What is the reevaluation phase in EMDR?

Reevaluation is Phase 8, EMDR's last phase. A therapist checks whether a previously processed memory's distress rating stayed low and its positive belief still feels true, reviews what's changed since the last session, then decides what to work on next.

Does reevaluation happen only once, at the end of therapy?

No. Phases three through eight repeat for every new memory, so reevaluation opens each new session after the first one, not just the final one. Most people who complete a course of EMDR go through it many times, not once.

What is actually being measured during reevaluation?

Two scales from earlier phases: the SUDS scale (0 to 10), rating how distressing a memory still feels, and the VOC scale (1 to 7), rating how true a chosen positive belief feels. Both should hold steady from where the last session left them.

What happens if reevaluation shows distress has come back?

The therapist and client return to that target instead of moving on. A returned distress rating or a weakened positive belief signals the memory needs more processing, or that related material surfaced that wasn't visible before.

How does reevaluation relate to the preparation phase?

They bookend treatment. Preparation, Phase 2, builds coping skills before a memory is touched. Reevaluation, Phase 8, is the later check that both the coping and the processing actually held once someone returned to daily life.

Can you build a version of reevaluation into self-guided practice?

Not the clinical version, since choosing a target and judging when it's resolved takes a therapist's training. You can borrow the habit: checking, before a new session, whether what you worked on last time still feels as charged.

Reevaluation phase: the final step in EMDR’s 8 phases

Reevaluation is Phase 8, the last of EMDR’s eight phases. It opens every session after processing begins, not just once at the end of therapy. A therapist checks whether a previously processed memory’s distress stayed low and its new belief still feels true, then decides what to work on next.

Where does reevaluation fit in the 8 phases?

Per EMDRIA, the EMDR International Association, reevaluation is the eighth and final phase in EMDR’s eight phases of treatment, coming right after closure ends a session. Phases one and two, history-taking and preparation, happen once. Phases three through eight repeat for every new memory a therapist and client work through together, so reevaluation isn’t a single event at the end of treatment. It opens each new session after the first.

That makes it a natural bookend to preparation. Preparation, Phase 2, builds the coping skills a client needs before touching a memory. Reevaluation, Phase 8, is the later check on whether those skills, and the memory’s progress, actually held once someone was back in daily life.

What does a therapist check during reevaluation?

Broadly, two things. First, the specific target: using the SUDS scale, a 0-to-10 distress rating, and the VOC scale, a 1-to-7 measure of how true a chosen positive belief feels, the therapist confirms last session’s gains held. Second, the wider picture: what’s changed in the client’s day-to-day life since then, including any new stressors or reactions that surfaced. Together, these decide whether to keep working the same target or move to the next one.

Why does it matter that this repeats every session?

Processing a memory in one session doesn’t guarantee it stays settled once someone returns to regular life. Reevaluation is the checkpoint that tests this: not whether distress dropped in the room, but whether it stayed down afterward. Because phases three through eight repeat this way for each target, a full course of EMDR is rarely one straight line. The American Psychological Association’s 2017 guideline notes a typical course runs about 6 to 12 sessions, several of them opening with this same check.

Can you build this into a self-guided practice?

Not the clinical version. Deciding whether a target is resolved, and which memory to work on next, depends on a therapist’s trained judgment, which is part of why self-guided EMDR has real limits. What you can borrow is the habit underneath it: before starting a new bilateral-stimulation session, pause and notice whether whatever you worked on last time still feels as charged. EmEase, a self-guided EMDR app, lets you practice bilateral stimulation on your own time for that kind of everyday check-in, at app.emease.com. It’s a wellness practice for present-day stress, not a stand-in for the judgment a full reevaluation phase depends on.