Maria Victoria Mata

Bio

Maria Victoria Mata is an Expressive Arts Therapist and Registered Psychotherapist (Q) offering body-centred, trauma-informed care to children, adults, couples and families. She works extensively with children and families, supporting young people experiencing anxiety, mood-related challenges, and emotional regulation difficulties, as well as families navigating separation, divorce, and complex transitions. She provides services in both English and Spanish, supporting a wide range of individuals across diverse cultural, social, and generational backgrounds. Her practice focuses on strengthening relationships within each client’s ecosystem (family, community, and self) to foster emotional resilience, autonomy, and meaningful change.

Her integrative practice draws from Mindfulness, Play Therapy, Drama Therapy, Music Therapy, Emotionally Focused Therapy, Somatic approaches, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and Narrative Therapy. Grounded in trauma-centred and anti-oppression frameworks, Maria Victoria works collaboratively with clients, honouring the individual as the expert of their own lived experience while guiding the therapeutic process with skill, warmth, and cultural humility.

Maria Victoria supports children in discovering their voice, developing a strong and secure sense of self, building autonomy, and strengthening their communication skills so they can express their needs, emotions, and boundaries with confidence. She also supports children experiencing anxiety, mood concerns, and the emotional impact of family transitions, including separation and divorce. She supports individuals and couples in rebuilding their relationships, establishing trust, improving communication, and strengthening emotional connection. She creates a grounded and compassionate therapeutic space where clients can navigate relational ruptures, transitions, and growth with clarity and intention. She also understands the emotional, relational, and psychological complexity of fertility journeys, offering sensitive and informed support to individuals and couples facing challenges related to conception, pregnancy loss, assisted reproduction, and evolving family structures.

With over a decade of experience working with families and individuals impacted by intimate partner violence, Maria Victoria brings specialized expertise in supporting clients through complex family transitions while prioritizing safety and the well-being of children. She has also worked alongside newcomer communities, as well as Queer, Trans, and Two-Spirit individuals, offering affirming care through experiences of migration, identity development, social integration, anxiety, depression, isolation, relationship transitions (including diverse relationship structures), and substance use.

Creativity, curiosity, and compassionate care are the foundation of Maria Victoria’s therapeutic approach. She believes the arts offer powerful pathways for healing, insight, and transformation, especially when words alone are not enough. Through visual art, movement, drama, music, storytelling, and play, she creates spaces where clients can safely explore their experiences and reconnect with their inherent strengths.