Parveen Kaur
Canadian Certified Counsellor
Works with adults, adolescents, and older adults, with particular depth in fertility, pregnancy, and reproductive mental health, including the distress that can follow birth trauma or pregnancy loss.
EMDR Therapy in Brampton
For Memories That Have Not Finished Happening
There is a particular quality to some memories.
Most of the past is genuinely over. You can recall it, and it stays where it is. Certain memories do not behave that way. They arrive uninvited, complete with the physical sensations of the original moment. A smell, a tone of voice, or a sound puts you back there. You know perfectly well it is over, and your body has not accepted the information.
EMDR was developed specifically for that.
Start With a Conversation
Book a free 30-minute consultation: 416-409-8045.What Is EMDR?
EMDR stands for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. It is a structured, evidence-based therapy developed for trauma and for distressing experiences that have not been fully processed.
The underlying idea is that the brain ordinarily processes experience and files it as memory. When an experience is overwhelming, that process can be interrupted, and the memory is stored in something closer to its raw form: the images, the physical sensations, and the beliefs formed in that moment all still live.
EMDR aims to let that processing complete. The memory remains, but it stops carrying the same charge.
What Actually Happens
EMDR is more structured than most talking therapies and follows a defined sequence of phases.
Preparation comes first, and it is not a formality. Before any processing begins, a therapist takes a history, explains the approach, and makes sure you have reliable ways to manage distress. A competent EMDR therapist will not rush this, and a practitioner who wants to start processing in the first session is not following the protocol.
Processing involves bringing a specific memory to mind, along with the images, beliefs, and physical sensations attached to it, while engaging in bilateral stimulation. That is usually guided eye movements, though taps or sounds alternating left and right are also used.
Sets are short. Between them, the therapist asks what you noticed. The material often shifts on its own, moving toward other memories, changing in quality, or losing intensity.
You are not required to describe the memory in detail. This is one of the reasons people choose EMDR. Much of the processing is internal, so you do not have to narrate your worst experience to a stranger.
Closure and review follow, ensuring you leave a session settled rather than opened up.
What Can It Help With?
Depending on your circumstances and the therapist's clinical assessment, EMDR may support people experiencing:
- Anxiety, worry, and persistent overthinking
- Depression and low mood
- Chronic stress and burnout
- Avoidance that has narrowed daily life
- Harsh self-criticism
- Grief and loss
- Chronic pain and long-term health conditions
- Difficult experiences from the past that continue to intrude
- Feeling stuck or disconnected from what used to matter
- Living with a long-term condition or diagnosis
It is often useful for people who have already tried to think their way out of something and found that understanding it did not change it.
ACT is not automatically right for everyone, and a therapist should assess that rather than assume.
Is This Approach Right for Me?
It may suit you if you do:
- Have a specific event or events that still feel present
- Experience intrusive memories, flashbacks, or nightmares
- Find your body reacts to reminders even when you know you are safe
- Do not want to describe an experience in detail
- Have found talking about it has not reduced its intensity
EMDR is not appropriate for everyone, and a proper assessment matters. There are circumstances in which processing work needs to be delayed or approached very differently, including where someone is in an unsafe situation currently or where stability needs to be established first.
A trained therapist will assess your situation rather than make assumptions.
EMDR at C.S. Counselling
Two of our therapists use EMDR in their work, alongside other trauma-informed approaches, according to their training and what you need.
Read Parveen's profile →
Pallavi Joshi
Registered Psychotherapist
Works with youth and adults, including trauma, anxiety, depression, and postpartum adjustment. Sessions in English, Hindi, and Punjabi.
Sessions are available in person at our Brampton clinic and online across Ontario with both therapists. Whether EMDR is better done in person or online for you is something your therapist will discuss honestly at the start.
If EMDR turns out not to be the right fit, or not yet, other trauma-informed approaches are available within the practice.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will I have to relive the worst thing that happened to me?
Not in the way people fear. You do not need to describe it in detail, and preparation work comes first specifically so that processing is manageable.
How does moving my eyes do anything?
The mechanism is still being researched. Bilateral stimulation appears to support the brain's processing of the memory while it is held in mind. The evidence for the outcome is considerably stronger than the settled explanation of the mechanism.
How many sessions does it take?
For a single distressing event, it can be relatively brief. For prolonged or repeated experiences it takes longer, and preparation forms a larger part of the work.
Will I forget what happened?
No. The memory remains. What changes is its intensity and how present it feels.
Is there evidence for it?
Yes. EMDR is recognized in major clinical guidelines as an effective treatment for PTSD.
Can it be done online?
Online EMDR is possible and is practiced, but suitability depends on the person and the situation. Your therapist will advise honestly.
Start With a Conversation
You do not need to describe what happened to get in touch.
Tell us as much or as little as you want, and we will discuss what support may fit.
We'll start by listening.
Book Your Free 30-Minute ConsultationC.S. Counselling & Consulting Services
2250 Bovaird Drive E, Suite 408
Brampton, ON L6R 0W3
EMDR Therapy in Brampton | Trauma Counselling in Peel Region
If you are in immediate distress or concerned about your safety, please contact emergency services or a local crisis line. Ongoing counselling is not an emergency service.