EMDR Intensives in San Francisco and the Bay Area

According to Erica Spartos, LMFT (CA #81057), EMDR intensives in San Francisco are a concentrated format of EMDR therapy that compresses trauma processing work into multi-hour sessions over a shorter timeframe, rather than weekly 50-minute appointments. They are designed for people who have a specific experience to work through, limited scheduling availability, or who want to move through trauma work without the pace of traditional weekly therapy. If you're new to the protocol entirely, the how EMDR works for trauma page covers the basics, and this page picks up from there to explain the intensive format specifically.

I offer EMDR intensives in San Francisco and across California via telehealth for adults who want to approach their trauma work differently. Standard weekly therapy is valuable, and it is also slow by design. EMDR intensives give us the time and continuity to go deeper, session by session, without the week-long gaps in between.

The format is not right for everyone, but for the right person, it can accomplish in a focused stretch of days what might otherwise take many months of weekly sessions. If you are considering EMDR intensives in the San Francisco Bay Area, here is what you need to know before reaching out.

What Is an EMDR Intensive?

An EMDR intensive is a structured block of extended EMDR sessions, typically two to three hours per session, scheduled over several consecutive days or within a condensed timeframe. Rather than building toward trauma processing incrementally over months, intensives are designed to move through that work in a more sustained, concentrated way.

The extended session length matters clinically. In Erica Spartos's clinical experience, having more time in a single session allows the processing to move further before wrapping up, which means less re-activation between appointments and more continuity across the work.

EMDR intensives are an evidence-based delivery model recognized by EMDRIA, the professional organization that sets training and practice standards for EMDR therapy worldwide.

Who Is a Good Candidate for an EMDR Intensive?

Not everyone is a candidate for intensive work, and I do a thorough intake before scheduling. Intensives work especially well for clients who are already engaged in trauma therapy in San Francisco and want a concentrated stretch of EMDR alongside their ongoing weekly work. In my clinical experience, EMDR intensives tend to be the right structure for people who meet one or more of the following:

You have a specific event, memory, or experience you want to work through, rather than diffuse or ongoing stress
You have tried weekly therapy but feel like progress has stalled
Your schedule makes weekly 50-minute appointments difficult to sustain
You are relocating out of California and want to complete a course of trauma work before you go
You are visiting the San Francisco Bay Area and want to use that time for intensive sessions
You have a stable enough foundation to engage in focused, sustained trauma processing safely

If the timing or readiness is not right for you, I will say so directly during our initial consultation. This is not a format I offer to every new client on request.

What Does an EMDR Intensive Session Look Like?

A typical intensive I offer runs two to three hours per session. Depending on what we are working on and how you process, we might meet for two or three sessions spread across a week, or across consecutive days.

The first session always includes preparation: reviewing your history, identifying the target memory or experience, and confirming that your nervous system has the grounding and stabilization skills it needs before we move into processing. We do not rush into trauma work before you are ready.

In the processing sessions, I use bilateral stimulation, which means alternating left-right sensory input to help the brain reprocess stored memories. For telehealth intensives, this typically involves eye movements on screen, audio tones through headphones, or tactile buzzers you hold in your hands. For in-person sessions in the Lake Merced area of San Francisco, the full range of bilateral stimulation methods is available.

Can I Do an EMDR Intensive via Telehealth if I Am Not in San Francisco?

Yes. I offer EMDR intensives via telehealth to anyone in California. You do not need to be in San Francisco or anywhere in the Bay Area to work with me. If you are in Los Angeles, San Diego, Sacramento, or anywhere else in the state, telehealth is a fully available option.

According to Erica Spartos, LMFT, telehealth EMDR follows the same 8-phase protocol as in-person sessions. The bilateral stimulation delivered via screen or headphones is not a workaround. It is standard practice, and for most people it is just as effective.

You will need a private space, a stable internet connection, and headphones. I walk every client through the setup before we start. You can read more about how the EMDR protocol works and what telehealth delivery looks like on my EMDR therapy page.

How Do EMDR Intensives Compare to Weekly EMDR Sessions?

Weekly 50-minute EMDR sessions are the standard format for good reasons. They give the nervous system time to integrate between appointments, and they work well for ongoing relational patterns, anxiety, and complex trauma layered across many years.

Intensives work differently. They are best suited to processing a specific memory, event, or cluster of experiences in a contained timeframe. The concentrated structure often leads to faster movement on a defined target, though how any individual processes is not something I can predict in advance.

Some clients come to me for an intensive to address a single event and then continue with weekly sessions afterward. Others complete an intensive and find they have addressed what they came in for. For a detailed explanation of how EMDR works step by step, including the 8-phase protocol, read my blog post: What Is EMDR Therapy and How Does It Work?

What Does an EMDR Intensive Cost, and Does Insurance Cover It?

I work out-of-network only, which means I do not bill insurance directly. My fees for EMDR intensives reflect the extended session length and the preparation work involved. Please visit my fees page for current rates.

If you have a PPO insurance plan, you may be eligible for out-of-network reimbursement. I provide a superbill after each session, which is a detailed receipt containing the diagnostic and procedure codes your insurer needs to process your claim. In Erica Spartos's clinical experience, many clients with PPO plans recover between 40 and 70 percent of session costs through this process.

I also offer a free 30-minute phone consultation before scheduling any intensive, which gives us both the chance to assess whether this format makes sense for where you are right now.

Frequently Asked Questions About EMDR Intensives in San Francisco

How long does an EMDR intensive take?

Most of the intensives I offer involve two to three sessions of two to three hours each. The exact structure depends on what you are coming in with and how you process. We map this out together during our initial consultation before scheduling anything.

Can I do an EMDR intensive if I live outside San Francisco?

Yes. I offer EMDR intensives via telehealth to anyone in California. You do not need to be in San Francisco or the Bay Area. All you need is a private space, a stable internet connection, and headphones.

Is EMDR intensive therapy effective?

EMDR in intensive formats is recognized by EMDRIA as an evidence-based delivery model. In my clinical experience, intensive work can be highly effective for people processing a specific event or memory, particularly when the standard weekly pace feels too slow or is logistically difficult to maintain.

How is an EMDR intensive different from regular EMDR therapy?

The core method is identical: the same 8-phase protocol, the same bilateral stimulation, the same focus on reprocessing stored memories. The difference is structure. Weekly sessions give you time to integrate between appointments. An intensive condenses that work into longer sessions over fewer days, which suits people with a specific and bounded focus rather than diffuse or ongoing patterns.

Will my insurance cover an EMDR intensive?

I work out-of-network only. If you have a PPO plan, you may be eligible for out-of-network reimbursement. I provide a superbill after every session with the codes your insurer needs to process your claim. Many clients recover 40 to 70 percent of costs this way. Visit my fees page for more detail.

I am not sure I am ready for intensive work. What should I do?

Start with a free 30-minute phone consultation. I do a thorough intake before recommending any intensive format, and if the timing or readiness is not right, I will tell you directly. There is no pressure to commit before we have spoken.

Ready to Talk About EMDR Intensives?

If you are considering EMDR intensives in San Francisco or anywhere in California, I would like to hear about where you are and what you are working through. The first step is a free 30-minute phone consultation. We will talk about your situation, whether the intensive format makes sense, and what the structure would look like for you.

Schedule a Free Consultation