EMDR FlowOnline bilateral stimulation for EMDR
When EMDR moves online, one element travels badly: bilateral stimulation. In the room you lead it with your hand, a light bar or tappers, adjusting by the second. Over the internet you need a tool to carry that — and the options are not equal. This guide compares the modalities and the common approaches, so you can pick one that keeps the set where it belongs: under your control.
The three modalities online
Visual
A stimulus crossing the screen left to right. It requires the client to keep the screen in view, competes for space with the video call and may be affected by display size or connection quality.
Auditory
Alternating tones in headphones. This option does not compete for screen space, but it requires suitable audio equipment, an accessibility check and clinician judgment about fit.
Tactile
Alternating vibration through connected devices. This adds a haptic option but depends on compatible hardware and should be tested before processing begins.
There is no universal best modality. Selection should remain with the trained clinician and account for the client, treatment plan, accessibility, hardware and remote setup.
The common approaches, compared
- Client self-tapping. Zero tech, but you lose the reins: pace, sets and pauses drift to the client, and you're guessing at the tempo instead of setting it.
- A bouncing-ball video. Fixed speed, no pauses on cue, no adjustment for what's surfacing. It runs on its own clock, not the client's process.
- A shared metronome app the client drives. Better, but every "pause it and set it to 0.8" pulls you both out of the work.
- A therapist-controlled tool. The controls sit on your screen; changes reach the client's device instantly. Speed, set length, pauses and modality stay clinical decisions made in real time — the closest thing to the room.
What to look for in a tool
- Real-time therapist control of speed, sets, pauses and modality.
- All three modalities, switchable mid-session.
- Simple pairing (a code or link), pre-session testing and a fallback plan for latency or disconnection.
- Privacy by design: no clinical content or client accounts flowing through the stimulation channel — the video call carries the session, the tool carries only the stimulation.
EMDR Flow: all three modalities, controlled from your screen
Visual, auditory and tactile bilateral stimulation, switchable mid-session — speed, sets and pauses in your hands in real time, on the client's own device to avoid lag. Your client joins with a code; nothing clinical passes through our servers.
Try EMDR Flow→ Remote EMDR: making online sessions work · EMDR telehealth