Mastering Interweaves in EMDR: Knowing When and How to Assist the Adaptive Process
Every EMDR clinician knows the moment. Your client is mid-processing and the movement stops. They’re looping on the same thought, gone numb, or flooded by something they can’t put into words. You know they need help to keep going. You also know the wrong move pulls them out of their own process. So you hesitate, and afterwards you replay it, wondering if that was the right interweave, or the right thing to say.
Interweaves are how you assist the adaptive process without taking it over. Used well, they nudge a stuck client back onto their own path. Used without a clear read of what’s happening, they stall the work or shut it down.
In this course, Megan Salar shows you how to choose interweaves with intention rather than guesswork. You’ll read which channel of the memory network you have access to, whether that’s thought, emotion, image or sensation, and let that guide whether you reach for a cognitive, emotional or somatic interweave. Megan works through each type with the exact language she uses in the room, drawn from her own sessions: the self-deprecating client who goes blank and finds his way back through a somatic interweave, the client overwhelmed by emotion who needs to hear “I’m not afraid of this,” the client stuck between two beliefs that feel like they can’t both be true.
From there she moves into the techniques that deepen the work. Float back and bridge back strategies to find the feeder memory. Attachment-based language for clients carrying betrayal or relational wounding. Hypnotic interweaves you can use as a mini installation to settle intensity after a heavy abreaction. And the two-handed interweave for the client caught between helplessness and hard-won strength.
You’ll come away with a clear sense of when to step in, when to stay out of the way, and what to actually say when a client is stuck and looking to you to help them move.
You’ll walk away with
- A working definition of what an interweave is for, and the discipline to keep yours minimal, strategic and client-centred
- A reliable way to read the memory network and pick the interweave type that fits what your client is showing you
- Cognitive interweaves for looping, dissociation and rigid thinking, including reframing, resourcing and perspective shifting
- Emotional interweaves to deepen processing, regulate overwhelm, and build self-compassion and empowerment
- Somatic interweaves to connect clients to the body, release stored tension and ground them when they leave the window of tolerance
- Float back and bridge back techniques to uncover the feeder memory, plus the discipline of always bridging forward again
- Attachment-based language that signals care and safety for clients with betrayal or relational trauma
- Hypnotic interweaves as a mini installation, using chunking and slow bilateral, to settle intensity after an abreaction
- The two-handed interweave to help clients hold two truths at once and break black-and-white thinking
- Ready-to-use wording for every interweave type, so you have something to say the next time a client gets stuck
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CPD Information For Mental Health Professionals
Enjoy complete flexibility with 100% self-paced learning you can access anytime, anywhere, and on any device. Pay once for lifetime access.
Course Duration: 1 learning hour
Certificate and CPD hours: On completion you’ll receive a Certificate of Completion to support your CPD records.
Assessment: Complete a short quiz at the end (80% pass mark), which you can resit as many times as needed.
Lifetime Access: Your access to the course does not expire, so you can revisit main concepts anytime you want a refresher for practice.
CPD Eligibility: This program may be suitable for CPD for professionals such as:
- Psychologists
- Counsellors and Psychotherapists
- Social Workers
- Community Workers
- Mental Health Nurses
- General Practitioners (GPs)
- Occupational Therapists
CPD requirements vary between professional bodies, so please check with your association or credentialing body to confirm you can claim CPD hours/OPD points for this program and what evidence they require.
Course Content
Meet Your Instructor
Individuals struggling with complex trauma and addiction - and the practitioners trying to help them - can find that traditional approaches sometimes fall short when addressing the deep, intertwined wounds that drive both conditions. Megan Salar has built her career around this challenging intersection, becoming an internationally recognised expert who combines evidence-based EMDR therapy with raw authenticity to create breakthrough healing experiences for both clients and the clinicians who serve them.
As an EMDR Trainer, Practitioner and published author of EMDR for Dummies (2023) and The EMDR Workbook for Trauma and PTSD (2023), and The EMDR Flip Chart (2023), Salar brings unique expertise that bridges clinical excellence with lived experience. Her previous ownership of an award-winning intensive outpatient treatment center (Best in Practice, 2019) demonstrates her ability to create effective treatment programs, while her current role as Owner/Founder of The Mental Survivalist reflects her commitment to revolutionising how we approach trauma and addiction recovery. Her training of thousands of clinicians across the United States and internationally positions her as a leading voice in trauma-informed care.
Salar's expertise spans EMDR therapy, trauma treatment, addiction counseling, PTSD treatment, anxiety disorders, clinical supervision, and what she calls "authentic healing." Her approach recognises that lasting recovery requires more than technique - it demands courage to face one's authentic self and work through the "messiness" of trauma and addiction simultaneously. She specialises in treatment-resistant cases, dual diagnosis presentations, and training clinicians who want to move beyond more surface-level interventions to create genuine transformation.
What sets her training apart is authentic vulnerability combined with clinical expertise. Salar doesn't just teach EMDR protocols - she shows practitioners how to create the authentic therapeutic relationships necessary for deep healing while managing their own emotional responses to intense trauma work. Her integration of personal recovery experience with advanced clinical training gives her unique insight into what actually creates lasting change.
For your practice, expect to gain specific EMDR techniques for addiction and trauma, tools for managing blocked processing and treatment resistance, and frameworks for building genuine therapeutic relationships with challenging clients. Her approach particularly benefits clinicians working with dual diagnosis cases, those wanting EMDR training outside traditional EMDRIA structures, or practitioners seeking to integrate authenticity and clinical excellence.
Quick Win: Salar's "authentic check-in" technique helps practitioners quickly assess their own emotional state before sessions - helping to prevent burnout while creating the genuine presence that facilitates deeper client healing and therapeutic breakthroughs.
Qualifications
- MSW, Clinical Social Work, Northwest Nazarene University 2011
- Advanced Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselor (ACADC) 2018-2022
- Certified Clinical Trauma Professional - Level II (CCTP-II) 2017-2023
- Certified EMDR Practitioner 2018
- Licensed Clinical Social Worker 2011-2023
- Registered Clinical Supervisor 2018-2023
Authored Books
- EMDR for Dummies: The Breakthrough Therapy for Overcoming Anxiety, Stress, and Trauma (2024)
- The EMDR Workbook for Trauma and PTSD: Skills to Manage Triggers, Move Beyond Traumatic Memories, and Take Back Your Life (2023)
- The EMDR Workbook for Addiction (forthcoming 2026)
- The EMDR Flip Chart (2023)
Professional Experience & Leadership
- Owner & Founder, The Mental Survivalist, 2023–present
- Owner, Recoverhe Counseling & Consulting, 2016-2023
- Certified EMDR Trainer, Independent Practice, current
- Clinical Trainer & Consultant, International
Clinical Experience
- Owner and Clinical Director, Addiction and Trauma Recovery Services, 2015–2020
- Various clinical positions in addiction prevention, intervention, treatment, and continuing care services
- Clinical supervision and training of other clinicians
Clinical Specialties
- EMDR therapy for complex trauma and addiction
- Integration of trauma and addiction treatment
- Treatment-resistant trauma presentations
- Clinical supervision and consultation
- Authentic therapeutic relationship building
- PTSD treatment and anxiety disorders
- Evidence-based trauma treatment modalities
Ready to develop authentic therapeutic relationships that create breakthrough results with complex trauma and addiction cases? Discover how Megan Salar's evidence-based yet deeply personal methods can help you integrate clinical excellence with the genuine presence that facilitates lasting healing.
Feedback & Reviews
This course includes:
- Lessons 7
- Topics 0
- Duration 1 hour
- Quizzes 1
- Language English