EMDR for Children, Teens, and Parents, Gold Coast
What is EMDR?
EMDR stands for Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing. It's an evidence-based therapy that helps the brain process difficult or distressing memories, so they stop feeling as overwhelming in day to day life. It was originally developed for trauma and PTSD, and decades of research now support its use across all ages, from young children through to adults.
Unlike traditional talk therapy, EMDR doesn't require you or your child to describe everything that happened in detail. Instead, it uses guided eye movements or similar techniques while briefly focusing on the memory, helping the brain reprocess it in a way that reduces its emotional intensity over time.
EMDR for children and teens
I use EMDR with children and teenagers who are struggling with the impact of a difficult experience, whether that's a single distressing event, an accident, bullying, a frightening medical experience, or the accumulated stress of ongoing difficulties at school or at home. It can help with symptoms like anxiety, nightmares, avoidance, emotional outbursts, or a general sense of being "stuck" since something happened.
Because I've spent years working in schools and with children specifically, sessions are paced and explained in a way that makes sense for a child's age and stage, not adapted from an adult protocol. Your child is never pushed to talk about more than they're comfortable with.
Raising a family while carrying your own unresolved stress or past experiences is exhausting, and it can affect how you show up for your kids, even when you're doing everything you can. I also offer EMDR to parents, whether that's processing something from your own past, or the more recent toll of a hard diagnosis, a difficult birth, or an ongoing family crisis. Getting support for yourself isn't separate from supporting your family, it's part of it.
EMDR for parents
What to expect
We start with a history and a conversation about what you or your child has been experiencing, so we can understand what we're working with before any EMDR begins. From there, we build a plan together, and each step is explained clearly along the way. Everyone moves through this process at their own pace.
Is EMDR right for you or your child?
EMDR isn't the right fit for everyone, and that's exactly what the first conversation is for. Get in touch and we can talk through what's been going on and whether EMDR makes sense as part of your support, or your child's.
Looking for a broader cognitive or academic assessment instead? See our Cognitive and Academic Assessments page.
Hannah
Founder / Psychologist
