Mélanie Moniotte

I always knew I was meant for psychology. After my studies at the ULB, in 2004, I met a therapist who offered hypnosis combined with massage and I discovered the power of psychocorporal work. This holistic approach connected the body, emotions, and thought. I was convinced; I had found my path and the way I wanted to interact with my patients.

In 2008, I began a four-year training cycle at the Atmaram school in Brussels. This school, created by a couple, Lara Szyper, psychologist, and Michel Leroux, philosopher, offers a multireferential therapy combining, among others, systemic, Jungian analytical, Reichian, humanistic and psychocorporal approaches. Thanks to the expertise of these two trainers, I learned to listen, to meditate, to center myself, to root myself, to massage mindfully, to accompany the expression of emotions, and to use the many tools coming from these different currents.

In parallel with my work as a therapist, I am also a psychology teacher, specializing in the support and care of older adults. The training courses I give are both theoretical and practical, with supervision of caregivers in their workplace through continuing education. Thanks to this profession, I have acquired knowledge, on the one hand, of the psychological experience of older people and, on the other hand, of the difficulties of “caregiving” encountered by healthcare staff. I particularly aim to raise my students’ awareness of the problem of social devaluation and stereotypes about older people and the impact this has on caregiving practices.