HORÓ Counselling - Aleksandra Staneva, PhD - Annerley, Queensland

Louise B.

Aleks is a true healer, a woman who has cultivated her gifts for knowing and supporting women through their deepest challenges and greatest joys. I stumbled upon Aleks through social media and followed her for some time, drawn to her insightful and holistic way of sensing and understanding the Self. After I completed treatment for cancer in May 2024, the straw that broke the camels back after a lifetime of holding onto traumas and living disconnected from my parts, I finally felt the call to make an appointment with Aleks. They say the teacher always comes when the student is ready, and it truly was divine timing to begin my journey with Aleks. Through gentle guidance and loving awareness Aleks has helped me to see that I have always been my own healer, and shown me the power that comes when women hold space for women to express and release. Aleks has sat with me as I’ve delved into the parts of me that have been neglected for so long, and supported the re-emergence of my Self. It is an ongoing journey that I am delighted to be travelling, and my life is forever changed thanks to the sharing of Aleks’ gift.

Sarah C.

Dr Aleks is a breath of fresh air. I feel blessed to have found her. She is deeply compassionate, knowledgable, and meets you wherever you are at each session and then leads you to new levels of awareness. Aleks is my favorite partner and guide in my personal growth and I highly recommend her to anyone seeking loving support and growth for a lifetime.

Deb K.

I am always met with so much love and compassion by Aleks. She creates such a calm, grounded, and curious space with her presence, which invites my parts to come forward and makes them comfortable and welcome.

Her extensive knowledge and experience of IFS as well as other psychological methods and theories is incredible. I always feel that for her, it's not work but truly her passion that she continues to fuel and expand on.

IFS for me has been such a gentle form of therapy. It's not daunting or too much to handle as you are working with yourself and your parts, and nothing is addressed until YOU are ready.

I am so grateful to have met Aleks and her guiding me on my IFS journey. It has been live changing. I appreciate you so much, Aleks.

Ashley H.

It was about a year ago that I felt a wave of collapse course throughout my body after months, years, decades, maybe even lifetimes of carrying the weight of relentless expectations and demands of others with little to no emotional scaffolding in return. As I collapsed, I felt myself slip into a deep, dark hole, with nothing left to give, my internal flame gone, and nothing more than a shell of mySelf.

It was at this point that I knew that I needed to cry to start to feel better, but my heart had been hardened and parts of me refused, believing this to be shameful and outright dangerous. So in my desperate attempt to escape the darkness, I tried to climb out of the hole using my usual tactics of do, do, doing, please please pleasing and pretend, pretend, pretending that everything was ok - anything but being with my feelings and pain! Although these coping mechanisms had served me well in the past, in the hole they just caused me to slip and scramble even more and kept me further blinded and bound in the darkness.

Totally lost and confused, finally I just sank to the floor and enveloped stillness. Then, out of nowhere, ALEKS appeared in my life and although a perfect stranger, the warmth and kindness she radiated made me feel instantly safe in her presence and it was this feeling probably along with a complete sense of helplessness that the tears began to flow and burst like a raging river up and out of my body.

As I cried (and cried and cried ) and shared my story, Aleks came down into the hole and sat with me. To my surprise, it was not in an attempt to save / fix / rescue / shame / judge / criticise me as I had anticipated, but rather to simply be with me and bear witness to my story and pain.

And though I tried hard to keep the focus on the outside world and to sell a story of poor me, Aleks kept gently directing me back inside myself, to all parts within my psyche that deperately needed loving attention and care , whilst always ensuring that I understood that it was ME who needed and was very capable to give this nourishment to myself, no one else.

It has been through this act of deep compassion and kindness from Aleks, that I have found more and more courage to go within, to go deep , to peel back layer after layer. While it has been confronting and at times terrifying to do this inner work, in the hole is where I have been able to truly see and release the heaviness I have been carrying. It is also the place where I have been able to reclaim my inner light, my voice, my inner sanctuary, the deep well of wisdom and healing that exists within us all, as well as parts of me buried away long ago that are the bringers of joy, pleasure, love and my unique gifts to the world.

And so as I sit and reflect over my journey and a year long of therapy with Aleks, I now see the hole as a gift - the hole that brought wholeness. And I remain eternally grateful to Aleks for sitting with me in the dark and sharing her own light so that I could rekindle mine. She is a truly gifted medicine woman.

Cherie D.

I cannot recommend Aleksandra more! I have seen a number of mental health professionals over the years and have struggled to find one that meets my need.

Aleks is incredibly knowledgeable, keeping up with the most recent research, theories and strategies. She understands the value in connection and holds the most awesome group circles!

What sets Aleks apart from other health professionals is that she truely recognises her service users as the experts in their life, holding their hand and gently guiding them to the answers that were within themselves all along. Never did I feel lectured, schooled or misunderstood, in fact, Aleks helped me understand myself better than I ever have before and trust in my own innate wisdom.

If you have ever felt alone, misunderstood or that no one quite understands the unique challenges of living in your own head… reach out to Aleksandra, you won’t regret it!

Ali L.

Aleks is a wonderful therapist and facilitator with a range of tools, skills and experience that she draws on with such grace and fluidity. Aleks has an incredible capacity for holding a compassionate and safe space, one that has supported and allowed for some of the deepest transformations, awareness and healing I've experienced. I looked for a therapist for many many months as I was seeking a very unique combination of education, experience and personal qualities that I found in Aleks. Highly recommended and would give 6 stars if I could.

Jacqui F.

It is hard to put into words the depth and bredth of support that Aleks provides in her work. She is highly skilled due to her dedication to both professional development and her own inner work. Aleks genuinely shows up each session and is able to meet you exactly where you are at, gently guiding you through processes which are transformative and healing. I feel incredibly grateful to have found my way to her.

Kseniia B.

I feel fortunate to have met Aleks. She has created a safe and supportive space where I can face challenging emotions, rediscover neglected parts of myself, and explore the mind-body connection.

In her work, Aleks successfully applies academic knowledge, storytelling, Internal Family Systems and other techniques that have greatly helped me on my transformative journey.

Thank you for your hard work and dedication, Aleks!