Birth trauma therapy · EMDR + somatic · online across Canada
Be able to say, “I gave birth.”
And feel confident in motherhood after an unscheduled or emergency cesarean.
Hey, I’m Jess. I’m a licensed therapist who also had an unplanned c-section, and for a long time it felt like my cesarean took an eraser to who I imagined I’d be as a mother. Knowing that so well, I now help other mothers through the trauma of an unplanned cesarean. I am currently accepting new clients.
Jessica Rita, MA, CCC · licensed in BC, AB, SK, MB, NB, PE, NL, YT and NT · usually covered by extended health
You’re ready to:
- Think about your birth without being pulled back into it. Not just talk about it. Actually think about it, from a distance, without your chest tightening or your mind going somewhere else.
- Stop replaying what you could have done differently. That loop has been running long enough.
- Feel something other than dread when someone asks if you're having another baby. Or when you see a pregnancy announcement. Or when your partner brings it up and the door in you closes before you've even decided if you want it open.
- Know what you actually want. Not what fear is deciding for you. Whether that's another pregnancy, a VBAC, or feeling complete about what happened. You deserve to make that decision from your own knowing.
- Stop carrying the guilt of feeling like you failed at the first thing motherhood asked of you.
- Trust your body again. Not to perform. Not to be managed. Just to be yours.
- Be fully present in the motherhood you're actually living, instead of half here and half back in that operating room.
Most mothers find me for one of four reasons
Still sad and angry about the birth
You keep telling yourself it wasn’t that bad. Your baby is healthy, you’re fine, and still, something about that day sits heavy.
Scared of another pregnancy
Part of you might want another baby, and your body locks up at the thought of being that vulnerable again.
Pregnant and scared of giving birth
There’s a due date on the calendar, and the fear from last time is back, louder than you expected.
The birth came between you and your partner
Your partner can’t talk about it, or can’t understand why you still need to. It happened to you both, differently.
Couples sessions availableHow it works
Everything you need to do this work properly.
1:1 Sessions · weekly or twice per month
50 or 80 minutes
The most direct path to where this actually lives in your body. Sessions are 50 minutes ($205) or 80 minutes ($250), held online across most of Canada. You pick your day and time, and we work at a cadence that suits you and your life.
A collaborative treatment plan from session one
You'll never wonder what we're doing or why. From our first session we map your goals, your triggers, and what you most want to feel different. You'll know exactly where we're heading, which means your nervous system can actually settle into the work.
Extended benefits billing
Most extended health plans in Canada cover registered clinical counselling. A quick check with your extended benefits before we start is worth it. Many clients find that most or all of their sessions are covered, making the out of pocket cost significantly less than expected.
About Jess
Licensed therapist · EMDR clinician · somatic therapist · perinatal mental health · CCPA registered
You can love your baby completely and still wonder why you don’t feel like yourself.
If your transition into motherhood began with an unplanned cesarean, you might be carrying questions no one has helped you answer. You’re not broken, and you’re not alone.
Read my story →The investment
$205 CAD · 50 minutes
or $250 CAD for an 80-minute session
A typical protocol is around 15 sessions, weekly or twice a month, and you’ll always know where we are in the process. Most extended health plans in Canada cover registered clinical counselling, so a quick check with your provider is worth it.
Want to move faster? The virtual EMDR Intensive fits about 15 sessions of processing into one focused week, or up to 8 weeks.
Frequently asked questions
What is EMDR therapy?
EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) is one of the most researched trauma therapies there is. While you hold a piece of the memory in mind, bilateral stimulation (eye movements or tapping) helps your brain file it as something that happened, instead of something still happening. It works well over video, which is how I offer it across Canada.
Do you only work with cesarean birth trauma?
Cesarean birth trauma is my specialty, emergency and unplanned c-sections especially. I also work with mothers after other traumatic births: a birth that went too fast or dragged on for days, a forceps or vacuum delivery, a NICU stay, or a birth where you felt unheard. If your birth still has a grip on you, book a free consult call and we’ll figure out together if I’m the right fit.
Do you offer EMDR intensives in Canada?
Yes. An EMDR Intensive is 18 hours of focused EMDR, in one week or spread over up to 8 weeks, instead of months of weekly sessions. It’s fully virtual and available anywhere I’m licensed in Canada. See the EMDR Intensive.
How do I book?
Book your first session directly through my booking page. You choose the day and time, and every session happens online. I keep my caseload small, about 12 clients a week, so each person gets my full attention.
How soon can I start?
The times you see on my booking page are open right now, so you can usually start within a week or two. If nothing fits, send me a note through the booking page and we'll find a time.
“I’m not sure I even want another pregnancy. Is this still for me?”
Yes, and this might be exactly the right time. If the fear of going through birth again is part of what’s keeping you from knowing what you actually want, that’s the thing we work with. You deserve to make that decision from clarity, not from what your nervous system says it can’t survive.
“I’ve already done therapy for this. Why would this be different?”
If you’ve done therapy and you can talk about the birth without falling apart, but your body still reacts, that’s not a failure of the previous work. It’s that the memory is stored somewhere talking doesn’t reach. EMDR and somatic work are specifically designed for that layer. We’re not starting over. We’re going deeper.
“Will extended benefits cover this?”
Most often, yes. Most extended health plans in Canada cover registered psychotherapy or counselling. I’m currently registered to practice in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador, Yukon, and Northwest Territories. A quick call to your provider before we start is worth it. The out of pocket cost is often significantly less than people expect.
“What if I’m not planning a VBAC?”
This work isn’t about convincing you to have a VBAC. It’s about making sure whatever you choose, another cesarean, a VBAC, no more pregnancies, you’re choosing it from what you actually want. Not from fear making the decision for you.
“What if it doesn’t work for me?”
EMDR is one of the most researched trauma treatments in the world. Somatic approaches have decades of clinical evidence behind them. I can’t guarantee your specific outcome. What I can tell you is that if you’ve read this far, something is already telling you it’s time. Let’s have a real conversation about whether this is the right fit before you commit to anything.
A mother’s heart is never her own.
A. Shea, writer
Bits of it are sown into the souls
of her daughters and her sons.