Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy helps process distressing experiences that feel stuck and continue to shape how we feel, relate, and move through the world. Using guided bilateral stimulation, such as eye movements, tapping, or sounds, EMDR supports the brain in integrating memories and shifting unhelpful patterns. It can help with challenges like anxiety, low self-worth, emotional reactivity, and disconnection. EMDR is used in both individual and relationship therapy to support healing, strengthen connection, and create space for new ways of relating. To ourselves, to the world, and to each other.
You're Welcome Just As You Are
EMDR supports processing past experiences of trauma, reducing emotional overwhelm and distress. It can help you manage current difficulties such as feeling unsafe or on edge, while fostering confidence and a sense of stability to move forward in life.
EMDR helps process experiences of marginalisation or identity-related struggles, easing the emotional weight of past challenges. It promotes acceptance and self-compassion, helping you navigate current struggles with confidence and optimism for the future.
EMDR helps process past relationship injuries, attachment wounds, and experiences of emotional disconnection. It can reduce reactivity, build emotional safety, and support new ways of connecting in both individual and relationship therapy.
EMDR targets underlying experiences that fuel anxiety and panic, helping reduce overwhelming thoughts and symptoms in the present. It also empowers you with new strategies to approach future stressors with calm and control.
By addressing unresolved experiences, EMDR helps ease emotional distress, rebuild self-worth, and create a more hopeful outlook, enabling you to navigate life with renewed purpose and clarity.
EMDR allows you to process the pain of past losses, reduce the weight of current grief, and find space for healing, acceptance, and the ability to reconnect with joy and meaning in the future.
EMDR targets past experiences that may underlie intrusive thoughts or behaviours. It can reduce present emotional distress and strengthen strategies to manage triggers with confidence in the future.
EMDR addresses past experiences that shaped unhelpful beliefs about yourself, helps foster self-compassion and confidence in the present, and empowers you to pursue goals and a fulfilling life in the future.
By processing early experiences that may have shaped your phobia, EMDR can help you feel more in control of current reactions and approach similar situations in the future with less fear and more ease.
Please reach us at admin@lavenderpsychology.com.au if you cannot find an answer to your question.
EMDR therapy targets unprocessed memories that are often at the root of emotional and psychological difficulties. By recalling the memory while engaging in bilateral stimulation, the brain reduces its emotional intensity, helping individuals gain perspective and feel relief. This process mimics natural memory processing that occurs during REM sleep. The therapy's structured phases ensure safety, exploration, and integration throughout treatment.
EMDR is an integrative therapy, meaning it combines elements of various therapeutic approaches, such as Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Emotionally Focussed Therapy (EFT), and Mindfulness-based strategies. This allows EMDR to be highly flexible, addressing a wide range of issues in both individual and relationship therapy. The goal is to process unprocessed memories and emotional experiences in a way that reduces distress and promotes healing. By working with both the mind and body, EMDR supports emotional regulation, physical relaxation, and stronger connection within ourselves and in our relationships.
One of the strengths of EMDR is that it is transdiagnostic, meaning it is effective across various mental health conditions and is not limited to treating one specific diagnosis, e.g., PTSD. This quality makes EMDR a versatile tool in treating a broad spectrum of psychological issues, from trauma to anxiety, depression, OCD, and beyond. The transdiagnostic nature of EMDR means it focuses on the underlying emotional and cognitive processes, such as how we store and process memories, rather than focusing solely on a specific diagnosis. This allows for a more individualised and holistic approach to therapy, which can be particularly beneficial when addressing complex, overlapping, or co-occurring conditions.
This transdiagnostic aspect helps EMDR be useful for people who may not have a clear-cut diagnosis or may be experiencing a mix of challenges that don’t fall neatly into traditional diagnostic categories. It offers flexibility and adaptability, focusing on the emotional experiences at the heart of an individual’s struggles, rather than the labels of specific mental health conditions.
EMDR is effective for adults, adolescents, and children. While best known for treating PTSD, it also supports people experiencing difficulties related to trauma, anxiety, depression, grief, OCD, identity, and more. EMDR can also be integrated into relationship therapy to address emotional injuries, past relational trauma, or patterns of disconnection. It helps create space for more safety, responsiveness, and connection between people.
Yes, EMDR can be used within relationship therapy to process past emotional injuries, attachment wounds, or experiences that are affecting how people relate to each other in the present. This may include past relationships, family dynamics, or unresolved moments within the current relationship. EMDR can be integrated into joint sessions or offered individually as part of a broader relational treatment plan. Click here to learn more about how EMDR can support connection and healing in relationship therapy.
The length of EMDR therapy depends on individual needs, the complexity of presenting concerns, and personal therapy goals. Some clients experience noticeable progress in a shorter timeframe when focusing on specific events or challenges, while others may require a more extended process to address multiple interconnected experiences. The therapy typically progresses through phases, including preparation, processing, and integration, ensuring safety and stability at every step.
EMDR is designed to be flexible, adapting to the client's unique pace and circumstances. This approach ensures that both immediate distress and broader patterns contributing to current difficulties are addressed, supporting meaningful and lasting change
Yes, EMDR can be conducted via Telehealth platforms, using digital adaptations of bilateral stimulation. Research supports its effectiveness in both in-person and virtual formats. Importantly, Lavender Psychology does provide online therapy services. This allows us to support individuals who prefer remote sessions due to convenience, distance, or other personal reasons. Online sessions are conducted in a secure and confidential environment, ensuring the same level of care and professionalism as in-person sessions.
EMDR therapy is widely considered safe and effective, but it can involve some risks and side effects, especially as individuals process challenging memories. Here are some key points about the potential risks of EMDR:
To mitigate these risks, working with a trained and experienced EMDR therapist is critical. Open communication throughout therapy ensures that any emerging challenges are addressed appropriately
No, EMDR is not hypnosis. It is a structured therapy that uses bilateral stimulation, such as guided eye movements, to help process and reframe distressing memories while you remain fully conscious and in control.
Yes. EMDR is transdiagnostic and can help with anxiety, depression, OCD, phobias, grief, identity-related stress, and relationship difficulties. It focuses on resolving past experiences that influence current patterns and supporting future resilience, whether in individual or relationship therapy.
EMDR does not require detailed memory recall. You can work with emotions, physical sensations, or a general sense of distress, allowing the therapy to adapt to your unique experience.
No, EMDR does not require sharing detailed accounts of trauma. The focus is on internal processing, not verbal recounting.
No, EMDR does not implant memories. It works with existing memories and emotional experiences. It is facilitated in a way that respects the client’s autonomy and avoids suggestion.
After a session, clients may feel tired or reflective. Some experience vivid dreams or emotional shifts. These are normal parts of processing and usually settle with time. Open communication with your therapist helps navigate this.
For more information about EMDR, feel free to contact us directly, or visit the official EMDR Association of Australia (EMDRAA) website at EMDRAA. We’re here to support you on your journey and can provide further resources and details tailored to your needs.
Copyright © 2025 Lavender Psychology - All Rights Reserved