English-speaking residents across Europe are gaining new access to accredited trauma therapy, as practitioners increasingly deliver EMDR and psychotherapy sessions online. The development is part of a wider shift toward remote mental health care that accelerated during the pandemic and has continued to expand since.
Filip Pasterski, an integrative psychotherapist and EMDR practitioner registered with the UK Council for Psychotherapy and accredited by EMDR UK & Europe, is one of those now working across borders. Based in Poland, he offers sessions via Zoom to English-speaking clients, including expats and international residents who have previously found it difficult to access therapy in their own language.
Pasterski trained at the School of Psychotherapy and Psychology at Regent’s University London and completed his EMDR training in 2009. His experience spans the NHS and private practice, including time at the Priory Wellbeing Centre on Harley Street. He has particular interests in trauma, anxiety, depression and chronic pain, as well as the needs of military veterans and people working across cultures.
EMDR, or Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing, is a structured therapy that helps the brain process distressing memories so they lose their emotional charge. It is recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence for post-traumatic stress disorder and is increasingly used for other conditions. Therapy aims to reduce the intensity of difficult memories rather than erase them, and progress typically takes place over a series of sessions.
For expats, the practical barriers to therapy can be significant: long waiting lists in some countries, language limitations, and uncertainty about how to find a practitioner trained to UK standards. Online delivery addresses each of these. Clients attend from their own homes, in their own language, with a therapist who is accountable to UK professional bodies.
Appointments with Filip Pasterski Therapy are available online, with an initial consultation to discuss suitability. More information is available at filippasterski.pl.