How to use Remote EMDR: a complete guide to the controls

Starting a session

1. On the homepage, click Start a Session. The therapist screen opens in a new tab with a new, private session.
2. Without an account, a short ad may play first. With a free account, the session starts straight away.
3. When you are logged in, you can also start a session from a patient in My patients. The session is then added to that patient's session history.

The therapist screen

You see exactly what your client sees: the ball moving over the background. The toolbar sits at the bottom of the screen. You can drag it to the left, right or bottom edge; the position is remembered for next time.

Sharing the link with your client

1. Open Share in the toolbar and click Copy next to the patient link.
2. Send it in the chat of your video call, or by message.
3. Your client opens the link and clicks anywhere on the screen to start. That click also allows their browser to play sound.

The client sees only the full-screen stimulus, without menus or controls. The link contains a random session ID, not a name or any other personal data. Session settings are deleted from the server within 24 hours.

Play and Stop

Play starts the ball on both screens; press it again to stop. Use it to run sets: start when the client has the target in mind, stop to check in. The client's screen follows within a second.

Stopping the ball also turns the bilateral sound off. If you use sound, switch it on again under Sound before the next set.

Movement

• Speed: a slider from 1 to 80. Use slower speeds for resource work and faster speeds for reprocessing, and adjust to what the client can follow comfortably.
• Pattern: Left-Right (the standard), Up-Down, Figure 8 or Random. Changing the pattern is a common intervention when processing gets stuck.

Visual

• Ball size: from 10 to 80 pixels. A larger ball is easier to follow on a small screen.
• Ball colour: a fixed colour of your choice, or Random, which changes the colour several times a second. Random can be distracting for some clients, so check how it works for yours.
• Background: a plain colour, or an image (see below).

Background images

• Calm scenes: eight illustrated scenes, such as ocean, sunset, forest and night. Useful for resource work like the calm place.
• Trigger scenes: photos of settings such as a hospital room, an ambulance at night or busy traffic. Use them deliberately, for example when a client struggles to bring up a target connected to such a setting.
• Your own image (logged-in therapists): upload a JPG or PNG. It is kept only in server memory, never saved to disk, and deleted when you close the tab. Choose whether it fills the screen or is shown whole.

Bilateral sound

• Patient's sound: turn alternating left–right sound on or off for the client.
• Sound type: beep, soft tone, tap, wood block, chime, water drop, soft drum or swoosh. Use Preview to hear it yourself first.
• Also play on my screen: hear the sound yourself during sets. Wear headphones, so it doesn't leak into your video call.

The sound moves left and right in step with the ball. Your client needs headphones to hear the effect. Read more in visual vs auditory bilateral stimulation.

Free account: patients, notes and history

• No ads before sessions.
• My patients: add patients by name or, better, by initials.
• Dossier notes: targets, SUD and VoC ratings, observations and plans.
• Session history: every session you start from a patient is listed with its date. Open controls takes you back to the therapist screen of that session.
• Delete my account: permanently removes your account and all patient data.

The privacy policy explains what is stored and where.

Troubleshooting

• The client hears no sound: check that they clicked the screen after opening the link, that their device isn't muted, and that sound is on for the patient.
• The movement stutters: ask the client to close other tabs and programs, use a laptop rather than a phone, and keep the tab with the ball visible. The ball is drawn on the client's own device, so the quality of your video call doesn't affect it.
• Changes don't reach the client: check their internet connection, or ask them to reload the page. The session continues with your latest settings.
• A message says the session limit is reached: the number of simultaneous sessions is limited. Try again in a few minutes.