About EMDR

What is EMDR?

EMDR — Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing — is an evidence-based psychotherapy developed to help people recover from trauma and distressing life experiences. Rather than talking through an event in detail, EMDR helps the brain reprocess the memory so it loses its emotional charge, allowing you to remember what happened without being overwhelmed by it.

How does EMDR work?

When something overwhelming happens, the brain can struggle to process the experience fully, leaving the memory ‘stuck’ along with the emotions, beliefs, and physical sensations attached to it. EMDR uses bilateral stimulation — typically guided eye movements, taps, or tones — while you briefly hold the memory in mind. This appears to help the brain do what it does naturally during REM sleep: process and file the experience so it no longer feels raw or present.

What can EMDR help with?

EMDR is best known for treating trauma and PTSD, but it can also help with a wide range of concerns, including anxiety, phobias, grief, distressing memories, limiting beliefs, addictions, and the unconscious patterns that shape how we relate to ourselves and others.

Is there good research support?

Yes. EMDR is recognised internationally and is recommended by leading health bodies, including the World Health Organization, as an effective treatment for post-traumatic stress. Decades of research support its use, and it continues to be studied and refined.

Why choose an EMDR Intensive?

A traditional therapy schedule spreads sessions across weeks or months. An intensive condenses the work into longer, focused blocks — allowing deep, meaningful progress in a shorter timeframe. Intensives suit people who want to focus fully on their healing, who are travelling to work with a specialist, or who prefer not to stretch the process out over many months.

What to expect in EMDR

We begin by getting to know your history, goals, and what you’d like to work on, and by building the sense of safety and resourcing that supports this work. From there, we move into processing at a pace that’s right for you. Throughout, my approach is warm, grounded, and trauma-informed — you stay in control, and we work carefully and collaboratively.

Resources & further reading

A short list of trusted resources — for example the EMDR International Association (EMDRIA) ↗ and EMDR Association of Australia (EMDRAA) ↗ — for anyone who wants to read further.