Can EMDR Help with Performance Anxiety? Unlocking Confidence in Public Speaking, Sports, and Creativity

 Discover how EMDR therapy rewires performance anxiety and fear of public speaking—unlocking calm, clarity, and confidence in high-pressure situations.

Have you ever frozen on stage, your mind suddenly blank? Do your palms sweat before meetings, pitches, or games, no matter how prepared you are? Does the fear of judgment hold you back from expressing your ideas or performing at your best?

Performance anxiety doesn’t just affect actors or athletes; it also impacts individuals in other fields. It impacts CEOs before presentations, writers facing deadlines, musicians auditioning, and anyone striving to be seen, heard, or evaluated. At Embodied Wellness and Recovery, we work with high-performing individuals whose fear of failure, judgment, or visibility interferes with success in deeply painful ways.

The good news? You don’t need to manage this fear forever. With the support of EMDR therapy (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing), you can rewire your brain’s fear response, regulate your nervous system, and rediscover the confidence that’s already within you.

What Is Performance Anxiety?

Performance anxiety is a physiological and psychological stress response that occurs in high-stakes or evaluative situations, like public speaking, competing in sports, artistic expression, or even dating and sexuality.

While often lumped under “stage fright,” performance anxiety can cause symptoms far beyond butterflies, such as:

     — Racing heart and shallow breath
    — Mind going blank under pressure
    — Nausea or shaking

     — Negative self-talk
    — Shame after perceived “failure”
    — Avoidance of opportunities that require being seen

At its core, performance anxiety is rooted in a fear of judgment, rejection, or not being good enough. It often stems from early experiences, like being criticized, humiliated, or pressured to succeed. The body remembers these moments, even when the conscious mind forgets.

Why Traditional Coping Tools Often Fall Short

You’ve likely tried the classic advice: “Just breathe,” “Practice more,” or “Picture the audience in their underwear.” While mindfulness and preparation are helpful, they don’t resolve the underlying trauma or emotional charge driving the anxiety.

That’s because performance anxiety isn’t just a mindset issue; it’s a nervous system issue. When your body perceives a threat (real or remembered), it triggers a fight, flight, freeze, or fawn response. You might stammer, shut down, overcompensate, or self-sabotage, not because you're weak, but because your brain is trying to keep you safe.

This is where EMDR therapy can be extremely beneficial.

How EMDR Helps Rewire the Fear of Being Seen

EMDR therapy is a neuroscience-based approach that utilizes bilateral stimulation, such as eye movements, tapping, or tones, to help the brain reprocess distressing experiences and release stuck emotional responses.

Originally developed for PTSD, EMDR has expanded to address anxiety, perfectionism, creative blocks, and fear of failure, making it a powerful tool for performance anxiety.

EMDR works by:

    — Identifying core memories connected to performance-related fear (e.g., being laughed at in class, failing publicly, or being shamed for a mistake)
   — Desensitizing the emotional charge of these memories so they no longer activate your fight-or-flight response
    — Installing new, adaptive beliefs (e.g., “I am capable,” “I can trust myself,” “Mistakes are part of growth”)
    — Regulating the nervous system, allowing you to stay present and embodied under pressure

Over time, clients discover that situations that once triggered dread, such as presentations, auditions, or intimacy, now feel manageable, even empowering.

EMDR for Public Speaking: From Panic to Presence

Fear of public speaking is one of the most common forms of performance anxiety. For many, it’s not the act of speaking that causes panic; it’s the vulnerability of being seen, heard, and possibly judged.

With EMDR, we target:

     — Past experiences of humiliation or harsh critique
     — Perfectionistic conditioning (e.g., “I must not make mistakes”)
     — Internalized shame or fear of visibility
    — Negative self-talk or core beliefs about oneself, like “I’ll mess this up” or “I don’t belong here”

Clients often report feeling more grounded, articulate, and self-assured after EMDR, not because they “trained” themselves, but because their nervous system learned a new, safe way to be seen.

EMDR for Performance in Sports and Competition

Athletes frequently struggle with choking under pressure, fear of failure, or trauma from injury or past defeats. EMDR helps retrain the brain to view competition not as a threat but as a challenge to rise to.

This often involves:

     — Processing traumatic injuries or disappointing performances
    — Releasing performance-related shame
    — Enhancing body awareness and flow-state access
    — Reinstalling confidence and mental focus

Because EMDR also regulates the sensorimotor system, athletes can achieve more easeful movement, quicker recovery from mistakes, and better performance consistency.

EMDR for Creative Expression and Visibility Blocks

Writers, musicians, artists, and performers often carry deep wounds tied to creative shame, impostor syndrome, or fear of being “too much.” EMDR gently addresses these wounds by reprocessing:

     — Criticism from teachers or mentors
    — Rejection from audiences or publishers
    — Family messages that suppressed self-expression
    — The vulnerability of emotional honesty in your work

Many creative clients describe feeling freer, inspired, and emotionally connected to their work after EMDR, no longer blocked by perfectionism or fear.

EMDR at Embodied Wellness and Recovery: Our Approach

At Embodied Wellness and Recovery, we specialize in trauma-informed, neuroscience-based therapy that integrates EMDR with somatic work, inner child healing, and parts work. Whether your performance anxiety shows up in the boardroom, the bedroom, the studio, or the stage, our approach is tailored to:

     — Identify the root cause of your fear
     — Help you feel safe in your body under pressure
    — Empower you to reconnect with your authentic voice and presence

Our therapists understand that performance anxiety is a form of intimacy, and we treat the shame, fear, and longing beneath the surface with skill, compassion, and attunement.

Performance Doesn’t Require Perfection; It Requires Presence

EMDR therapy offers a powerful path to reclaim your confidence, not by pushing through fear, but by reprocessing the memories and beliefs that created it. Whether you're facing an audience, an opponent, or a blank canvas, EMDR can help you shift from fear-based reactivity to embodied expression.

You don’t need to master a new skill; you need to release the old imprint that said you weren’t enough.

Contact us today to schedule a free 20-minute consultation with our team of top-rated EMDR therapists, somatic practitioners, trauma specialists, or relationship experts, and begin your journey toward embodied connection, clarity, and confidence.

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References

     — Pagani, M., Di Lorenzo, G., Verardo, A. R., Nicolais, G., Monaco, L., Lauretti, G., & Siracusano, A. (2017). Neurobiological Correlates of EMDR Monitoring—An EEG Study. Journal of EMDR Practice and Research, 11(2), 84–95. 

   — Shapiro, F. (2018). Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy: Basic Principles, Protocols, and Procedures (3rd ed.). Guilford Press.

     —Van der Kolk, B. (2014). The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma. Viking.