Summer of Rest: What the Nervous System Really Needs

At Central Florida EMDR Training, we spend a lot of time helping clinicians understand the nervous system. We talk about regulation, co-regulation, polyvagal theory, and the somatic cues that tell us when we — or our clients — are safe enough to feel.

But just as important as knowing how to activate those systems is knowing when to pause.

There won’t be a new cohort until October, and that’s by design. The space between trainings matters just as much as the trainings themselves.

This is what we’re calling the Summer of Rest.

Honoring the Seasons of Healing

Therapy — and training — can sometimes feel like it should move in a straight line. Learn more. Do more. Help more. But real healing doesn’t move that way.

Healing moves in seasons.

There are times for rapid growth, new learning, big movement. And there are times for stillness. For deep breaths. For being instead of doing.

This is true for our clients, and it’s true for us. As therapists, we aren’t immune to burnout. We aren’t outside the human experience. We are in it, fully — bodies, nervous systems, and all.

When we treat ourselves like machines, we lose access to our most powerful tool: our presence.

Regulation Isn’t Always About Effort

In trainings, we often hear questions like:
“How do I stay grounded when my caseload is overwhelming?”
“What’s the best way to implement this new protocol?”
“How can I keep improving after this training ends?”

These are important questions. But sometimes, the most important thing you can do for your nervous system isn’t to do anything new at all. It’s to pause and let what you’ve already learned settle into your body.

Rest is not the opposite of growth. It’s what allows growth to take hold.

Integration is Its Own Form of Mastery

If you’ve trained with us recently, you may be sitting with a lot. New frameworks. New language. New responsibility.

Give it time to land.

Revisit your manual. Rewatch the demo videos. Take a walk and reflect on the sessions that moved you most. Notice what has shifted in your body since you began this work. Let your learning integrate through stillness and spaciousness.

Integration isn’t passive. It’s deeply embodied work.

Rest as Polyvagal Practice

Polyvagal theory teaches us that the nervous system isn’t just responding to danger — it’s also seeking connection, safety, and pleasure.

And yet, how often do we deny ourselves those very things?

This summer, we invite you to consider pleasure, rest, and joy as part of your clinical development.

Sit in the sun.
Turn off your phone.
Say no to the thing that feels like too much.
Notice the moments when your breath deepens without you trying.

These are nervous system victories. These are the cues of ventral vagal safety.

For the Ones Still Figuring It Out

Maybe you haven’t trained with us yet. Maybe you’re still on the fence about EMDR, or waiting for the right time. We want you to know: you’re not late.

This quiet season is an opportunity to reconnect with your “why.” What led you to this work? What kind of therapist do you want to be? What parts of you are still waiting for permission to slow down?

We’ll be here when the time feels right.

Looking Ahead

We return in October with our signature 5-Day EMDR Basic Trainings — somatic, attachment-based, and deeply grounded in regulation. There’s a special location announcement coming soon, and we can’t wait to share it.

But for now, we’re honoring the quiet.

We hope you’ll do the same.

This summer, let your nervous system rest. Not so you can come back stronger — but because you deserve to live regulated, even when no one is watching.