My Entrepreneurial Journey began October 1st of 2019 from the kitchen counter of a dear friend's apartment. I was homeless from leaving an abusive situation, had close to no income, and had just been rejected from residency programs while 6 months pregnant and very obviously showing. I launched my business, giving birth to Terra Dusa, in a home that wasn't mine because I had vowed that day that I would NEVER again participate in the perpetuation of discrimination and unhealthy, traumatized systems. My daughter deserved a healthy environment and a healthy parent, and if it was not in the cards for me to find it, then I would create it.
My name is Dr. Alina Soto, owner and founder of Terra Dusa and the Terra Dusa Academy for Integrative Growth. I am a Naturopathic Psychiatrist with a specialty in Trauma and Traumatic Stress. My business is known for it's unique & holistic approach to Mental Health, serving those who have been reinjured by or failed by their previous providers in Mental Healthcare. Today, I'd like to share my story and the passion behind Terra Dusa.
When I was at this lowest point, I had the fortune of a friend who could see me and said "I know that when you put your mind to something, you get it done." So she let me share her condo for practically free rent while I got back on my feet. We agreed on 1 year and in that year I grew my private practice to the point where I made enough to purchase a home and provide my 1 year old daughter and I our own rooms. Since then, I have maintained stability and my ambition to seek growth and design a healthier healthcare system.
Focal Neurocognitive and Physioemotional Integration (FNPI) has been the first step towards that design. My approach is a culmination of multiple disciplines, and honestly, its creation was in response to one of my greatest heartbreaks as a provider--and patient. Reinjury, due to an unhealthy provider or educator in an unhealthy system.
Systems that do not support the health of our providers, cannot provide effective healing. The courage it takes to ask for help when you are at the bottom is already a difficult feat, I've been there. And to be reinjured by the quality of help received is devastating and isolating. I've been there too, as a patient or client, my experince with Mental Health Providers was negative at best, and wounding at second best. The main culprit being unhealthy training & education.
Terra Dusa means "Earth Soul," an acknowledgement that we are a part of the earth and are affected by all aspects of her systems. My Business aims to redesign healthcare into a system that provides authentic and lasting change by empowering you with knowledge and understanding of the self, the brain, and how to apply it.
Our core values are education and empowerment. Docere, to doctor, means to teach, and I choose to embody that whole heartily. I LOVE being present to the transformation my patients go through with each and every aha moment, each realization that there is new life beyond the label of a diagnosis. That is the power of knowledge and full understanding that to move beyond requires a focal point into a more embodied version of yourself, as well as a safe container with structure, or a healthy system.
I've created a course with my approach as it's foundation to help you build the tools necessary to take back full control of your mental health and healing journey. Enroll Today in Unraveling Resistance: Break the Trauma Loop
A better quality experience of healthcare is possible, and I choose to do my part.