Today we’d like to introduce you to Maritza Plascencia.
Hi Maritza, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
As an undergraduate student I had the opportunity to intern with the Public Defender’s Department where I was assigned to interview juveniles that were in detention. Many cases involved stories of kids who were raised in homes where they had witnessed domestic violence. While in graduate school, I went on to work as a Victim Advocate with the Domestic Violence Unit in criminal court and many of the adults who were victims of domestic violence were continuing the unhealthy relationship cycles they had been raised with. Being prevention oriented, I decided I wanted to focus in working with adults, in order help the current or future parents in hopes for the future generations to experience growing up in healthier, happier and more conscious homes. That is how I came to be a holistic relationship therapist and coach who works with individuals and couples who struggle with intimate relationships due to trauma. Through my specialized training in Emotionally Focused Therapy, EMDR Therapy and Brainspotting in combination with my background with ancestral healing work that integrates spirituality, I guide those that work with me towards reconnecting with every part of themselves in order to better connect in their relationships.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
My journey has been smooth only in the sense that I have felt guided every step of the way as I feel I have always received the clarity necessary to take the next step. The part of my professional journey that has not been smooth is having to continue doing my own personal healing as I recognize it goes hand in hand with my professional growth. Early on I recognized I could take my clients only as deep as I was willing to go myself and if I did not do my own healing work I’d be limited by what I didn’t know or worse by what I was trying to avoid for myself.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Some of the unconventional things I incorporate in my clinical work are breathwork, energy healing and the poetry I write (at times inspired by my clients). This year has also been one of expansion in my work as I started becoming more open in publicly speaking about spirituality and the importance of people taking a holistic approach in their healing. I felt called to share my personal journey in order to create more awareness on the topics of healing with sacred plant medicine, psychedelic assisted therapy and other non-western traditional medicine healing modalities that have a lot to offer and can be great on their own or in conjunction with traditional psychotherapy.
What do you like and dislike about the city?
What I like best is the diversity, the sense of community and accessibility to different spaces (beach, mountains, desert, city life). What I like least, normally is traffic and when you end up in a place where finding parking is an issue. However, I must say that lately what I like least is how the federal government has targeted our communities and created more collective trauma.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.MindfulQuestRelationshipCounseling.com
- Instagram: @The_Sacred_Within
Image Credits
Photographer: Alex Munoz @andro_m_photo on IG
