Safety isn’t a side note in trauma therapy—it’s the whole road. In this episode, Kyle Lincoln, a counselor in Salem, Massachusetts, tackles the real fear many people have about “stirring things up” when they begin EMDR memory work and lays out a clear, practical map for staying safe from start to finish. We dig into three safety pillars baked into EMDR—thorough preparation (building and practicing skills before reprocessing), careful and continuous screening (tailoring the pace to your stability and needs), and formal closure every session (you don’t leave highly activated). You’ll learn the Essential Concept of the day—the Window of Tolerance—using an easy driving-lane metaphor to recognize hyperarousal and hypoarousal and how to steer back into the zone where healing happens. Then we practice the Breathing Shift, a quick, portable exercise that helps your body shift from overwhelm into grounded presence.

Takeaways/Themes: Safety is structured, not improvised; you stay in control of pace and can stop at any time; preparation skills come before memory work; screening guides timing and approach; closure is non-negotiable; the Window of Tolerance is the lane where change happens; the Breathing Shift is a simple tool you can use this week.

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