Isabella Lopez-Smith (She/her)

I offer therapy as a space of reflection, dialogue, and presence. My training is integrative, shaped by somatic, existential, and relational psychoanalytic traditions. This allows me to work responsively rather than applying a fixed method: each therapeutic relationship is different and my practice is tailored as such.

Much of my work involves paying attention to the ways people adapt to experiences that may feel overwhelming or unbearable, and the cost of those adaptations over time. Therapy is not about forcing change, but about creating the conditions in which new forms of experiencing, relating, and imagining may gradually become possible. Careful pacing, attention to the body, and a sense of safety guide the work.

I have particular experience supporting those who have experienced interpersonal adversity and trauma, including neglect and multiple, cumulative, and complex traumas, as well as those who experience dissociation, derealisation, and depersonalisation. My practice is grounded in an anti-oppressive perspective that recognises how social, cultural, and structural forces shape experience and access to care. I also work with those who have faced discrimination or systemic barriers related to race, culture, gender, sexuality, age, and other aspects of identity and circumstance. Many of the people I work with are from neurodivergent and LGBTQ+ communities. In therapy, these layers of context and history matter alongside the immediacy of our encounter.

My background includes working in both community and organisational settings, with people experiencing severe mental distress as well as those navigating everyday life transitions. I work with people from all walks of life, and I welcome anyone who is curious about exploring therapy. Some people come with specific difficulties, such as anxiety, relationship challenges, or the impact of past experiences. Others seek therapy as a space for reflection, personal growth, and to have time that is fully their own.