Embodied Therapy to Transform Your Life

The first step into transforming your life is usually feeling that change is possible.

Maria Alda Gomez Otero, Therapist

If you are haunted by your past, experience anxiety or outbursts of anger, constant intrusive thoughts or overwhelming emotions, you are in the right place and you are welcome. I help people find their inner strength, grow their internal resources, and release their baggage in a deep, playful and transformative way. We can only change what we can see. So we need to practise seeing with the right lenses. If you decide to work with me, session after session you will learn how to look at yourself with the lenses of self-awareness so that you can transform what you don't like and create what you wish for in your life. Self-awareness means knowing yourself better. What you know, you can change. I can help you do this in two different ways: individual therapy to understand your patterns, emotions and behaviours; and therapeutic dance where you will become more aware of who you truly are and have new experiences that create new neuropathways in your brain.

More about Alda

I also speak Spanish and French
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How I can help

Individual Therapy

One to one therapy for over 18. A mix of talking therapy and body and energy techniques. Typical issues I can help you with include anxiety, grief, trauma, and spiritual wounds.

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Therapeutic Groups

At the moment, I run Dance Your Life sessions which are therapeutic dancing sessions in which you will dance your life to create your future.

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What informs my practice

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Person-centred Approach & Psychodynamic Theories

The person-centred approach respects your autonomy and trusts your inner wisdom. The psychodynamic theories help me understand the unconscious messages that you are constantly sending with your words, emotions and behaviours. This knowledge will help me offer you suggestions, exercises or techniques that can help you to become unstuck.

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Polyvagal Theory

Your body and brain are in constant communication, but sometimes your nervous system gets stuck in survival modes and needs help. The polyvagal theory combines knowledge from the most recent discoveries to help you understand your activation or hopelessness. We can experiment with ways to get you out of these survival modes.

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Energy Tools

Energy tools can support talking therapy or be a therapeutic approach in themselves. They can help you release stagnant tensions created by past trauma or unresolved emotions in an easy and effective way. Sometimes we may even have some laughs!

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Trauma-Informed and Trained

I am trauma-trained and experienced. We all experience difficulties (trauma) during our lifetime. Trauma can manifest as anxiety or depression. I will briefly and simply explain to you the biology of what happened to you and why you feel how you do. You will then start appreciating the innate intelligence of your body, and learn other ways of coping that may be less intrusive in your life.

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Body Awareness

Your emotions are imprinted in your body. Body sensations will explain to you how you feel. By paying attention to your body sensations, you will get information otherwise unavailable. I am a very experienced therapist working with body awareness.

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Neuroscience and Others

I am such a curious person that I read many books and trained in many approaches to therapy, incl. neuroscience, IFS, sandtray, LGBTQ+, diversity and race. I am currently undertaking a Diploma in Energy Psychotherapy.

I will be your ideal therapist if

You like trying new things

Your healing journey does not need to be all dark and tears, even though darkness and tears are welcome too. It can also be exploring, discovering, trying new things, and a bit of fun. My favourite tools are energy techniques, which can challenge sceptical minds (including mine) but seem to produce incredible outcomes.

You want to know yourself better

You are curious about yourself and what makes you act like you do; you want to understand what is happening to you; you are open to accept what you might find about yourself, no matter how awful or beautiful.

You want to cooperate in the process

You do not want a therapist who would tell you what to do, but someone who would accompany you while you discover what feels right for you. You are ready to do homework or at least reflect on your progress or shortcomings.

You can be honest and expect the same from me

You want a space where you can be honest and authentic without being shamed. No matter how "weird" you think you are, you will always be respected in my therapy room. One of my “weird” attributes is that I tend to have an innate tendency to be honest and real.