EMDR Therapy in the South Bay

At Bodhi Wellness Collective, EMDR is offered as part of coordinated, whole-person care at our office on Pacific Coast Highway in Hermosa Beach. Most of the people we see for EMDR live nearby, in Hermosa Beach, Manhattan Beach, Redondo Beach, El Segundo, Torrance, and Palos Verdes. We also offer it by secure video for clients elsewhere in California.

What EMDR can help with

EMDR is best known for trauma and post-traumatic stress, but its reach is wider. People come to us for support with:

• Trauma and PTSD, including single events and longstanding experiences
• Distressing or intrusive memories that won't settle
• Anxiety and panic rooted in past experience
• Grief, loss, and painful life transitions
• The lingering weight of experiences that talk therapy alone hasn't resolved

Our approach

EMDR is recognized by the World Health Organization as a first-line treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder, and endorsed by the American Psychological Association and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. We deliver it the way all care should be delivered here, thoughtfully, and at your pace. Our work is trauma-informed from the first conversation: we move only as quickly as feels safe, and we build the groundwork before we ever approach a difficult memory.

Sources: American Psychological Association; U.S. Dept. of Veterans Affairs, National Center for PTSD.

EMDR is also not the only path, and not everyone needs it. Some people do their deepest work through body-based somatic approaches; others through individual therapy. Because our team is coordinated under one roof, we can match you to the approach that fits, and combine them when that serves you best. EMDR sits within our broader trauma and PTSD care.

What to expect

EMDR unfolds in phases. We begin by understanding your history and building a sense of safety and steadiness. Only then do we turn, gently, to the experiences that brought you in, using guided attention to help your brain reprocess them. Many people notice that a memory which once felt overwhelming begins to feel more distant, more manageable, and less charged.

The number of sessions varies from person to person and depends on what you're working through. We'll talk openly about what to expect for your situation, and you'll never be pushed faster than you're ready to go. For a plain walkthrough of the eight phases, see our guide to what EMDR therapy is and how it works.

Who you'll work with

EMDR here is delivered by clinicians specifically trained in it, which is not something every practice offering EMDR can say.

Nimalee Wickremasinghe-Kuhn, LPCC works in EMDR alongside dialectical behavior therapy and acceptance and commitment therapy, with particular depth in trauma, mood and anxiety disorders, personality disorders, and substance use. She has practised across the full continuum of care, from shelters and hospitals to residential and outpatient settings. Read more about Nimalee and our clinical team.

You'll work within a coordinated clinical team, with the same unhurried attention whether you see us in the South Bay or online, and the option to draw on psychiatry, somatic work, or talk therapy as your care evolves.

As Jack Foley, LMFT, our co-founder, puts it:

The evidence for EMDR is stronger than most people assume and less settled than its advocates claim. We still argue about why the eye movements matter. What isn't in dispute is that for post-traumatic stress, it holds up against any trauma-focused therapy we have.