For many people, traditional talk therapy and even standard trauma-informed therapy can bring insight and awareness, but may still leave clients feeling stuck in patterns that they can’t seem to shift.
This is where Ketamine-Assisted EMDR Therapy™ (KA-EMDR) offers a new and emerging approach to holistic trauma healing.
At its core, KA-EMDR combines two powerful, evidence-based methods to support deeper emotional processing, increased neuroplasticity, and greater access to healing states that may feel difficult to reach otherwise. Working with the brain’s natural capacity for healing, offering new pathways for emotional resolution and integration, it represents an evolving frontier in mental health care that brings together neuroscience, psychotherapy, and somatic awareness.
Read on to learn more.
What Is EMDR Therapy?
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is a research-based psychotherapy approach designed to help the brain process and heal from distressing or traumatic experiences.
Rather than relying on talking about distressing events, EMDR combines focused attention on specific memories with bilateral stimulation, such as eye movements, sounds, or tapping, to facilitate the brain’s processing of these experiences and reduce their emotional impact.
EMDR helps reprocess these memories so they become less emotionally charged and easier to integrate.
What Is Ketamine-Assisted EMDR Therapy™ (KA-EMDR)?
Ketamine-Assisted EMDR Therapy™ is an innovative, integrative trauma therapy approach that combines:
- EMDR therapy, a well-established method for trauma processing
- Low-dose sublingual ketamine, a prescribed medication that temporarily alters the brain’s processing state to support therapeutic work
This approach – developed in 2024 by Danielle Ciccone and Michele Topel – creates a state of greater emotional openness and calm and enhanced neuroplasticity, helping clients work through difficult material and experience deep emotional shifts more easily.
The KA-EMDR protocol is designed to facilitate memory reconsolidation, a process through which previously stored traumatic memories can be revisited and integrated with new, adaptive experiences and insights. By supporting this process, distressing memories may become less emotionally charged and easier to process, reducing the likelihood of overwhelm. At the same time, the protocol can help foster greater psychological flexibility, self-compassion, and a more cohesive sense of self.
How Does Ketamine-Assisted EMDR Therapy™ Work?
A typical KA-EMDR session is carefully structured and guided by a trained therapist in collaboration with a medical provider.
Here’s what to expect:
1. Preparation and Safety Screening
The process will begin with an assessment of the client’s goals and a determination if this is an appropriate treatment. The therapist will refer the client to a medical provider who will determine the client’s eligibility for a prescription for ketamine. Meanwhile, the therapist will work with the client over the course of a number of sessions to prepare for treatment.
2. The KA-EMDR Reprocessing Session
At the start of a session, the client self-administers a prescribed low dose of sublingual ketamine.
At this low dose, ketamine may help:
- Increase emotional openness and self-compassion
- Reduce the intensity of the fight-or-flight stress response
- Support neuroplasticity (the brain’s ability to form new connections)
Importantly, clients remain awake, aware, and engaged throughout the session.
3. Integration and Reflection
After the active processing phase, clients are supported in making sense of their experience and integrating insights into daily life.
This integration phase is key to long-term healing and emotional stability.
Who Might Benefit from KA-EMDR Therapy™?
Ketamine-Assisted EMDR Therapy™ may be especially helpful for individuals who:
- Have experienced trauma or complex trauma
- Feel “stuck” despite previous therapy
- Experience persistent anxiety, depression, or emotional numbness
- Struggle with self-worth or deeply ingrained negative beliefs
- Are seeking deeper, more accelerated therapeutic work
It is often considered when traditional approaches alone have not provided sufficient relief.
Important Information About KA-EMDR Therapy
KA-EMDR is a novel treatment approach and is still considered an emerging treatment.
Please note:
- Ketamine is prescribed and managed only by a licensed medical provider
- A full screening is required before beginning treatment
- The therapist facilitating EMDR does not prescribe or supply ketamine
- Treatment is only offered when it is deemed safe and appropriate
Safety and clinical appropriateness are always the first priority.
Meet Your KA-EMDR Practitioner in Montclair, NJ
Emily Zelner is a licensed therapist offering Ketamine-Assisted EMDR Therapy™ in Montclair, NJ, providing a supportive space for clients seeking deeper and more integrative healing.
Emily draws on a variety of therapeutic modalities to meet each client’s unique needs, including her certification as an EMDR clinician, training in Internal Family Systems (IFS), and advanced education in Psychedelic-Assisted Psychotherapy. This integrative foundation allows her to support clients who may feel stuck in traditional talk therapy or who are seeking a more expansive approach to trauma healing.
In her work with KA-EMDR, Emily combines the structured, evidence-based framework of EMDR with the neurobiological and emotional support of low-dose ketamine (prescribed and managed by a licensed medical provider). This combination is designed to help clients access greater emotional openness, reduce overwhelm, and engage more deeply in the therapeutic process.
If you are curious about whether this approach may be right for you, you can schedule a free 15-minute consultation with Emily to learn more about Ketamine-Assisted EMDR Therapy™ and whether it may be a good fit for your healing journey.