Trainer: Alison Leslie, LCSW, SEP
On-Demand: Available with lifetime access for asynchronous learning. This course was recorded on April 9th, 2026.
Your clients are doing EMDR. Their bodies are doing something else entirely.
You follow the protocol. You pace carefully. You do everything right. And yet some clients go blank the moment you approach a target. Others flood hours after a session. Some stay stuck in the same place for weeks, no matter how thoughtful your preparation.
This isn't a failure of your training. It's a signal from the body that standard protocol alone isn't reaching everything that needs to be reached.
This free one-hour course is an introduction to Somatic EMDR: what it is, why it matters, and how integrating somatic awareness into your EMDR practice can open new pathways to healing for the clients who need it most.
Taught by Alison Leslie, LCSW, SEP, clinician and somatic EMDR specialist, this course gives you a grounded foundation in the principles that bridge body-based therapy and EMDR's evidence-based protocol, without abandoning fidelity to either.
It is also the starting point for the full Somatic EMDR Practitioner Program, an EMDRIA-approved advanced training for EMDR therapists ready to bring the body fully into their work.
Because the best learning happens when you feel safe. Ask freely, show up fully, and learn in a relational, non-judgmental environment built for practitioners like you.
Expect real case examples, clear guidance, and a teaching style that makes even complex topics feel approachable so you can confidently use what you learn in session right away.
Join a community of clinicians learning side by side, sharing real case insights and peer support so you can grow your skills with confidence alongside your peers in meaningful connection.
In this one-hour introduction, Alison walks you through the foundational concepts that make Somatic EMDR different from standard EMDR practice and more responsive to the full range of how trauma lives in the body.
You'll come away understanding:
This course is introductory. It gives you real clinical concepts you can start thinking about immediately, along with a clear picture of where the full Somatic EMDR Practitioner Program takes you next.
This free course is designed for EMDR-trained therapists who sense that something more is possible with their most complex clients. It is for you if:
You're trained in EMDR and committed to fidelity, but you're noticing the protocol isn't fully reaching some clients' trauma
Your clients go numb, freeze, or flood during or after EMDR sessions, despite careful preparation
You're working with developmental trauma, attachment wounds, or pre-verbal experiences that don't fit neatly into standard targeting
You notice the somatic impact of your clients' trauma on your own nervous system in session and want a clearer framework for working with that
You've heard about somatic therapy and want to understand how it integrates with EMDR before committing to advanced training
You want to move your practice beyond symptom management toward genuine, embodied healing for your clients
If you're just starting to explore somatic approaches, or you're a seasoned EMDR therapist looking for your next evolution, this hour is a good place to begin.
Note: Prerequisite for the full Somatic EMDR Practitioner Program is completion of EMDR Basic Training.
Alison Leslie, LCSW, SEP, is a trauma-informed clinician, trainer, and consultant based in Bloomington, IN. She is the owner of Empower Healing Counseling and Consultation and one of a small number of practitioners working at the intersection of EMDR, somatic therapy, and the healing power of the human-animal bond.
Alison is known for her warm, curiosity-based teaching approach and for creating learning environments where therapists feel genuinely supported, not evaluated. She specializes in helping mental health professionals reconnect with their clinical confidence and trust their intuitive wisdom, especially when working with complex cases.
She leads the Somatic EMDR Practitioner Program at the Trauma Therapist Institute, an EMDRIA-approved advanced training for EMDR therapists ready to integrate somatic principles into their full clinical practice.
12:00 pm - 12:05 pm: Welcome, objectives, and presenter introduction
12:05 pm - 12:15 pm: Theoretical Foundations: AIP & Self Energy
12:15 pm- 12:25 pm: Mapping the Parts & Spectrum of Consciousness
12:25 pm - 12:40 pm: Bridging the Models: Clinical Integration
12:40 pm - 12:50 pm: Experiential Practice: Connect with Self
12:50 pm - 1:00 pm: Wrap-up, key takeaways, and Q&A
None!
1 CE is available upon completion of all course material.
Trauma Therapist Institute is an approved continuing education provider. ACE and NBCC CEs are available for this course. This course is not approved for APA or EMDRIA CEs.
Participants must complete the full training to receive credit.
Trauma Therapist Institute, #1869, is approved as an ACE provider to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Regulatory boards are the final authority on courses accepted for continuing education credit. ACE provider approval period: 1/16/25 - 1/16/28. Social workers completing this course receive 6 clinical continuing education credits.
Trauma Therapist Institute has been approved by NBCC as an Approved Continuing Education Provider, ACEP No. 7033. Programs that do not qualify for NBCC credit are clearly identified. Kase & CO is solely responsible for all aspects of the programs.
To receive a CE certificate, participants must complete the entire course, complete the post-test with a score of 80% or above, and complete the course evaluation. You may retake the post-test as needed. Once completed, a CE certificate will auto-populate to your online account.
Please reference our cancellation policy here (bottom section of this page).