Extended Sessions & Intensives

Sometimes, healing requires more than what a 50-minute session will allow.

For clients looking to dig deeper, process more challenging material, or work with trauma-focused methods like EMDR and Somatic Experiencing, extended sessions or intensives can offer the space needed to focus and attune to the work.

Why Choose an Extended Session?

In a typical therapy session, we sometimes find ourselves needing time and space to get acclimated and warmed up, only to find that we’ve hit a groove and have only 10 minutes left.

When you're processing trauma, working through complex emotions, or diving into deep patterns, a longer session can provide the room to do more focused, resonant, and deeper work without feeling rushed.

With extended time, you’ll have the space to settle into the moment, allowing for a more thorough exploration and resolution of difficult emotions or experiences.

Extended sessions also give your nervous system the extra support it might need. When working with body-focused approaches like Somatic Experiencing or trauma-focused therapies like EMDR, the nervous system often takes time to fully settle.

A longer session allows for more integration and a deeper sense of relief, without the pressure to quickly wrap up and move on to your next task.

What Are Extended Sessions & Intensives?

Extended Sessions

These are typically 75 to 90 minutes long. They allow for more in-depth exploration of challenging topics, processing through trauma, and using techniques like EMDR or Somatic Experiencing, which often benefit from longer timeframes.

Intensives

Intensives are structured as a series of extended sessions over the course of a day, a weekend, or multiple days over the course of a week. This format is especially helpful for clients who want to make significant progress in a short amount of time or are working through something particularly challenging.

Who Might Benefit from Longer Sessions?

Extended sessions or intensives may be
especially useful if you’re:

Processing trauma or unresolved emotional experiences

Engaging in body-focused therapies like Somatic Experiencing

Working with EMDR to reprocess complex memories and experiences

Feeling like you need more time and space to work through complex issues

Seeking a focused, immersive experience to break through stuck patterns or behaviors

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The Advantages of Longer Sessions

Deeper Processing: Longer sessions allow for more time to explore and process difficult emotions, memories, and body sensations. This helps prevent the feeling of needing to “rush” through therapy.

Greater Nervous System Support: Body-centered approaches often require time for the nervous system to fully relax and integrate the work. Extended sessions give your body the space to fully engage in the process.

Faster Progress: For some clients, a few extended sessions or intensives can create breakthroughs that would take much longer with weekly standard-length sessions.

Less Fragmented Work: Longer sessions reduce the need to stop just as you're getting to the core of an issue, allowing for more sustained and productive therapeutic work.

How Extended Sessions Work with EMDR and Somatic Experiencing

Both EMDR and Somatic Experiencing are trauma-focused approaches that benefit from the spaciousness of extended sessions.

These methods work by helping your nervous system process and integrate difficult memories and experiences, and having more time allows us to engage in the process more fully.

Whether we’re moving through the phases of EMDR or focusing on body sensations in Somatic Experiencing, extended sessions help create the time and safety needed for deeper healing.

Insurance & Fees

Please note that for extended sessions, insurance typically only covers the first hour. The additional time will be billed separately. We’ll discuss the fee structure in advance so that you’re clear about what to expect.

Ready to Schedule?

If you feel like you need more time to fully engage in therapy or are curious about how extended sessions or intensives might help, I’m here to explore those options with you.

Contact me via email at [email protected] or call/text (973) 397-5133 to discuss the best format for your needs.