Beginning Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy is like preparing for a big trip. At first, past experiences might feel like excess baggage, especially for high‑achieving women who feel stuck or overwhelmed by expectations, responsibilities, or unresolved memories that make the journey feel overwhelming or lead to unexpected detours that leave you feeling lost. As your therapist, my role is to help you unpack the weight of distressing memories so they no longer hold you back. Through guided eye movements and other bilateral stimulation techniques, EMDR allows your brain to process and integrate past experiences, fostering healing and resilience. Instead of feeling stuck in painful memories, you gain clarity, confidence, and the ability to move forward without feeling stuck or overwhelmed.
Hi, my name is Leena Mehta, and I’m a registered clinical counsellor (#19428) trained in EMDR to support women, including high‑achieving women navigating burnout, anxiety, and negative core beliefs, in processing distressing memories and improving emotional well‑being.
As your therapist, my role is to help you unpack the weight of distressing experiences so they no longer hold you back. Through guided eye movements and other bilateral stimulation techniques, EMDR allows your brain to process and integrate past experiences in a way that fosters healing, resilience, and emotional clarity.
Instead of feeling stuck in painful memories or overwhelmed by your own high standards, you gain the ability to move forward with confidence and self‑trust.
I provide EMDR in person in Burnaby and online. My goal is to create a supportive space where you feel empowered, validated, and ready to move forward in your healing journey.
Together, we explore how past experiences have shaped your present emotions, reactions, and patterns. Using EMDR, I guide you through a structured process that helps your brain reprocess traumatic or distressing memories so they lose their emotional intensity.
Whether you’re struggling with anxiety, PTSD, perfectionism, burnout, or negative self‑beliefs common among high‑achieving women, EMDR offers a path toward healing and resilience.
EMDR is an evidence-based therapeutic approach designed to help individuals reprocess distressing memories and reduce their emotional impact. Developed by Dr. Francine Shapiro, EMDR is rooted in the understanding that unprocessed trauma can remain stuck in the brain, leading to ongoing distress, overwhelm, and negative self‑beliefs. By using bilateral stimulation such as guided eye movements, tapping, or auditory cues, EMDR helps the brain reorganise traumatic memories, improving emotional well-being and reducing overwhelm.
First, we explore your background and experiences to identify the memories or stressors impacting your well-being. This helps us create a therapy plan tailored to your needs and goals.
I share grounding and stabilization techniques to ensure you can start and end a session without feeling activated.
Next, we work on the target sequence plan, identifying distressing experiences, emotions, and the core negative beliefs associated with these experiences.
The desensitization phase uses gentle bilateral stimulation to reduce the intensity of these experiences. I share different bilateral stimulation techniques, such as tapping, butterfly tapping, and guided eye movements.
Once an experience is no longer distressing, we move to the next phase—installation—where we strengthen positive beliefs to support healing.
A body scan helps address any remaining distress that needs further processing.
Closure is the final phase, where you can think about the distressing experience without experiencing distressing emotions.
We review your feelings about the distressing experience we processed.
EMDR is designed to help individuals, especially high‑achieving women who feel stuck or overwhelmed, feel less impacted by distressing experiences and more able to move forward with clarity. For some people, this means feeling less anxious or triggered; for others, it means engaging in experiences they could not have before.
EMDR is particularly effective for individuals experiencing the effects of trauma, anxiety, and distressing experiences. This evidence-based therapy helps reprocess difficult experiences, reducing their emotional intensity. By promoting adaptive healing, EMDR allows individuals not to feel as distressed or impacted by distressing experiences with the same intensity.
EMDR helps individuals feel less stuck or overwhelmed by processing distressing experiences. As a result, they can think and reflect on these experiences without feeling triggered.
EMDR is beneficial for individuals experiencing PTSD, anxiety, depression, phobias, and distress linked to past experiences. It is also effective for high‑achieving women navigating burnout, overwhelm, and negative self‑beliefs.
While EMDR is widely recognised for trauma treatment, it also supports individuals dealing with anxiety, stress, grief, and negative self-beliefs. It can be helpful for anyone looking to process and reframe distressing experiences.
Yes, EMDR can be integrated with other therapeutic approaches, such as Person-Centred Counselling, trauma-informed therapy, and mindfulness-based practices. I will work with you to determine how best to support your needs and help you achieve your goals.
Yes, EMDR is an evidence-based therapy backed by extensive research. Dr. Francine Shapiro founded and developed EMDR to support individuals in processing distressing experiences. While it was initially developed to help people with trauma and PTSD, it is now also effective in processing a range of mental health issues, including anxiety and depression.
The duration of EMDR therapy varies depending on individual needs. Some clients start EMDR and have one traumatic experience to process, which may take less time compared to someone who has complex trauma. You determine how many sessions are right for you, and I can support you with this decision. I also offer EMDR intensives. Please reach out if you are interested in learning more about this.
Unlike traditional talk therapy, EMDR does not require extensive verbal processing of traumatic events. Instead, it activates the brain’s natural healing mechanisms through bilateral stimulation.
As a Burnaby BIPOC counsellor, I meet you where you are, especially if you’re a high‑achieving woman feeling stuck or overwhelmed and work at your pace with compassion and curiosity.
As a Burnaby therapist, I incorporate evidence-based modalities in every session. I am trained in various evidence-based modalities, including Acceptance Commitment Therapy, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Dialectical Behavioural Therapy, and Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing. Each of these modalities equips me to support your unique needs, including therapy for perfectionism in high‑achieving women.
As a Burnaby therapist, I understand the impact of inequality and oppression, providing a safe, non-judgmental, and inclusive space in-person and online. People from all ethnic backgrounds, genders, and sexual orientations, including 2SLGBTQ+, are welcome. As a South Asian Burnaby therapist, I create a culturally sensitive space, and I am curious to learn more about your culture, norms, and values.
