When I first came to the Maya Centre, I felt lost and confused
I didn’t know how to process what I had experienced in the past, and I had never spoken about it to anyone.
I was carrying a lot without understanding how it was affecting me, my relationships and my mental health.
I was also about to go through one of the hardest periods of my life, experiencing psychological, emotional and physical abuse.
At the time, I didn’t have the clarity or confidence to fully recognise what was happening or understand that I deserved something different.
Being listened to without judgement
Being listened to without judgement helped me understand myself with compassion rather than shame, and recognise patterns I had previously struggled to see. It gave me a safe space to make sense of what I had experienced, rebuild my self-confidence and learn to trust myself again.
The impact has gone far beyond those months of counselling. It changed the way I understand relationships, boundaries and my own sense of self, and helped me move towards a different future.
Today, I am proud to be a trustee
Today, I am proud to be a trustee because my experience at the Maya Centre showed me how powerful the right mental health support can be at a critical point in someone’s life.
I’m proud to be a trustee because I want other women to have access to that same safe, specialised support, a space where they can be heard, understood and supported, and begin to rebuild their mental health and sense of self.
I know first-hand how life-changing access to this kind of support can be. Yet specialised mental health support remains out of reach for far too many women.
Women with lived experience have valuable insights
Women with lived experience have valuable insights that can shape better services because lived experience gives you an understanding of how difficult it can be to ask for help, put difficult experiences into words, and sometimes even recognise that you need support.
For women who have experienced abuse, this can be particularly important. Abuse can be difficult to recognise from the inside, patterns can become normalised or confused with love, care or protection. It can take time, support and courage to recognise those patterns and begin to break free from them.
I believe women with lived experience should not only be supported by services, their voices should help shape them, and be amplified. Abuse thrives in silence, and mental health struggles can too. Creating spaces where women can speak openly, be believed and listened to without judgement is an important part of breaking that silence, challenging stigma and making it easier to ask for help.
For me, mental health support is not just about helping someone through a difficult moment. It can give someone the understanding, confidence and tools to change the course of their life.
Learn More About the Maya Centre
For over 40 years, the Maya Centre has provided free mental health and wellbeing support for women on low incomes across Islington and surrounding communities.
We believe every woman deserves access to compassionate, specialist support and a safe space where she feels heard.
How You Can Support Our Work
- Make a donation to help us reach more women
- Partner with us to strengthen women’s mental health support in our community
- Help raise awareness by sharing our work and amplifying women’s voices
- Refer a woman who may benefit from our services
Together, we can ensure that more women have access to the support they need and deserve.
This article has been shared as part of World Mental Health Day 2026 and reflects the lived experience of one of the Maya Centre’s trustees Valentine del Giudice. We are grateful for her willingness to share her story and help champion the importance of listening to women’s voices.