Online EMDR Therapy Across Ontario
EMDR Therapy in Ontario
If a memory still lands in your body as though it were happening now, understanding it isn’t always enough. EMDR is a structured way of helping the brain finish processing what it never put away, and every session happens online with no waitlist.
- No waitlist
- Secure video sessions
- Reduced-fee sessions available
- Receipts for extended health benefits
What EMDR Stands For, in Plain Language
EMDR stands for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. The name is a mouthful, but the idea behind it is fairly simple.
Most of what happens to us gets filed away over time, and the sting fades. When something is overwhelming, that filing sometimes doesn’t finish, so the memory stays near the surface with the original picture, feelings and body sensations still attached. A sound or a tone of voice can bring it all back as if no time had passed.
EMDR works with that unfinished part. Instead of talking the memory through in detail, you bring it briefly to mind while your attention is occupied by something rhythmic and side to side, then notice what shifted. Over repeated rounds, many people find the memory becomes less vivid, more like something that happened than something happening now.
What EMDR Therapy Is Used For
EMDR began as a way of working with traumatic memory, and that is still where it is used most. People bring a wide range of experiences to it.
Single events
One Thing That Changed Everything
A collision, an assault, a medical emergency. Something with a clear before and after.
Repeated experiences
Years, Not Moments
Growing up with fear or unpredictability. About CPTSD therapy
Post-traumatic stress
Flashbacks and Hypervigilance
Intrusive images, being permanently on alert. About trauma therapy
Core beliefs
“It Was My Fault”
What a frightening experience left you believing about yourself.
Anxiety and panic
Fear With a Starting Point
Anxiety that traces back to specific moments. About anxiety therapy
Grief
A Loss You Can’t Get Past
When the hardest images keep replacing the rest of the person. About grief counselling
What Actually Happens in an EMDR Session
Most people picture something stranger than it is. An EMDR session is a conversation with structured pauses in it, and you stay awake, aware and in control throughout.
A processing session opens with a short check in. You and your therapist agree what to focus on, and they help you bring the memory to mind along with the feeling, the belief attached to it and where you notice it in your body.
Then comes the part the name refers to. Bilateral stimulation means something that occupies your attention alternately on the left and right. You hold the memory lightly in mind through a short set, perhaps thirty seconds, then stop and say briefly what came up. Your therapist says “notice that” and starts another set, and the material tends to move on its own.
How Bilateral Stimulation Works Over Video
- Following your therapist’s hand or a moving dot across the screen
- Tapping alternately on your own knees or shoulders
- Alternating tones through headphones, ear to ear
- Eyes closed with taps only, if visual tracking is tiring
You do not have to narrate the memory in detail. Your therapist needs enough context to work safely, but most people report only short notes about what they notice.
How EMDR Works, Simply
EMDR has eight formal phases, but in practice it comes down to three stages.
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Getting Ready
Your therapist learns your story and helps you build ways to settle yourself, like grounding and slower breathing, before any memory work begins.
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Processing a Memory
You hold one memory in mind during short sets of eye movements or tapping, noticing what shifts until it loses its charge and a kinder belief, like “it’s over now,” starts to fit.
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Settling and Checking In
Every session ends with time to come back to calm. The next one checks what held before deciding what comes next.
Why Getting Ready Comes First
Preparation can take a few sessions, and that’s on purpose. Processing brings feelings back up, so you want reliable ways to settle first. If it takes a while, EMDR is still working.
Is EMDR the Right Starting Point for You?
EMDR tends to suit people who can name something specific they want to feel differently about, and who have enough steadiness to sit with feeling and then come back out of it.
You don’t need to be certain it will help, or your memories organized before you start. The free consultation is partly so you can ask what it would involve.
EMDR may be worth asking about if you:
- Keep returning to one event that changed how you function
- Notice your body reacting before your thoughts catch up
- Have insight into your history but little relief from it
- Find talking about it exhausting and want another way in
How Long It Takes, and How It Feels Afterwards
Honestly, it varies. A single recent event with a settled life around it is sometimes worked through in a handful of processing sessions. Experiences that repeated over years usually take longer, because there is more to steady first. Your therapist will talk through a rough shape at the start and review it with you, rather than committing to a number.
Afterwards, many people feel tired, foggy or unusually emotional for a day or two. Some notice vivid dreams, or thoughts that keep surfacing as processing continues on its own. Others finish feeling oddly light. None of that means something has gone wrong, and your therapist will send you off with grounding tools.
How EMDR Sits Alongside Talk Therapy
EMDR is rarely the whole of someone’s therapy. It is more often one tool inside an ongoing relationship with a therapist who also does other things with you, so weeks where you just need to talk are still weeks well spent. Many people move between EMDR and talk-based work on boundaries or emotion regulation.
How to Get Started
Getting started is simple, and everything happens online.
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Book a Free Consultation
A free 15 to 20 minute video call to say what’s going on and ask whether EMDR makes sense for it.
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Get Matched
We match you with a therapist based on what you’re working through, including whether EMDR is part of it.
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Start With History and Preparation
Your first sessions cover your story and the settling tools you’ll rely on. Processing begins when you are ready.
Trauma-informed and goal-oriented. If your family history or past experiences are relevant, your therapist can explore them with you, while keeping sessions focused on the goals you came in with. The work is paced with you, so you are never pushed into feelings that are too overwhelming, or left on your own to figure out how to manage them.
Therapists Who Offer EMDR
EMDR is offered by specific therapists on our team rather than by everyone, and current availability for it is something we go through with you at your free consultation. If EMDR turns out not to be the right starting point, we’ll talk about what is.
Our team includes Registered Psychotherapists and Registered Psychotherapists (Qualifying). Meet the full team.
What EMDR Therapy Costs
We offer different price points depending on your needs and your therapist’s qualifications. Every session comes with a receipt for your extended health benefits.
Affordable Care$90Sessions completed with a Masters Level Resident Intern working under supervision. Ideal for clients experiencing hardship.
Sliding Scale$100–$160Sessions completed with a Masters Level Resident Intern or Advanced Therapists offering sliding scale. Ideal for clients with limited health insurance.
Standard & Specialty$170+Sessions completed with therapists with higher levels of experience or with specialized care with different issues. Ideal for clients with health insurance coverage.
Your 15 to 20 minute consultation is free. OHIP does not cover private psychotherapy. Read more about affordable care, our sliding scale and standard sessions. Individual sessions are 50 minutes.
Using Your Benefits
Many extended health benefit plans cover psychotherapy. Check which provider types your plan covers, and keep in mind that a Health Spending Account may cover sessions too. We provide a receipt after every session so you can submit your claim.
Online EMDR Anywhere in Ontario
Because every session is online, where you live doesn’t limit who you can work with. One quiet advantage is that you are already somewhere familiar when a session ends, rather than driving home from one.
- TorontoOnline therapy
- OttawaOnline therapy
- MississaugaOnline therapy
- HamiltonOnline therapy
See all the places we work with clients across Ontario.
Related Services
Frequently Asked Questions About EMDR Therapy
What does EMDR stand for?
EMDR stands for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. You bring a difficult memory briefly to mind while your attention is occupied side to side, by guided eye movements, taps or sounds.
What is EMDR therapy used for?
People often come to EMDR for a single frightening event, for repeated or early experiences that still shape how they feel now, and for the beliefs they left behind, such as “it was my fault.”
How does EMDR work over video?
All of our sessions are online. Over video, bilateral stimulation is usually guided eye movements following your therapist’s hand on screen, tapping alternately on your own knees, or alternating tones through headphones.
What happens in an EMDR session?
After a short check in, you agree what to focus on. You hold the memory in mind through brief sets of bilateral stimulation, pausing to say what came up, until the session is closed calmly.
Do I have to describe the trauma in detail?
No. EMDR involves less talking than people expect. Your therapist needs enough context to work safely, but you usually report only short notes about what you notice.
How many EMDR sessions do people usually need?
It varies. Many people spend the first few sessions on history and preparation before processing begins. A single recent event is sometimes worked through in a handful of sessions, while repeated or early experiences often take longer.
How will I feel after an EMDR session?
Many people feel tired, foggy or emotional for a day or two, and some notice vivid dreams or thoughts that keep surfacing. Others feel lighter. Your therapist gives you grounding tools.
Is EMDR always the right place to start?
Not always. If you are in crisis, living somewhere unsafe, or so overwhelmed that daily life is hard to manage, steadier support and stabilising work usually come first.
How much does EMDR therapy cost, and does OHIP cover it?
Sessions are $90 through Affordable Care with our Masters Level Resident Interns, who work under supervision, $100 to $160 on our Sliding Scale, and $170+ for Standard & Specialty sessions with our most experienced therapists. Your 15 to 20 minute consultation is free, fees can vary by therapist, and every session comes with a receipt for your extended health benefits provider. OHIP does not cover private psychotherapy.
Do you offer direct billing to my insurance?
Not yet. We don’t currently offer direct billing, but we’re working on it. For now, you pay for each session and we send a receipt you can submit to your extended health plan for reimbursement.
Do I need a referral to start EMDR therapy?
No. You don’t need a doctor’s referral, and there is no waitlist. Some extended health benefit plans ask for a referral before they reimburse psychotherapy, so it’s worth checking your plan.
Ready to Ask About EMDR?
Book a free 15 to 20 minute video consultation with a therapist matched to you.
or call / text 289‑270‑1220
True Self Counselling is not a crisis service. If you are in crisis, call or text 9‑8‑8 any time, or call 911 in an emergency.