Course Description

The evidence supporting EMDR as a first-line treatment for PTSD is widely endorsed across multiple international guidelines. However, a notable exception is the recommendations published by the APA in 2025. In this talk, Associate Professor Christopher Lee will explore the reasons behind this discrepancy. Drawing on his own research and the existing literature, he will identify the disorders for which we can confidently assert effective treatment outcomes, as well as areas needing improvement. Additionally, he will analyze which clients may not be appropriate for EMDR, acknowledging legitimate concerns and clarifying misconceptions. These include beliefs such as: EMDR poses risks or suicidal patients, it may compromise legal testimony, it is ineffective for refugees when interpreters are involved, and it does not provide long-term benefits for individuals with complex trauma.

Presenter(s)

Christopher Lee

Associate Professor Christopher Lee works in private practise and has an adjunct appointment at the University of Western Australia. He is a certified trainer by both the international society of schema therapists and the EMDR international association. He conducts therapist training workshops on personality disorders and trauma treatments throughout Australia and overseas. He has published research on the assessment of schemas and the effectiveness of schema therapy for BPD and PTSD. He has received an International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies and EMDRIA awards for research excellence in 1999 and 2014. In 2009 he also received the Inaugural Francine Shapiro award for research excellence conferred by the European EMDRIA. He was the 2011 recipient of the Australian Psychological Society’s Ian Campbell memorial award for contributions as a scientist-practitioner to Clinical Psychology in Australia. He is currently a principal investigator in an international multi-centred randomised controlled trial on complex PTSD.