119: Why Every Suggestion Matters in EMDR Therapy "Recommending IS Clinical"

Welcome to EMDR Playground, the podcast for therapists who want to integrate EMDR and play with confidence, clarity, and creativity. Hosted by Jackie Flynn, Registered Play Therapist, EMDRIA Trainer, and author of the EMDR with Kids Flipchart, this show explores how fidelity to the EMDR model, a deep understanding of the nervous system, and the language of play can transform therapy for children, teens, and adults. Each episode offers practical strategies, expert conversations, and insights you can use right away to help your clients heal more deeply. Whether you're EMDR-trained or just beginning to explore this powerful approach, EMDR Playground is your space to grow, connect, and bring more depth and effectiveness to your work. In this episode, we explore something we do every week in practice but rarely examine closely. Recommendations. Books. Apps. Breathwork. Sleep tools. Supplements. Journaling prompts. Support groups. Retreats. Productivity systems.   These may feel like small suggestions. They are not.   Every recommendation is an intervention. It shapes what a client does between sessions, often when they are alone and outside their window of tolerance.   When a recommendation fits, it can build regulation and capacity. When it misses, it can amplify shame, threat, or collapse.   This episode invites EMDR therapists to apply the same precision to recommendations that we apply to targeting, pacing, and reprocessing.   What We Cover Why recommending is clinical, not casual How tools interact with nervous system states The risk of unintentionally reinforcing negative cognitions How power and authority shape client uptake Why cultural context and lived experience must be considered What to do when a recommendation backfires The Three Checks Before You Recommend Anything It Fits Does this align with the client's age, neurotype, cultural context, and current phase of EMDR Does it match your case conceptualization Safety Could this push them outside their window <li