Maria Rocha, BACP

Maria Rocha is a counsellor with twelve years of experience who works from a holistic viewpoint. She is a registered member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP). Maria blends practical talking work with attention to deeper life questions to help people untangle what feels painful or stuck.

She offers a calm, exploratory style that encourages people to notice how thoughts, feelings and habits affect daily life. Sessions aim to identify patterns, trace their origins where useful, and build small, practical steps people can try between meetings. The tone is collaborative and respectful of each person’s values and beliefs.

Her background includes a range of therapeutic influences, and she often draws on cognitive and acceptance-based ideas alongside relational work. That mix can be useful for stress, anxiety, low mood and adjusting to big life changes. Maria also lists experience helping with grief, addiction-related concerns, parenting strain and relationship problems.

Maria pays attention to how attachment and early relationships shape current difficulties. She describes an interest in ageing and geriatric issues among her focus areas, and in supporting people facing cancer, caregiving burden or bereavement. She also works with problems such as anger, body image and identity struggles.

Sessions are offered in English and Portuguese and Maria accepts clients internationally. People who choose to work with her complete a short matching questionnaire and then arrange sessions according to her schedule.

How Maria’s approaches translate to online work

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) encourages people to notice thoughts and feelings without getting trapped by them and to clarify what matters most in life. This approach can help with anxiety, low mood and situations that need new coping strategies. Attachment-Based Therapy focuses on how early relationships shape current ways of relating and feeling. It can help people who struggle with trust, closeness or recurring relationship patterns. Client-Centred Therapy places the person’s experience at the centre of sessions and relies on empathic listening and respect to support personal growth and self-understanding.

Finding the right approach is often part of the work. Maria will generally explore a person’s goals and preferences together and then suggest which methods might help. The choice of approach can change as concerns shift, and she aims to make this a collaborative process rather than imposing a single method.

If you are considering online sessions, please confirm current session options before booking as formats are not specified in this biography. Online work can make it easier to fit therapy into busy lives, reduce travel time and allow for shorter check-ins when needed. It also lets people join from different locations, which is helpful for those balancing caregiving, work or health demands. Registered or accredited professionals and therapists use a variety of approaches to tailor online sessions to each person’s needs.