Radha Ortiz

About Radha

You don’t have to struggle with what you’re going through alone. Whether you want to heal or push yourself to grow, I want to build a strong relationship with you so that we can better understand your troubles and set you on a path to feeling better.

When you feel heard and supported you can find more resilience. Together we will build on the strengths, resources, and wisdom that lies within you so you may feel relief from your struggles and the future becomes brighter.

I value your experiences based on culture, race, Indigeneity, socioeconomic status, sexuality, gender identity, age, disability, and spirituality. Many unique life experiences have shaped where you are today – so I bring a holistic approach so I can support you in all areas of your life.

I am currently an advanced year student of Somatic Experiencing®, a body-based approach to healing trauma and restoring nervous system regulation. My approach aims to be trauma-informed and justice-oriented (or anti-oppressive). This means that I believe it is important to appreciate how social, environmental, cultural, political, and economic factors influence our wellbeing.

Our experience of pain is so unique to us as individuals, on top of this, there are forces within our environment including larger systems of trauma and systemic oppression that can influence our struggles in the world through our families, cultures, and institutions. Bringing this into our awareness in therapy can allow us to build a more self-compassionate and empowered understanding of our experiences, our suffering, and our path towards healing.

I am a Latinx, cis-gender woman who is a settler to Canada. I arrived in Canada as a political refugee from Argentina before age 5. Adapting to Canadian society as an immigrant has inspired me to grow a deep interest in how identity and belonging develop, and the support we need for both to flourish.

I work with individuals experiencing issues related to:

ADHD
Autism
Neurodivergence
Relationship challenges (eg conflict, communication, boundaries)
Being children of immigrant parents
Bicultural identity
Understanding and managing emotions
Eating disorders
Latinx issues (machismo, enmeshment)
Impacts of growing up with emotionally immature parents/caregivers
Perfectionism and high achiever burden
Anxiety & depression
Narcissism, narcissistic behaviour patterns, narcissistic relationship abuse
Building self worth and confidence
Grief & loss
Discrimination and experiences of oppression (eg sexism, racism)
Immigrant & refugee issues
Religious community and identity challenges

The following therapies, frameworks, and perspectives inform my approach to therapy:

Somatic Experiencing ® Advanced Year Student
Acceptance & Commitment Therapy
Cognitive Behavioural Theory
Dialectical Behavioural Therapy
Anti-Oppression
Trauma-informed Yoga
Harm Reduction

I offer a free 20 minute consultation so you can get a sense of how it may feel to work with me. I look forward to hearing from you and exploring the possibility of working together.

https://www.willowleafcounselling.ca/