Dirk J. Lambert

Dirk J. Lambert is a Belgian psychotherapist, trauma specialist, author, and founder of New Paradigm Mental Health Retreat and the Chiang Mai Trauma Institute in Thailand.

With more than 25 years of experience in trauma recovery, Dirk specialises in trauma, PTSD, Complex PTSD, childhood and abuse, anxiety, depression, and attachment-related trauma. His work focuses primarily on EMDR and his Rapid EMDR Target Reprocessing (RETR) approach.

His journey into trauma recovery is also deeply personal. As a survivor of childhood abuse, Dirk developed an early understanding of how unresolved trauma can continue to influence the nervous system, relationships, and emotional wellbeing throughout adult life.

Since 1995, he has worked voluntarily with Vietnam veterans affected by PTSD and was later appointed by the Victims of Crime Assistance Tribunal in Melbourne, Australia, to work with victims of abuse.

Dirk is a Certified Clinical Trauma Specialist (CCTS-I), CBT and NLP practitioner, and experienced EMDR practitioner who has conducted more than 1,500 EMDR sessions. Through the Chiang Mai Trauma Institute, he also teaches the RETR methodology and has trained mental health professionals, including psychologists, doctors, and psychiatrists.

Dirk is also a twice-ordained Theravada Buddhist monk and meditation teacher. His Buddhist training has strongly influenced his approach to mindfulness, compassion, emotional awareness, and nervous system regulation.

As founder of New Paradigm, Dirk leads small, intensive 14-day residential programs with a maximum of four participants, allowing treatment to remain highly individual and personally focused.