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and enjoy life again
EMDR therapy for imposter syndrome
Evidence-Based Treatment for High Achievers in New York, New Jersey & Chicago
HELPING THOUGHTFUL PROFESSIONALS IN DEMANDING CAREERS FIND CALM, CONFIDENCE, AND SELF-TRUST.
Serving clients in New York, New Jersey, and Chicago.
Weekly therapy and EMDR intensives available.
Why does your next mistake feel like it will expose you as a fraud?
You’ve earned every credential. Built an impressive track record. Gained the respect of colleagues who trust your judgment.
Yet success feels fragile, like you’re one slip away from being found out.
Here’s what you need to know:
You’re not broken. Your brain learned to keep you safe by staying hypervigilant, over-prepared, and impossible to satisfy.
That once helped you survive. Now it’s keeping you exhausted, anxious, and stuck.
Another promotion rarely fixes this. Working harder or achieving more often just moves the goalpost.
But EMDR therapy for imposter syndrome can change the pattern at its root.
Why This Practice Is Different
I combine four rarely-paired specializations:
- EMDR certification to reprocess the memories fueling self-doubt.
- Postgraduate psychoanalytic training to understand the deeper patterns.
- Certification in financial social work to help you understand your relationship with money: how it impacts what you’re earning, how you’re spending and saving, and ultimately your financial wellbeing.
- A decade in corporate environments where I saw firsthand what high-achievers face.
This isn’t generic therapy. It’s targeted treatment designed for professionals who know their imposter feelings are irrational, but can’t think their way out of them.
Serving clients in NY, NJ, and IL | Virtual sessions available
EMDR Certified | Postgraduate Psychoanalytic Training,
Training Institute for Mental Health
When Overthinking Becomes Exhausting
You replay conversations in your mind, trying to figure out what you said or how it landed. You second-guess your decisions, whether they are big or small, until you’re mentally drained.
Even positive feedback doesn’t always quiet the worry. Your body stays tense, your thoughts keep looping, and rest never feels fully earned.
EMDR therapy for high achievers provides a way to process overwhelming thoughts and steady your mind without years of talk therapy.
Why EMDR Therapy for Imposter Syndrome?
Many high-achievers cope by doing more and planning harder.
Yet no matter how much you accomplish, it never feels like enough. As a result, rest never feels fully restorative, and even small moments of quiet can feel uncomfortable.
Sometimes the stress comes from a major life change such as a new role, a shifting relationship, or memories from the past resurfacing. Other times, it’s the ongoing pressure of high expectations and unclear feedback that keeps your nervous system in overdrive.
You may have tried mindfulness, journaling, or even therapy before. These can help you cope in the moment, but something deeper still feels stuck. You’re not broken. Your mind and body have simply learned to stay on alert.
EMDR therapy for imposter syndrome helps you understand and calm this pattern so you can move through your days with more clarity, ease, and trust in yourself.
When Success Still Feels Like "Not Enough:"
Imposter Syndrome in High Achievers
Even the most capable professionals get caught in cycles of overthinking and self-doubt.
On the outside, you may look confident and accomplished; inside, you question your worth and replay moments, wondering if you’ve missed something.
This quiet pressure to prove yourself again and again is often called imposter syndrome, and it can be exhausting.
These patterns don’t mean you’re a fraud. They’re learned survival strategies that once kept you safe, but now hold you back.
How EMDR Therapy Helps with Imposter Syndrome
EMDR therapy for imposter syndrome helps high achievers shift patterns that logic alone can’t change.
As you begin to trust your own expertise, it becomes easier to take up space, share your ideas with confidence, and step into leadership or entrepreneurial roles.
Many clients find that as they feel more grounded in themselves, opportunities for growth and recognition at work follow naturally.
Explore how high-achievers can overcome imposter syndrome here.
Learning to quiet that inner pressure is not about lowering your standards. It’s about healing the patterns that keep your nervous system in constant overdrive.
That’s the work we do together in therapy: helping your body and mind find balance, so calm and confidence feel sustainable, not fragile.
Sarah's Story
Meet Sarah
Sarah came to therapy after her promotion to director at a tech company. It was everything she’d worked toward. Instead of satisfaction, she felt like an imposter.
The reality behind her success:
- 60-hour weeks, terrified of being “found out.”
- Rewrote client emails 5-7 times before sending.
- Refused to delegate because “no one else could do it right.”
- Rehearsed for three days before every executive meeting.
- Avoided proposing ideas, convinced they weren’t good enough.
Through EMDR therapy, we discovered the root: Childhood experiences where love felt conditional on
achievement. Her nervous system learned: “If I’m not perfect, I’m not valuable.”
We reprocessed those memories. The pattern started to shift.
Six months later:
- She delegated entire projects without checking in constantly.
- Spoke up in meetings without the three-day mental rehearsal.
- Set boundaries: stopped checking email after 8 PM.
- Applied for, and accepted, a VP role she previously thought was “for someone more qualified.”
- Described feeling “lighter, like I can finally exhale.”
Sarah didn’t become someone new. She stopped carrying beliefs that were never hers to begin with.
Timeline varies by individual. Some clients experience shifts sooner; others need more time with complex patterns. We move at your pace.
“I have gained a great deal by working with Dorlee. She empowered me to create boundaries, be able to say no, to truly value myself and my work, and to be accountable for how I show up in the world. She was patient, yet firm, and the sessions, especially the EMDR, allowed me to transcend barriers that I couldn’t have imagined overcoming before.”
— MK, 29
How EMDR Therapy Helps With Imposter Syndrome
Many of my clients are intelligent, capable professionals who have spent years relying on logic, planning, and achievement to feel safe. On the outside, they’re successful. Inside, they often feel tense, uncertain, or always “on.”
Why EMDR Therapy for Imposter Syndrome?
Therapy offers a space to slow down and understand what’s driving that pressure. Together, we bring curiosity and compassion to the patterns that once helped you cope but now keep you stuck.
In our work, you’ll begin to:
✔ Understand how your experiences (past or present) shape the way you respond to stress and self-doubt.
✔ Heal emotional wounds that keep your nervous system in constant overdrive.
✔ Rebuild self-trust so your confidence no longer depends on external approval or perfect performance.
✔ Create new ways of relating to yourself that feel grounded, balanced, and real.
You don’t need a crisis to begin this work. Many people come to therapy not because everything is falling apart, but because they’re ready for life to feel more aligned.
As you begin to reconnect with the parts of yourself that have been working too hard for too long, calm starts to last, confidence feels more natural, and rest finally feels earned.
Whether you’re managing ongoing anxiety, moving through a major life transition, or healing from trauma, therapy can help you build steadier confidence, clearer boundaries, and a deeper sense of ease in your daily life.
When you’ve spent years pushing through stress, slowing down can feel uncomfortable at first. But it’s in that slowing that change begins.
Therapy helps you learn to move through challenges without losing yourself, to meet pressure with steadiness instead of self-criticism.
Shifts Clients Notice First
Real Changes Clients Report
This work creates behavioral shifts, not just insight:
- You’ll stop rehearsing emails five times, trusting your first draft is solid.
- You’ll accept compliments without deflecting or crediting luck.
- You’ll speak up in meetings without the exhausting mental rehearsal loop.
- You’ll delegate without micromanaging every detail.
- You’ll apply for opportunities at 80% ready instead of waiting for 200%.
- You’ll recognize self-doubt when it appears—but it won’t dictate your decisions.
These aren’t abstract goals. They’re the tangible changes clients describe after EMDR reprocesses the beliefs driving imposter patterns.
But Is This Really For Me?
“I don’t have time for months of therapy”
EMDR intensives compress the work into 1-3 focused days. Many clients see significant shifts faster than traditional weekly therapy.
“I’m not sure I’m ‘bad enough’ to need therapy”
If imposter syndrome is affecting your decisions, causing you to overwork, stay silent, or avoid opportunities, that’s reason enough. You don’t need to be in crisis to deserve support.
“What if EMDR doesn’t work for me?”
EMDR is extensively researched for treating limiting beliefs and anxiety patterns. During your free consultation, we’ll assess whether it’s the right fit for your specific situation.
“I’ve tried therapy before and nothing changed”
EMDR works differently than traditional talk therapy. Instead of just understanding your patterns, it helps your brain reprocess the experiences that created them, leading to lasting behavioral change, not just insight.
For Quiet High Achievers
Deep dives into the patterns that keep capable professionals stuck.
The Superwoman Pattern: Why Capable Women Feel They Can Never Rest
Natural Genius Imposter Syndrome: Why Effort Feels Like Failure
The Expert Trap: Why “Never Knowing Enough” Keeps You Stuck
EMDR therapy for imposter syndrome is a specialized approach that helps high-achieving professionals process the underlying experiences that fuel self-doubt and anxiety. Unlike traditional talk therapy, EMDR uses bilateral stimulation to help your brain reprocess memories and beliefs that keep you stuck in patterns of overthinking and feeling “not enough.” It’s particularly effective for professionals who intellectually know they’re capable but can’t shake the feeling they’re a fraud.
EMDR therapy for imposter syndrome works by targeting the root experiences that created your self-doubt, whether that’s childhood messages about performance, early failures, or ongoing workplace pressure to prove yourself.
During EMDR sessions, you’ll recall these experiences while following guided bilateral stimulation (eye movements, taps, or sounds), which helps your brain reprocess the memories so they no longer trigger overwhelming anxiety or self-criticism.
Unlike traditional talk therapy that focuses on managing symptoms, EMDR addresses the source of your patterns.
Clients often notice they stop rehearsing emails five times before sending, can accept compliments without deflecting, and speak up in meetings without exhausting mental preparation.
The shifts are behavioral and lasting. You build genuine confidence that doesn’t depend on external validation, perfect performance, or constantly proving your worth.
EMDR therapy for imposter syndrome is especially effective for high-achieving professionals like executives, entrepreneurs, physicians, lawyers, academics, and other driven individuals who feel stuck in cycles of self-doubt despite external success.
You might benefit from EMDR if you: replay conversations obsessively, second-guess decisions even after making them, feel like you’re “faking it” and will be exposed, can’t accept compliments without deflecting, overwork to compensate for perceived inadequacy, or can’t turn off the pressure to prove yourself.
EMDR works particularly well for professionals who’ve tried traditional therapy but found that understanding their patterns intellectually didn’t change them. You don’t need to be in crisis to benefit.
Many clients seek EMDR when they’re functioning well externally but exhausted internally from the constant mental effort of managing self-doubt.
The timeline for EMDR therapy for imposter syndrome varies depending on your specific experiences and how deeply rooted your patterns are.
Some clients notice significant shifts within 8-12 weekly sessions, while others with more complex histories benefit from 6-12 months of work.
EMDR intensives, concentrated sessions over 1-3 days, can compress this timeline significantly, offering progress equivalent to several months of weekly therapy.
The free consultation helps us both assess fit. You’ll get a sense of my style and approach, and I’ll learn what brings you to therapy.
Once we begin, we spend the first few sessions gathering background before collaboratively developing a treatment plan tailored to your needs.
Changes often happen in layers: you might notice behavioral shifts (like delegating without micromanaging) before underlying beliefs fully transform.
The goal isn’t just temporary symptom relief; it’s lasting change in how you relate to yourself, your achievements, and your worth.
We’ll regularly assess progress to ensure the treatment is creating the meaningful changes you’re seeking.
I offer EMDR intensive therapy specifically designed for high-achieving professionals with demanding schedules. Rather than weekly 45-minute sessions spread over months, intensives compress the therapeutic work into 1-3 full days of focused EMDR.
This format is ideal if you have a demanding career, travel frequently, or are facing an imminent deadline, presentation, promotion, or major career transition.
During an intensive, we process multiple target memories and patterns in deep, uninterrupted work without the start-stop rhythm of weekly sessions.
Many clients find intensives more efficient because you maintain therapeutic momentum and don’t spend the first 10-15 minutes of each session catching up.
Following an intensive, we typically schedule 2-3 integration sessions to support your continued progress.
This approach allows you to address imposter syndrome meaningfully without disrupting your career for months of weekly appointments.
Yes, EMDR therapy for imposter syndrome is highly effective for the anxiety and overthinking that often accompany high achievement.
Many professionals experience racing thoughts, mental rehearsal loops before meetings, rumination about past conversations, and physical symptoms like chest tightness, jaw tension, or difficulty sleeping.
EMDR addresses both the cognitive patterns (the repetitive thoughts) and the nervous system activation (the physical anxiety response) by reprocessing the experiences that taught your body to stay in constant alert mode.
Clients often report that they stop replaying conversations endlessly, can turn off work thoughts in the evening, sleep more soundly, and feel less physical tension throughout the day.
The anxiety doesn’t disappear entirely. That would be unrealistic, but it becomes manageable and proportional to actual situations rather than constantly activated.
EMDR helps you move from chronic hypervigilance to appropriate, situational alertness, so calm feels sustainable rather than fleeting.
Yes, I provide online EMDR therapy for imposter syndrome to clients throughout New York, New Jersey, and Illinois.
Virtual EMDR therapy is as effective as in-person sessions. Research shows comparable outcomes for treating anxiety, self-doubt, and imposter patterns.
During online sessions, we use bilateral stimulation through visual cues on your screen, self-administered tapping, or audio tones through headphones.
Many clients actually prefer online EMDR because they can process difficult material in the comfort and privacy of their own space, which can feel safer when working with vulnerable memories and emotions.
Virtual sessions also eliminate commute time, making it easier to fit therapy into demanding professional schedules. You can attend from your office, home, or even while traveling.
Limited in-person sessions are also available in Chicago for clients who prefer face-to-face work.
Talk therapy helps you understand imposter syndrome: where it comes from, how it shows up, and strategies to manage it.
EMDR therapy for imposter syndrome goes further by helping your brain reprocess the actual experiences that created these patterns, so they no longer trigger the same emotional and physical responses.
In traditional therapy, you might spend months discussing why you feel like a fraud and developing coping strategies.
With EMDR, you target specific memories, like a moment when your parent’s love felt conditional on achievement, or when a mistake at work left you feeling exposed, and reprocess them using bilateral stimulation.
The result is that understanding becomes embodied change: you don’t just know intellectually that you’re capable; your nervous system believes it.
Many clients who’ve tried years of talk therapy find that EMDR creates shifts in weeks or months that conversation alone couldn’t achieve.
what Clients/colleagues say
“She empowered me to create boundaries, be able to say no, to truly value myself and my work,
and to be accountable for how I show up in the world.”
— AA, 31
“She’s helped me change my mindset and given me lifelong tools to manage stress and anxiety.“
— CC, 27
“She is compassionate, warm, and insightful, helping clients heal emotional wounds, rewire old patterns, and develop lasting confidence.
A great fit for high-achieving individuals.”
— Kristin Zeising, PsyD, CST
You Don’t Have to Keep Proving Yourself
You’ve achieved what you thought would make you feel confident. The credentials, the title, the respect.
But imposter syndrome doesn’t respond to external validation. It requires internal rewiring.
EMDR therapy helps you rebuild the self-trust that external achievements never could, so you can finally show up as the capable person you’ve always been.
I specialize in helping high-achieving professionals in New York, New Jersey, and Chicago move from chronic self-doubt to genuine confidence.
Let’s talk about how EMDR can help you feel as secure on the inside as you appear on the outside.
Ready to explore EMDR therapy for imposter syndrome?
