EMDR therapy
For what your mind keeps bringing back.
EMDR is a structured, research-supported therapy for trauma, anxiety and experiences that the nervous system has not fully finished processing — delivered with patience, careful preparation, and respect for the protocol the therapy requires.
About Nikki's EMDR practice
Nikki is an AHPRA Registered Psychologist who is currently completing advanced training in EMDR. She offers EMDR as part of her practice with full attention to the established eight-phase protocol, including the careful preparation work this therapy requires before active processing begins.
If you are unsure whether EMDR is the right fit for what you are working with, a free 15-minute call is a good place to ask before booking.
What EMDR actually is
EMDR stands for Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing. It is a structured psychotherapy developed in the late 1980s and refined across decades of clinical research. It is most widely known as a treatment for post-traumatic stress — and is recommended for PTSD by the World Health Organization, the Australian Psychological Society, and numerous international treatment guidelines.
Under the surface description, the idea is simple: some experiences get stuck. They do not integrate into memory the way ordinary experiences do, which is why they can still feel present years later — showing up as flashbacks, intrusive images, emotional flooding when something similar happens, or a generalised sense that the past is not quite past. EMDR gives the brain a structured opportunity to finish what it started.
How an EMDR session works
The mechanism is less exotic than the name makes it sound. You hold a difficult memory briefly in mind while engaging in bilateral stimulation — usually guided eye movements, though tapping or auditory tones can also be used. You report what comes up. We repeat, in short sets, until the emotional charge around the memory has softened and it feels more like something that happened, rather than something still happening.
The eight phases
EMDR is delivered in eight clearly-defined phases. The first few are about building safety, understanding your history, and preparing resources you can draw on if processing becomes intense. Active memory processing is only phase four — preparation matters, and we do not rush it.
You don't have to narrate in detail
Unlike some trauma therapies, EMDR does not require you to describe what happened in forensic detail. You hold the memory internally while we work with it. For many people, this is one of the things that makes EMDR feel more doable than other approaches — particularly those who find talking through trauma re-traumatising in itself.
Applications
What EMDR can help with
Post-traumatic stress (PTSD)
EMDR's strongest evidence base. For single-event trauma, a focused EMDR course is often shorter than comparable talk therapies. For complex or developmental trauma, a longer and more carefully paced course is usual.
Trauma that doesn't meet PTSD criteria
Many experiences leave a lasting imprint without technically meeting the diagnostic threshold for PTSD — difficult medical events, bullying, significant losses, relational ruptures. EMDR can help the nervous system finish processing these too.
Anxiety and phobias
Where anxiety has a clear origin — a car accident feeding driving anxiety, a medical event feeding health anxiety, a traumatic birth feeding anxiety about having another child — EMDR can address the underlying experience rather than just the symptoms.
Grief and loss
For grief that has become stuck on a particular image or moment — the sound of the phone call, the last conversation — EMDR can help soften the intensity so the wider relationship is remembered alongside the loss.
How many sessions EMDR typically takes
This is one of the first questions people ask, and the honest answer is: it depends on what we are working with.
For a single, clearly-defined traumatic event, active processing may take as few as three to six sessions, on top of a preparation phase. For longer-standing or more complex presentations — developmental trauma, repeated adverse experiences, or trauma layered onto neurodivergence — the work takes longer. We will build a realistic picture together early in the process rather than guess at the start.
What sessions cost
Individual sessions are $230 for 50 minutes. With a Mental Health Care Plan from your GP, Medicare rebates $98.95 per session for up to 10 sessions per calendar year, leaving a gap of $131.05.
NDIS, TAC and WorkCover funding are also accepted. See full fee information →
EMDR via telehealth
EMDR was originally developed for in-person delivery, but it can be safely and effectively conducted via telehealth using visual or auditory bilateral stimulation. For some people, particularly those who feel more settled in their own home, telehealth is the better option. For others, the grounding of being in the room together matters more. We will discuss which format suits during preparation.
Questions we hear about EMDR
What is EMDR in plain language?
EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing) is a structured therapy developed to help the brain finish processing memories that have gotten stuck. During a session, you briefly hold a difficult memory in mind while engaging in bilateral stimulation — usually guided eye movements. Over time, the memory becomes less emotionally charged and integrates into the rest of your experience.
What can EMDR help with?
EMDR is most widely known as a treatment for post-traumatic stress, and is recommended by the World Health Organization and the Australian Psychological Society for PTSD. It is also used to support people with anxiety, phobias, grief, and distress from events that do not meet the formal threshold for PTSD but still feel unresolved.
Do I have to talk about what happened in detail?
No. Unlike some talking therapies, EMDR does not require you to narrate traumatic events in detail. You hold the memory in mind while we work with it; the processing happens largely internally. For many people, this is part of what makes EMDR feel more manageable than other approaches.
How many sessions of EMDR will I need?
It depends on the complexity and number of memories being worked with. A single, discrete event may be processed in a handful of sessions. Longer-standing or more complex presentations — for example, developmental trauma or childhood adversity — typically require a longer course of work, with preparation phases before active processing begins.
Is EMDR covered by Medicare?
EMDR sessions delivered by a registered psychologist are rebatable under a Mental Health Care Plan in the same way as any other individual therapy session. The Medicare rebate is currently $98.95 per session, for up to ten sessions per calendar year.
Can EMDR be done via telehealth?
Yes. While EMDR was originally developed for in-person delivery, it can be safely and effectively conducted via telehealth using visual or auditory bilateral stimulation. We will discuss the best format for you during preparation.
Adjacent areas of support
Anxiety therapy
Where anxiety does not have a clear trauma origin, CBT, ACT and mindfulness-based approaches are usually the better starting point.
Read more →Telehealth psychology
More on how telehealth sessions work, including EMDR delivered online.
Read more →Fees & Medicare
EMDR sessions are rebatable under a Mental Health Care Plan in the same way as other individual therapy.
Read more →For what hasn't stayed in the past on its own.
Book an initial consultation, or start with a free 15-minute call — a good way to ask about preparation, pacing and whether EMDR is the right fit.