Phase 5 - Installation

 The fifth phase, known as the Installation phase, serves to plant the seeds of new, empowering beliefs, replacing the old negative ones.  The therapist will identify positive beliefs that directly counter the negative ones the client has been carrying. The therapist will help the client uncover their positive beliefs and understand how to integrate them into their life in a realistic way.

Just as bilateral stimulation can help decrease the intensity of distress associated with traumatic memories, it can also enhance the solidity of new, constructive beliefs.

In the Installation phase of EMDR, the focus is on building, the client is constructing a new framework of beliefs that supports a healthier, more empowered way of living for themselves. 

Also in this phase, the applicability of positive cognitions are re-checked. The positive cognitions at the start of the treatment may not be positive enough now.

The therapist may ask:
“Do the words [repeats positive cognition] still fit or is there another positive statement that feels better?”

If the VoC for the positive cognition does not progress above 5 or 6, the therapist may ask:
“What prevents it from being a 7?”

The therapist may then target the blockage with EMDR treatment.

The therapist may ask:
“As you think of the incident, how do the words feel, from 1 (completely false) to 7 (completely true)?”

If the VOC has not increased, the positive cognition may be reexamined.