The dot has a handful of settings: speed, size, movement pattern, style, and background. None of them are complicated, but each one shapes how a client experiences the session. This is a practical guide to choosing them well. Think of it as a starting point you adjust to fit your own protocol, not a set of rules.
Speed: start where the client tracks comfortably
Speed is the setting you will touch most. The goal is a pace the client can follow without effort and without strain.
Begin by asking the client to follow the dot for a few passes at a moderate speed. Watch their eyes. If they are tracking smoothly and staying with it, you are in the right range. If they are falling behind, jerking to catch up, or losing the dot, ease it down. If it feels sluggish and their attention drifts, nudge it up.
From there, adjust to the client’s response and your protocol. Many therapists settle a client in at a comfortable pace and then work within the range that keeps them engaged. Some vary speed between sets on purpose. The speed slider lets you change it on the fly, so you are never locked in.
A few practical notes:
- A client’s comfortable speed can shift within a session as they tire or as processing intensifies. Re-check now and then.
- A new client usually does better starting slower, then finding their pace, than starting fast.
- What reads as fast on your large screen may look different on the client’s smaller device.
Size: match the device and the distance
Size is about visibility, and it depends on two things you may not see directly: how big the client’s screen is, and how far they sit from it.
A client on a phone held at arm’s length needs a different dot than a client on a desktop monitor two feet away. Since the client’s setup varies, ask. A quick “can you see the dot clearly and follow it without leaning in?” tells you what you need.
Set the size so the dot is easy to see but still asks the eyes to travel. Too small and the client squints; too large and there is barely any movement to track. The size slider adjusts this in seconds, so tune it at the start of the session once you know the client’s screen.
Movement patterns: linear first, variety when you want it
The standard is linear, the classic horizontal left-to-right sweep. It is what most clients expect, it is easy to follow, and it is the right default for a first-time client and for standard protocols. When in doubt, start here.
Beyond linear, the free version also offers an 8-shape pattern. Pro adds more: random, diamond, and diagonal. These give you variety, and variety has a purpose beyond keeping things fresh.
A less predictable path asks more of the client. When the dot does not simply repeat the same line, the client has to work a little harder to track it, which puts more load on working memory. That added load is part of how EMDR is thought to work, and we go deeper on the idea in taxing working memory in EMDR.
How to think about it in practice:
- Linear — the reliable default, easy to follow, right for new clients and standard sets.
- 8-shape and random — varied movement that keeps attention engaged and adds working-memory load.
- Diamond and diagonal (Pro) — extra variety for longer courses of treatment or a client who needs a change of pace.
Whether and when to raise the working-memory load sits inside your own approach. The patterns are options, not instructions.
Dot styles: engagement without distraction
By default the dot is a plain, steady shape. That is the right choice for most adult sessions, where you want the movement to recede into the background and the processing to take center stage.
Pro adds styles that give the dot more personality: a grey dot, a color-changing dot, an emoji-changing dot, and an animal dot. These are engagement tools. A dot that shifts color or turns into a new animal each pass can hold attention that a plain dot might lose.
This matters most with children. A young client who tunes out a plain dot may happily follow an animal that keeps changing. If you work with kids, the styles are worth having, and we cover the wider picture in EMDR for children in remote sessions.
A word of balance: more visual interest can also become more distraction. For a client who is processing something difficult and needs calm, the plain dot is usually kinder. Match the style to the client and the moment.
Backgrounds: set the mood behind the dot
The background is the canvas the dot moves across. The free version gives you light and dark, which is enough to suit the room and the client’s screen.
Pro adds scenes: Therapy Practice, Forest, Mountains, Beach, and Hospital, plus the option to upload your own image. A calmer or more familiar backdrop can make a remote session feel less clinical and more grounded. A client who finds a plain screen cold might settle better against a forest or a beach.
As with dot styles, keep contrast in mind. The dot needs to stand out clearly against whatever is behind it. A busy background that swallows the dot works against you. Pick a scene that supports focus rather than competing with it.
Bringing the settings together
Think of these settings as a small set of dials you turn to fit the person in front of you.
Suppose a client is new and a little anxious
A moderate, comfortable speed. A dot sized clearly for their screen. Linear movement they can follow without effort. A plain dot and a calm background so nothing competes with the processing. Simple, steady, easy to stay with.
Suppose the client is a child losing interest
An animal or color-changing dot to hold attention. An 8-shape or varied pattern for playful movement. A speed that keeps them engaged. A background they find fun rather than clinical. Engagement first, so the work can happen at all.
You can also pair any of this with sound. Visual and auditory stimulation run at the same time, and for clients who track better by ear, or who need a rest from the screen, our guide to bilateral sound in EMDR covers when to lean on audio instead.
Every one of these settings is adjustable mid-session, so treat the opening minutes as a chance to tune. Ask the client what they see, watch how they track, and turn the dials until it fits. The controls guide shows where each one lives.
Get every pattern, style, and background
The free version gives you the core dot settings to start. Pro adds random, diamond, and diagonal patterns, four dot styles, and a set of calming backgrounds, with the first three weeks free.