Safe place exercise (calm place): definition and purpose

The safe place exercise, also called a calm place, is an EMDR preparation technique: you build a vivid, sensory-rich mental picture of somewhere calm or safe, real or imagined, then link it to a cue word. Therapists teach it in Phase 2, before harder memory work begins, but it works just as well as a stand-alone calming practice.

Where does the term come from?

Francine Shapiro’s scripted EMDR protocol includes the safe (or calm) place as a core Phase 2 stabilization step, the preparation stage before a client and therapist work through any difficult memory (Luber & Shapiro, 2009). “Safe” and “calm” are used interchangeably across different scripts. Some therapists prefer “calm place,” since a spot that feels unambiguously safe can be hard to find for someone with a significant trauma history.

What is it for?

Per EMDRIA, the EMDR International Association, therapists use it to open sessions, close them safely, and help a client regain footing if something intense surfaces mid-session. Researchers later folded this kind of work into a broader technique called Resource Development and Installation, or resourcing. A 2002 study in the Journal of Clinical Psychology used it, including a safe-place resource, to help people with complex PTSD stabilize before harder trauma work began, and found it could measurably strengthen their capacity to access calm, positive states on demand.

Is bilateral stimulation part of it?

Not necessarily. Some clinicians pair a finished safe place with a few brief, slow rounds of bilateral stimulation to help it “install.” Research complicates that idea, though. A 2011 study in the Journal of EMDR Practice and Research found eye movements can make a positive image less vivid, not more — the opposite of the intended effect. The sensory detail in the scene does most of the real work, which is why the exercise is defined first as a visualization technique, with bilateral stimulation as an optional add-on.

How is it different from a container exercise?

Both are resourcing techniques, but they do different jobs. A safe place is somewhere calm you visit and rest inside. A container exercise is the opposite motion: it temporarily stores a disturbing thought or image so you can set it aside, not a place to relax in. People often learn both, since stabilization usually calls for a way to add calm and a separate way to hold distress at arm’s length.

Can you build one without a therapist?

Yes, for everyday stress. Pick a place, add sensory detail, notice where you feel the calm in your body, and give it a cue word you can recall later. Staying inside your window of tolerance, calm enough to think clearly, is the whole point. For the full walkthrough, see how to create a calm, safe place, or the minute-long version at the calm place exercise. If nowhere feels safe no matter what you try, that’s worth building with a therapist rather than alone; it often traces back to a history where safety wasn’t reliable.

EmEase, a self-guided EMDR app, offers that optional bilateral-stimulation rhythm paced for you, rather than counted by hand, at app.emease.com.