EMDR Therapist in
Burlington,
Ontario
Our registered EMDR therapists in Burlington, Ontario offer Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing in-person at our Harvester Rd clinic and online across the province — for PTSD, single-incident trauma, anxiety, phobias, and complex trauma. Same-day availability, no waitlist, free 15-minute discovery call.
Our EMDR therapists in Burlington
In-person at 3425 Harvester Rd · online across Ontario
2 practitioners
Alisa offers EMDR therapy in-person at our Burlington clinic and online across Ontario, integrating Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing within a trauma-informed and relational framework. Her EMDR practice draws on her training in CBT, DBT, and EFT to provide the stabilisation and resourcing that effective EMDR requires before processing begins. She works with PTSD, complex trauma, anxiety rooted in adverse experience, and the intrusive symptoms that persist long after difficult events. Her work is particularly well-suited to clients from multicultural and immigrant backgrounds navigating compound trauma.
Olga is a Gestalt-trained Registered Psychotherapist with 7+ years of clinical experience offering EMDR in-person in Oakville and online across Burlington and Halton Region. She integrates EMDR with Gestalt and somatic approaches to create a trauma processing framework that attends not just to the memory’s cognitive content but to how it is held in the body — the tension, the freeze, the collapse that often accompanies traumatic material. Her EMDR practice is grounded in relational safety and careful pacing, ensuring clients are well-resourced before processing begins.
More trauma therapists — online across Ontario
EMDR-informed approaches · serving Burlington & province-wide
4 practitioners
Donna is a Social Worker and Psychotherapist with 18+ years of clinical experience offering trauma therapy online to Burlington residents and across Ontario. Her trauma-informed CBT and DBT framework draws on evidence-based methods well-aligned with EMDR principles — including stabilisation, resource-building, and gradual trauma processing. For clients seeking a trauma-focused therapist online who works comprehensively with PTSD, complex trauma, and co-occurring depression or addiction, Donna brings exceptional clinical depth and experience.
Justine is a Registered Social Worker (M.S.W., R.S.W.) offering trauma-focused therapy online to Burlington-area clients and across Ontario. Her integrative and trauma-informed approach draws on CBT, DBT, Attachment-Based Therapy, and MBSR — an evidence-based framework that parallels many of EMDR’s core mechanisms of stabilisation and processing. She brings particular depth in intergenerational and family trauma, trauma in children and youth, and trauma connected to Indigenous identity and cultural disconnection.
Oksana is a Registered Psychotherapist (MACP) offering trauma-informed therapy online to Burlington clients and across Ontario through a developmental and attachment-based lens. She specialises in developmental trauma — the kind that accrues over time through relational patterns rather than a single incident. Her therapy addresses how early trauma is encoded in the body and nervous system, in a way that complements EMDR-informed processing. Sessions in English, Ukrainian, and Russian.
Gina is a Registered Psychotherapist (MA, RP) offering trauma-informed therapy online to Burlington-area clients and across Ontario. Her holistic CBT, ACT, and DBT approach incorporates mindfulness-based awareness of how anxiety and past experience shape present-moment functioning — a lens that aligns with the adaptive reprocessing goals of EMDR. She is well-suited to clients whose anxiety patterns are rooted in past experiences and who benefit from a structured, evidence-based framework. Sessions in English, Cantonese, and Mandarin.
Our Burlington practitioners also see clients at Anytime Anywhere Therapy, a few steps away.
EMDR therapy in Burlington, Ontario
Registered EMDR therapists in Burlington, Ontario are available at GestaltReview for in-person sessions at our Harvester Rd clinic and online across the province. Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR) is a well-evidenced, WHO-recommended treatment for PTSD and trauma. It works by helping the brain reprocess distressing memories so they lose their emotional charge and are stored as ordinary autobiographical memories rather than as intrusive, activating material.
EMDR uses bilateral stimulation — most commonly eye movements — to activate the brain’s natural adaptive information processing system while the client briefly holds a targeted memory in mind. Unlike CBT, EMDR does not require extensive verbal processing of traumatic content; it is often described as less confrontational than traditional exposure-based approaches. Our EMDR therapists in Burlington integrate the protocol within trauma-informed, somatic, and relational frameworks that support clients throughout the stabilisation, processing, and integration phases of treatment.
In-person EMDR in Burlington is available at 3425 Harvester Rd, Unit 213. Online EMDR is available province-wide. Sessions start at $140 and are HST exempt. All practitioners hold current registration with CRPO or OCSWSSW.
Is EMDR right for you?
EMDR is particularly well-suited to PTSD arising from a specific traumatic incident — an accident, assault, medical trauma, bereavement, or a witnessed event. It is also effective for phobias, performance anxiety, and anxiety with a clear traumatic root. Research supporting EMDR for single-incident PTSD is very strong, and clinical guidelines from the WHO, NICE, and the APA all endorse it as a first-line treatment.
For complex or developmental trauma — where distress arises from repeated relational injury over time rather than a single event — EMDR is often used as part of a longer-term, phase-based treatment rather than as the primary modality from the outset. In these cases, stabilisation and relational safety are built first, and EMDR processing is introduced gradually. Both Alisa and Olga are trained to work in this more careful, integrative way.
EMDR can be delivered online with comparable effectiveness to in-person delivery for most presentations. The free 15-minute discovery call with every practitioner is the right place to assess whether EMDR or a related trauma-informed approach is the best fit for your specific situation.
EMDR compared to other trauma therapy approaches
Understanding how EMDR differs from other trauma therapy modalities helps you choose the right approach for your presentation.
| Approach | EMDR | Trauma-informed CBT | Somatic therapy | Gestalt/Relational | Integrative |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Core mechanism | Bilateral stimulation — reprocess memory | Restructure thoughts — reduce avoidance | Body — release stored trauma | Contact, presence, relational safety | Combines above per client |
| Best for | Single-incident PTSD, phobias, clear trauma targets | Avoidance, intrusive thoughts, behaviour change | Body-held trauma, dissociation, hyperarousal | Complex & relational trauma, identity | Mixed or complex presentations |
| Verbal processing | Minimal — often less confronting | Extensive | Moderate | Extensive | Varies |
| Evidence base | Very strong — WHO, NICE, APA recommended | Very strong | Growing | Growing — strong for relational outcomes | Varies |
| Session length | 50–90 min (longer processing sessions) | 50 min | 50–60 min | 50 min | 50 min |
EMDR therapy across Halton Region and Ontario
All our practitioners offer online trauma therapy province-wide. In-person EMDR is available in Burlington and nearby Oakville.
Common questions
What is EMDR and how does it work?
EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing) is a structured trauma therapy developed by Dr Francine Shapiro that helps people process and recover from distressing memories. It uses bilateral stimulation — typically through guided eye movements, but also through tapping or auditory tones — while the client briefly focuses on a targeted distressing memory. This bilateral stimulation is thought to activate the brain’s adaptive information processing system, allowing the memory to be reprocessed and stored in a less distressing form. Unlike CBT, EMDR does not require extensive verbal processing of traumatic content, which many clients find makes it feel less confronting. Our Burlington EMDR therapists deliver the protocol within a trauma-informed and relational framework.
What conditions is EMDR best for?
EMDR has the strongest evidence base for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) arising from single-incident trauma — accidents, assaults, medical events, natural disasters, and witnessed trauma. It is WHO-recommended for PTSD and endorsed by clinical guidelines from NICE and the APA. EMDR is also effective for phobias, performance anxiety, panic with identifiable traumatic roots, and grief. For complex PTSD (CPTSD) arising from repeated or developmental trauma, EMDR is often integrated within a longer-term phase-based treatment after stabilisation work. Our Burlington practitioners use EMDR in both standard and integrative formats depending on the presentation.
How much does EMDR cost in Burlington?
EMDR therapy sessions in Burlington at GestaltReview range from $140 to $190 per session. EMDR processing sessions are sometimes 80 to 90 minutes rather than the standard 50 minutes, and this extended length is typically charged at the same rate — confirm this with your therapist during your initial consultation. Psychotherapy is exempt from HST in Ontario. Most extended health benefit plans cover registered psychotherapy; confirm your coverage and annual limit with your insurer before beginning EMDR treatment. Sliding scale pricing is available if cost is a barrier.
Is online EMDR as effective as in-person?
Research supports online EMDR (sometimes called remote EMDR or telehealth EMDR) as effective for PTSD and trauma across most presentations, including bilateral stimulation delivered via screen-based eye tracking, tapping instructions, or auditory tones. Multiple randomised controlled trials comparing in-person and online EMDR delivery have found comparable outcomes. All our practitioners use PHIPA-compliant, encrypted video platforms. For Burlington residents, online EMDR also expands access to our full group of practitioners rather than only those delivering in-person sessions locally.
How many EMDR sessions will I need?
The number of EMDR sessions varies depending on the nature and complexity of the trauma. For single-incident PTSD with a clear and accessible target memory, meaningful improvement is often seen within 6 to 12 sessions. For complex PTSD with multiple trauma targets, or where significant stabilisation work is needed before processing begins, treatment typically runs longer — often several months to a year. EMDR treatment follows a phased protocol: history-taking and treatment planning, stabilisation and resourcing, active processing (desensitisation and reprocessing), and integration. Your therapist will discuss the expected timeline during your initial sessions.
Is EMDR safe and are there side effects?
EMDR is considered safe when delivered by a trained clinician who follows the protocol carefully, including adequate stabilisation before processing begins. Between and during sessions, some clients temporarily experience increased distress as difficult material surfaces — this is a normal part of the processing and is carefully managed by the therapist. Our Burlington EMDR therapists prioritise pacing and client safety above all else, ensuring that clients have the internal resources and relational safety needed before processing begins, and providing containment strategies for managing any distress between sessions.
Understanding EMDR — editorial resources
GestaltReview’s editorial content explores trauma and therapeutic change from a Gestalt and relational perspective. Gestalt therapy and EMDR share a common interest in present-moment processing and the way that past experience is held in the body and in relational patterns — making our editorial content directly relevant to clients considering EMDR or any trauma-focused work.
Many clients find that arriving at a first EMDR session with some understanding of how trauma is processed — and why bilateral stimulation is thought to support reprocessing — helps reduce the anxiety that can accompany the prospect of working directly with distressing memories.