauma therapy usually costs, so cost is one less thing standing between you and the help you need.
You can meet with us in person at our Santa Ana office or virtually from anywhere in California. For virtual care, we begin with a brief fit assessment, simply to make sure online sessions are the right and safest setting for this work, since EMDR asks you to feel grounded and private throughout each session.
EMDR Done Right
Many practices offer EMDR, but not all of them follow it the way it was built to be done. Kathleen trained through the EMDR Institute in the model created by Francine Shapiro, who personally funded that training. Staying true to the standard EMDR Institute protocol matters here, because the method does its best work when it is followed with care and consistency.
Because every clinician providing EMDR works under Kathleen's direct supervision, that same standard carries through to your sessions. That steadiness, paired with care for the whole person and not just the diagnosis, is what care looks like at Abundant Life Affordable Counseling.
What People Ask About EMDR
Get Started
Reach Out Whenever You're Ready
It takes courage to reach out when the past still weighs on you, and there is no wrong way to begin. Send us a message or give us a call, and we will help you find a place to start that feels right for you.