Meet the Therapists Behind RI-EMDR: Relational, Real, and Ready to Challenge the Rules
- Claudia Wolf
- 5 days ago
- 5 min read
Following on from Part 1- The Gentle Revolution in Trauma Therapy, I wanted to continue on my series about Relational-Integrative EMDR (RI-EMDR)
When you hear the term “therapy model,” it might conjure something formal, abstract, or overly academic. But RI-EMDR- the Relational Integrative EMDR approach developed by Michele Bowes and Amy English is grounded in something very human. It is the kind of work that grows from long conversations in the kitchen, from shared supervision, and from a deep commitment to relational healing that is both clinical and personal.
To understand RI-EMDR, it helps to understand the people who created it.
Because this model did not come from textbooks or institutions. It came from practice rooms, from lived experience, and from a shared belief that healing is bigger than any one protocol.
“We didn’t set out to create a model.”
When Michele and Amy began collaborating, they were already working in ways that blended structure with intuition.
For Michele, this meant incorporating Resource Therapy and imagery into EMDR since 2015. Amy joined her shortly after completing her own EMDR training and took to the work with ease. The development of RI-EMDR wasn’t a formal decision- it was an evolution of how they were already practising.
As Michele describes it: “We had been working like this for a long time. We just didn’t know other people were interested in learning it until the Fishbowl sessions started and we began getting emails from participants asking, ‘What is this model you’re using?’”
The feedback from therapists watching those sessions (more on these later!) confirmed something they had both sensed for years. People were hungry for a trauma approach that honoured complexity, spirituality, and nervous system pacing. One that made room for cultural wisdom and internal systems. One that could sit with both deep rupture and deep repair.
Clinicians, Humans, and Parts-Holders
RI-EMDR may be spiritually attuned and neurobiologically informed, but it is also refreshingly human. That humanness comes through clearly in Amy and Michele’s reflections- not just on therapy, but on themselves.
Amy is a long-time fiction lover who reluctantly gave in to romantasy and now can’t put it down. She grew up in Tamworth and has some subconscious muscle memory of line dancing that she would rather not recall.
Michele, on the other hand, is an ethical vegan with a fascination for psychological serial killer shows. As a child, she brought home every dog that “looked stray,” rescued flying foxes from telegraph poles, and even let the roof-dwelling carpet python share her bed. When she talks about her “parts,” she does it with both clinical insight and a clear sense that these parts are still with her- active, present, and integrated.
This balance of humour and depth is at the heart of their teaching. They are clinicians who understand parts theory in their bones, not just in their slides. They model self-reflection, humility, and genuine connection- the very things they teach others to offer clients.
During my training with these women, I felt the weight of the world leave my body. They got it. They understood the way I wanted to work. I could be myself with them- and more importantly, I had permission to be authentic with my clients.
Honouring the Inexplicable
There is something beautifully grounded about the way Amy and Michele talk about the spiritual and intuitive aspects of their work. They do not sensationalise it, nor do they shy away from sharing moments that other therapists might dismiss.
There have been lights flickering. Dreams that bring reconciliation. Energies that shift and stories that seem to ripple across generations. Michele recalls one session where a client’s internal “Ancient One”- a deeply wise spiritual part- recognised and greeted her own.
“I had that ‘oh no’ moment internally, but I just nodded and said, ‘Thank you for letting me know that.’”
These are not stories for entertainment. They are examples of what happens when therapy holds space for the full range of human experience- including the inexplicable.
When our clients don’t have to justify, explain, or white wash their experiences, there is so much room for healing.
More Than a Method
RI-EMDR is not just a blend of techniques. It is a philosophy that centres relational safety, cultural context, internal systems, and nervous system regulation.
This is clear in how they describe the impact of their work:
“There are so many moments where we see clients make space for compassion for themselves. Especially when a child part and the adult Self connect, and there’s a softening. It changes not just the person, but often their family and their wider community.”
In Part 2 of their training (which I am desperate to attend when my life gives me space to!!), Amy and Michele expand the work further- exploring ancestral wisdom, introject repair, and even personalised inner entities that may hold influence in a person’s system.
This is not therapy that sees the self as separate or singular. It is therapy that sees us as interconnected: to others, to the land, to our histories, and to the parts of us we may not yet have fully met.
What Are the “Fishbowls”?
In 2022, Michele and Amy began offering live demonstrations of their work through what they call Fishbowl sessions- a respectful and generous opportunity to witness relational EMDR in practice.
Fishbowls are experiential training sessions for therapists where you can watch live therapy sessions unfold (with full consent), either as an observer or, if you feel called, as a volunteer.
These sessions are offered freely every two months, in the spirit of seva – selfless service. And for many therapists, witnessing these sessions can feel like an awakening. You can learn more or sign up at www.sevatraining.com.au
For Therapists Who Are Ready to Work Differently
If you’re a therapist who feels something is missing in standard trauma protocols, you’re not alone. RI-EMDR offers a way to bring more of yourself into the room- without abandoning rigour or structure. It allows for creativity, collaboration, and spiritual insight, while still grounding the work in effective trauma processing.
As Amy and Michele often reassure their training participants:
“Parts work doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong with you. It just means you have different sides of yourself that come forward in different moments. That’s human. Our job is to help those parts work together, not against each other.”
Their trainings reflect that belief. Participants are invited to notice their own parts, their own protectors and wise figures, and their own longings for a different way of being in the therapy space.
RI-EMDR is not just a model. It is a quiet shift in the way we think about trauma, connection, and what healing really looks like.
It is, in every way, a gentle revolution.
You can learn more about RI-EMDR and the Seva team’s trainings here
Wolf Therapeutic Community Experiences
Relational Integrative Intensive EMDR Program:
If you’d like to experience RI-EMDR from the client’s seat- I offer a retreat-inspired 2 day, 3 day, or 6 day RI-EMDR Intensive Immersions.
Advanced Parts Work Training:
If you're a therapist (EMDR trained or not) looking to build a solid, parts-informed foundation for your therapy practice, you are also warmly invited to join one of my upcoming Resource Therapy training events and follow on Consultation groups.
A nourishing, homestead style 2 Day training on the Surf Coast
Online 2 Day Resource Therapy training.
2.5 Day Resource Therapy Foundation Weekend Retreat
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