A little about me

the face and force behind Inner Wilderness. It’s probably useful to tell you a bit about me, so that you can decide whether to get in touch.

Having worked in the corporate world for a long time, most latterly as a Director of Human Resources and prior to that as Head of Leadership Development, I gained over twenty years of experience in developing people and teams. I came to believe that most of us at some point in life could benefit from professional help which is therapeutic in nature and had what I would now describe as soul whisperings about there being other things I wanted to explore.

I took a sabbatical in 2008 which I spent in Central America as the Deputy Expedition Leader for youth development charity Raleigh International, and when I returned I decided to retrain in counselling / psychotherapy. The years since have been a rich source of both personal and professional development. They have also been challenging at times from a health perspective and these days I am committed to plugging myself into the earth to recharge as often as I possibly can. Life often feels very different from the top of a windy hill!

Hello.
I’m Liane Maitland,

Only in silence the word, only in dark the light, only in dying life: bright the hawk's flight on the empty sky.

Ursula La Guin

I trained originally in Integrative Psychotherapeutic Counselling, which draws from different schools of thought, and then in Sensorimotor Psychotherapy which takes a neurobiological (somatic) approach to working with symptoms of stress and trauma. I am also trained in working with couples, writing for therapeutic purposes and Systemic Constellations, which are a creative and solution-focused way of addressing seemingly intractable issues in relationships and families, at work, with health or other challenges. In addition I am a licenced facilitator for an organisation called Gateway Women, which is a global support network for women who are childless.

The concepts of truth and choice are central to my work, and I seek to enable people to live the life they want to live, rather than the life they think they should live or have somehow ended up living – as a result of deeply embedded and usually subconscious ways of being in the world. I believe in the transformative power of vulnerability and that there are always options, no matter how constraining circumstances might be.

When asked to describe me and how I work, others use words like insightful, dynamic, collaborative, challenging and supportive – and I think that’s pretty fair! I chose the name Inner Wilderness for my business as I felt it reflected what I do - essentially I am an inner wilderness guide and I help people to navigate the challenges of being human, in a way which integrates body, mind and spirit.

I am based in Haddington, East Lothian, Scotland and I work with clients in person and online. My clients are UK based and international. Please get in touch if you would like to book an initial consultation.