Summary

Self-Interrupted Memory Reconsolidation (self-IMR) is a safe and effective method of treating trauma. This manual describes how to safely perform IMR on oneself.

IMR has been utilized by trauma therapists with excellent success for the past few years. Like BiRes, it was developed to resolve the trauma surrounding a single disturbing memory in a single session. This nascent treatment employs visualization, bilateral stimulation, and intermittent eye blinking to supplant the negative associations of a disturbing memory with positive associations. The objective of IMR is to drain bad memories of their power so that negative feelings no longer arise when the events come to mind in the future.

Reduces or eliminates emotions and sensations related to a bad memory.

Consistently demonstrated effectiveness in over 20 peer-reviewed papers.

Easy to perform on oneself. The counselor-client relationship is not related to the healing process.

Pleasant state maintained throughout session.

Very small potential for intense emotions.

As a targeted, brief treatment, it is not expected to fully treat broad or complex PTSD.

Interrupted Memory Reconsolidation was designed to be a one-session treatment to lessen or eradicate unpleasant emotions relating to a disturbing memory. The method centers on the visualization of a positive memory or imaginary uplifting experience. While keeping this safe place in mind, you tap your legs alternately and triple-blink approximately every 10 seconds. Every 2 minutes or so, you will briefly think about your negative memory and gauge the level of distress that you feel. This process is repeated for approximately half an hour or until your distress level has bottomed out for the session.

That is essentially all there is to IMR. At first, it may seem like a counterintuitive, even unscientific, way of dealing with something as serious as trauma. Before you pull out your pseudoscience card, consider two things: a number of theories explain the method’s mechanism of action, and over 20 papers have been published on IMR—all demonstrating very good outcomes.

IMR differs from Bilateral Rescripting (BiRes) in two fundamental ways. Firstly, it minimizes thinking about the traumatic memory. That means that the risk of the negative memory upsetting you is considerably lower. Secondly, IMR does not involve memory rescripting. It attempts to eliminate negative reactions to a bad memory. It does not modify the memory itself.

How do you know whether you should alter the memory itself (as in BiRes), negative feelings about yourself related to the memory (i.e., the positive cognition of EMDR), related destructive thoughts (thought challenging in CBT), or the negative feelings of the memory itself (as in IMR)? Why not try all four! They are not mutually exclusive. However, if doing both IMR and BiRes on the same memory, it is ideal to do IMR first. Neutralizing the emotional intensity of a trauma with IMR should make it easier for your mind to accept the new script in BiRes.

EFFECTIVENESS

IMR is considered highly effective among trauma therapists who practice it. To date, there have been over 20 scientific papers published on IMR for trauma-related symptoms. All efficacy studies on IMR have reported a large improvement in at least one of the mental health symptoms measured.

Most IMR efficacy studies have centered on trauma. One clinical trial from 2024 offered 813 15-minute IMR sessions to 654 people in a group format.¹ Average distress level of the participants’ disturbing memories went from 6.8 on a 0-10 scale to 2.35 immediately following treatment. Distress levels were even lower at the 4-week and 18-month follow-ups. In a 2021 trial of 175 healthcare workers with trauma, distress scores were reduced 62% following two 15-minute IMR sessions. Scores had lowered further by the 1-week follow-up.²

A trial of IMR administered once to a group of 36 people with trauma found that memory distress levels decreased 38% while scores for the Impacts of Events trauma scale decreased 42%.³ The post-intervention measurements were taken one week after the session.

One month after the session, total reductions were 53% and 59% compared to pre-session, respectively.

A trial of counseling students performing IMR discovered a 65% reduction in trauma ratings.⁴ In Türkiye, IMR was used for 3 consecutive days on survivors of a recent earthquake.⁵ A 31% decrease in trauma ratings relative to the control group was reported. In another study, victims of racial trauma were offered three sessions of IMR. Distress ratings fell from 5.4/10 to 3/10 following the intervention.⁶

Case studies and clinical trials of Interrupted Memory Reconsolidation have thus far shown large and lasting improvements in trauma-related symptoms after one to three sessions. Adverse effects have not been documented except for two individuals in the 654-person group trial who experienced a worsening of their trauma.

MECHANISM OF ACTION

With memory rescripting (i.e., BiRes), the mechanism of action is straightforward–you replace a bad memory with a happy, fictionalized version of the memory. Your brain thus ceases to regard that memory as a threat and subsequently brings it to your attention less often. When you do think of the memory, you think of the new benign version which does not cause you distress.

It isn’t difficult to see how rescripting works. But thinking of a happy memory for up to an hour with periodic check-ins to your traumatic memory—how could that possibly resolve your trauma? And why would you want to tap your legs or blink your eyes? Below are a few theories postulating how Interrupted Memory Reconsolidation lowers symptoms of trauma.

Memory Reconsolidation

Many researchers have attributed the success of IMR to its innovative use of the memory reconsolidation (MR) principle. According to MR theory, there are three phases to resolving a traumatic memory. In phase one, the negative memory is accessed and a window of about 5-6 hours opens up in which the brain is more plastic (conducive to forming new patterns) than normal.⁷ When a memory comes to mind, it is believed to enter working memory from long-term memory.

In the second phase of MR, a mismatch or prediction error occurs. After remembering an unhappy event, the person or animal experiences something positive or receives information that conflicts with the negative memory. In the third and final phase, the memory is reconsolidated into long-term memory without associated negative feelings.⁸ Negative emotions and sensations will no longer be present when the event is recalled. The trauma of the event will be gone. This effect is often said to be permanent, at least pertaining to animal studies.

With IMR, a bad memory is accessed at intervals for a few seconds each time. According to one theory, they are also repeatedly accessed without conscious awareness for a fraction of a second each time. Some research suggests that this should be sufficient to open up the neuroplasticity window.⁹  The visualization of a happy experience that occurs in IMR is the mismatch of memory reconsolidation that breaks the negative feelings associated with the memory. Bilateral tapping may also contribute to the memory-feeling mismatch.

Broaden-and-Build

The broaden-and-build theory of positive emotion claims that experiencing positive emotions broadens the scope of one’s attention, thoughts, social options, and potential activities. For example, if you feel happy, you are more likely to notice details of the room you are in, call your friends, or plan your weekend than if you didn’t feel happy. The theory further suggests that positive feelings encourage us to experience a wider range of thoughts and be open to more ideas.

Broaden-and-build theory has been applied to IMR. The premise is that the positive visualization induces good feelings which broadens your mental landscape. A few examples of how this could manifest:

• By feeling good, you are more open to the possibility of overcoming your bad memory and associating good feelings with that memory.
• Cognitive broadening may make it less likely to think about the bad memory because you are more likely to think about other things.
• Broadening of your activity repertoire could help you to engage in hobbies or engaging work whereas otherwise your trauma could have kept you planted firmly on your couch.

Taxing Working Memory

Some researchers have theorized that IMR is effective because the positive visualization and bilateral movement take up considerable attention (working memory), leaving less attention available for negative feelings. With most working memory taken up, the bad memory is less likely to stir up negative thoughts and feelings, making it possible to think of it without feeling bad. In this way, you are essentially training or rewiring your brain to think of the bad memory without negative emotions, breaking the automatic association between the two.

This also aligns with MR theory. In order to break the link of negative emotions tied to a memory, you need to feel happy and safe while the neuroplasticity window is open. If you re-experience the pain of the bad memory, there will be no mismatch to drive reconsolidation. Taxing working memory with visualization, tapping, and possibly blinking limits that pain.

Adaptive Information Processing

This theory asserts that alternate use of the left and right brain hemispheres facilitates the ‘processing’ of traumatic memories. It is the original theory behind bilateral stimulation therapy (aka EMDR) and was supported by Francine Shapiro, developer of EMDR. By quickly and repetitively switching between use of the left and right sides of the body, new neural pathways are created that dissolve the negative emotions associated with a bad memory.¹⁰ AIP has been strongly supported for many years in the EMDR world, but its popularity has been on the decline in recent years.

WHY BLINK?

There are a few theories that support the use of blinking in IMR. The theory of taxing working memory suggests that blinking makes it harder to maintain focus on the positive visualization. Because blinking makes visualizing a little more difficult, one must apply more effort, leaving less mental capacity available for your mind to wander towards the negative memory.

Another theory surmises that each blink interrupts the calming visualization, effectively creating a new visualization with each blink. Thus, your brain can ‘get the reps in,’ making many micro-mismatches rather than one long mismatch instance. Some researchers believe that a large number of micro-experiences creates a stronger prediction error than one long experience.

Finally, many IMR researchers/practitioners theorize that after thinking about the negative memory at the start of the session, each blink during the session incites your mind to think about the bad memory for a few milliseconds. Thus, each blink creates a micro-exposure to the bad memory—so quick that you are not consciously aware of it and avoid distress, but sufficient to keep your brain in a highly malleable state.

INSTRUCTIONS

Step 1

Select a negative memory and rate its intensity of disturbance.

Step 2

Determine a positive object on which to focus.

Step 3

Focus on the positive object and alternately pat your thighs.

Step 4

Blink your eyes intermittently.

Step 5

Periodically touch upon the negative memory and its emotional intensity.

Step 1

Select a negative memory and rate its intensity of disturbance

IMR can be used on any memory that causes you distress. The memory can be anything from an incidence of verbal abuse to the death of a loved one. The more specific the past event, the better. If you have general trauma, for instance, from years of a bad relationship, pick a specific memory that stands out as representative of that relationship. General practice has been to commence IMR on the earliest relevant event and target the most disturbing event in a later session.

The effects of IMR have a degree of generalizability. By picking a representative event, related trauma should be improved. IMR may be performed on as many traumatic memories as you want but limit each session to one specific event.

In some cases, you may not be able to recall a specific event. Perhaps there are events from the distant past that you have since forgotten, but their psychological toll remains. Possibly, you may have dissociated from a fairly recent event in order to cope and cannot recall specifics. If you cannot recall anything specific, you may perform IMR on the general impression of the source of the trauma.

Once you decide upon the negative event from your past that you want to target, rate the distress of remembering that event on a scale of 0 to 10. Distress includes both emotions and physical (somatic) sensations in your body, such as a tight chest or stomach ache.

Do not actually try to experience the distress of the memory. Try to avoid feeling any distress while doing IMR. Determine the distress level by recalling what it is like when you normally think of the event or by doing a ‘light touch’ upon the trauma. Touch the surface of the water without putting your hand into the water!

IMR was designed for traumatic memories that occurred in one’s past such that the memories are not currently front of mind (i.e., not in working memory). However, studies on people who had recently experienced an earthquake in Türkiye have found that IMR also works well on fresh traumas.⁵ Therefore, the age of the memory may not be relevant for IMR.

Step 2

Determine a positive object on which to focus

IMR involves focusing on something that makes you feel content and safe. Most often, visualization is used. The source of the visualization may be real or imaginary. It can be a happy and peaceful memory from your past, like a memorable date or your favorite vacation experience. It can be imaginary, such as wading through the shallow waters of the Bahamas or being a king addressing his court.

In the visualization, imagine that you are actually there. Make it sensual. If you chose a Caribbean beach, for example, you could imagine the warm water on your legs as you wade through it. Feel the comforting heat of the sunshine, hear birds singing, and maybe even smell your favorite meat on the barbeque. You can even take the visualization a step further, for example, by imagining that you feel so light that you could float away or that you are a different person.

Alternatives are available to those with trouble visualizing. One possibility is to utilize your imagination without using visuals. For example, you could imagine that you are floating on the warm water of a shallow lake with your eyes closed. You can still feel the sun on your body and the water moving beneath you, but you don’t have to imagine that you are looking at anything. Make sure that your eyes are open in real-life, however. Doing IMR with open eyes is advised in order to facilitate blinking and lower the odds of sinking into your trauma.

Countdowns are another option. If you don’t want to use your imagination, you can slowly count down from 30, or another number. Once you get to zero, restart the countdown. Counting down won’t fill you with happiness, but it is an indispensable tool for clearing your mind.

The positive object of visualization may be a place, person, animal, or activity. For example, you could imagine that you are cuddling your spouse or singing in a church. With IMR, you have the option of not using your imagination at all as long as you can still tap your legs and blink your eyes. You can listen to Mozart or watch videos of puppies on YouTube, for example. Any activity that keeps you captivated in a positive mood can work for IMR.

Step 3

Focus on the positive object and alternately pat your thighs

Now that you have chosen the bad memory to target and the positive object on which to concentrate, you can begin the IMR practice. With eyes open, think of your positive object as intensely as you can. Try not to let yourself think of your negative memory.

While imagining your ‘happy place’, tap your thighs alternately with the hand on the same side of your body. Bilateral stimulation is done more slowly in IMR than EMDR. For this practice, take 2-3 seconds to do one round (patting each leg once).

Thigh tapping is a convenient method of bilateral stimulation, but you can use other methods as well. Looking side to side across your field of vision without moving your head is an option. You may also use the butterfly hug: cross your arms over your chest and pat each shoulder with the opposite hand.

The butterfly method is common, but it may tire your shoulders. Making alternate clasping motions with your hands (i.e., making a momentary light ‘fist’) while keeping your arms still is another option that is easy, won’t tire your shoulders, and is relatively discreet.

Step 4

Blink your eyes intermittently

While visualizing and tapping, blink your eyes 3 or 4 times in quick succession at random intervals of about 7-20 seconds. Free online random timers like the one at https://creativetechguy.com/utilities/randomtimer make this pretty easy. You can time your blinks randomly using your head, but the online timers with audio and visual alerts are very convenient. While blinking, try not to think of the negative memory. Keep your attention focused upon the positive object.

Step 5

Periodically touch upon the negative memory and its emotional intensity

Every couple of minutes or so, stop thinking about the positive object and check in on your bad memory. Don’t spend more than a few seconds thinking about the past event. If you feel that the distress has lessened, rate the new level on a 0-10 scale. If the memory seems ‘further away’, that is an indication of lower distress.

Interrupted Memory Reconsolidation is a relatively new but extremely promising treatment for dealing with traumatic memories. It is easily applied on oneself or a family member. At present, it appears to be both the quickest and the safest method for treating a traumatic memory. Results from clinical trials have shown efficacy at least as high as established trauma treatments. However, unlike those treatments, self-IMR does not involve repeatedly reliving traumatic pain as part of the therapeutic process. Because this technique employs memory reconsolidation, the effects could last for years.