What Is Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART), and How Is It Different from EMDR?

If you have looked into trauma therapy, you may have come across two names: EMDR and Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART). Both can help when a painful memory still feels "stuck" — when something from years ago can still tighten your chest or flood your mind as if it were happening now.

I use both in my work. Here are answers to the questions people ask me most.

What is Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART)?

Accelerated Resolution Therapy is a structured trauma therapy that uses gentle, side-to-side eye movements while you hold a distressing memory or image in mind. It was developed in 2008 by Laney Rosenzweig, LMFT, and draws on elements of EMDR and other established approaches.

A key part of ART is something called voluntary memory and image replacement. With guidance, you get to change how the painful scene plays out in your mind. You keep the facts of what happened — you don't forget it — but the images and body sensations that keep pulling you back lose their intensity.

What is EMDR?

EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) was developed by Francine Shapiro in the late 1980s. It also uses bilateral stimulation, like eye movements or tapping, while you focus on a memory. The brain is given space to reprocess the experience so it feels less raw. EMDR follows an eight-phase approach and is one of the most widely researched trauma therapies.

How are ART and EMDR similar?

- Both use eye movements to help the brain process difficult memories. - Both work with the body, not only with thoughts. - Both aim for lasting relief, not just coping in the moment. - Neither requires you to relive your story over and over in talk therapy.

How is ART different from EMDR?

Structure and pace. ART follows a more set, step-by-step protocol and is designed to be brief. Many people work through a specific memory in one to five sessions, though everyone is different.

You don't have to say everything out loud. In ART, you don't need to describe the details of what happened to me. Many clients find that a relief, especially when words feel hard or shame is present.

Changing the image. ART actively invites you to replace the distressing images with new ones you choose. EMDR tends to let new associations come up more freely as the brain processes.

Session flow. EMDR often unfolds over a longer stretch of preparation and reprocessing. ART tends to be more directive, with the therapist guiding each step.

Is one better than the other?

Not necessarily. Both have research supporting them. The better fit depends on you — what you're carrying, how you like to work, and what feels safe. Some people prefer EMDR's open-ended processing. Others appreciate ART's speed, structure, and privacy.

Who might ART help?

ART may help with trauma and PTSD, grief, pregnancy or infant loss, anxiety, phobias, intrusive images, and memories that keep replaying. It can also help when you understand your pattern intellectually but something deeper still feels unresolved.

What does an ART session look like with me?

ART sessions are 60 minutes and are offered virtually to adults anywhere in Texas. Because ART moves quickly, we always talk first to decide together whether it's a good fit right now, and how it fits into your wider therapy. You're in control the whole time, and we go at a pace that feels safe.

If you'd like to understand how I approach trauma more broadly, you can read What Does Trauma-Informed Therapy Actually Look Like?. You can also explore the free grounding and regulation worksheets.

Ready to talk about it?

If a memory has been weighing on you, you don't have to carry it alone. Reach out here and we can talk about whether ART, EMDR, or another approach is right for you.

Sources: Rosenzweig Center for Rapid Recovery (ART) · EMDR International Association · Kip et al., 2013, *Military Medicine*