“Just as Norway’s fjords can be reached through many different tunnels, bridges, and winding roads that ultimately lead to the same destination, EMDR case conceptualization allows for multiple pathways. This presentation introduces a variety of trauma-sensitive strategies that help therapists navigate from presenting symptoms to the pathogenic memories at their core, offering practical guidance for a wide range of mental health conditions. In addition, several complementary treatment strategies will be discussed, providing clinicians with concrete tools to address complex cases and optimize treatment outcomes”.

Authors
Ytje Tialda van Pelt¹,
Ad de Jongh²,
Erik ten Broeke,
Hellen Hornsveld,
Hans Jaap Oppenheim³,
Jiska Weijermans¹,
Marilyn Luber^4
1Psy-zo! specialist mental health institution, Education and Research, Groningen, the Netherlands,
²PSYTREC, Bilthoven and University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands,
³Transparant Care Centre, Leiden, the Netherlands,
⁴Marilyn Luber, Philadelphia, United States

Background and aims
The Adaptive Information Processing (AIP) model proposes that dysfunctionally stored and insufficiently processed memories lie at the root of a wide range of mental health conditions beyond Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Case conceptualization that identifies relevant pathogenic mental representations is essential for effective treatment. While case conceptualization in PTSD is relatively straightforward, in other conditions, such as depression and anxiety, the therapist must actively search for crucial underlying memories that plausibly contribute to the symptomatology. In line with Shapiro’s AIP model EMDR therapist assume that reprocessing these representations leads to meaningful symptom reduction and, ultimately, improvement in quality of life.

In this presentation, we introduce a trauma-sensitive model for EMDR case conceptualization, operationalized through six structured search strategies aimed guiding therapists from symptoms to relevant mental representations. Depending on the presenting symptom cluster, such as intrusive images, dysfunctional beliefs, maladaptive emotions, or anticipatory anxiety, different strategies can be applied. These pathways are: Intrusion Path, Timeline Path, Flashforward Path, Emotion Path, Belief Path, and Adapted Affect Scan/Floatback Technique.
These strategies form a practical, transdiagnostic tool for applying the EMDR therapy to nearly all symptom clusters and provide therapists with concrete guidance for treatment planning. In addition to these trauma-sensitive search strategies, the presentation also highlights complementary treatment strategies described in our book. These include practical interventions for working with dissociation, avoidance, and therapeutic impasses, offering clinicians additional tools to enhance EMDR treatment planning and implementation in the future.

Methods
The presentation demonstrates a series of search strategies using clinical case examples and video material, showing how they can be flexibly applied across various mental health conditions.

Learning objectives
By the end of this session, participants will be able to:
• Gain an overview of the six trauma-sensitive search strategies for EMDR case conceptualization.
• Understanding how these strategies can guide the development of targeted and collaborative treatment plan is crucial.
• Be able to identify opportunities to apply one or more strategies in their own clinical practice.
• Become familiar with complementary treatment strategies to address dissociation, avoidance, and therapeutic impasses using EMDR therapy.

This presentation is based on our new book; “A Practical Guide to EMDR Therapy: Case Conceptualization and Additional Treatment Strategies”, in which these strategies are presented in detail.