Irene Goikolea, PhD in Psychology and Life Coach

Nearly three decades diving and working on my own emotions and accompanying and facilitating many others to do the same, have taught me a way of living and also a way of inhabiting the world. The path I have walked contains a body of knowledge that can help transform the split and limiting perception of our human way of seeing things towards a more holistic and integrative vision of ourselves and our environment.

Throughout my career, I have developed a methodology focused on integration and personal transformation that I have enriched with diverse perspectives, such as the shamanic tradition, Eastern philosophy, the discipline of yoga and depth psychology, without forgetting the wisdom of the ancestral legacy of my Basque roots. I have been in contact with different cultures, which has given me a broadness of vision that continues to stimulate my commitment to diversity.

Also, my commitment to the awakening of the feminine and the impact it has on the development of collective consciousness led me to inspire Amalurra, a project in tune with contemporary movements that promote the development of a collective paradigm, where the culture of the "we" prevails over the culture of the "I".

I am a Doctor of Philosophy in depth psychology from the Pacifica Graduate Institute in Santa Barbara (California). Between July 2017 and July 2019, I was an active member of GEN Europe Council and, since early 2018, I am an ambassador for this organization, a position that qualifies me to represent GEN locally, nationally or internationally. I have been trained in family constellations and new family constellations with Bert Hellinger, systemic rituals with Daan Van Kampenhout, shamanism with Michael Harner, Hakomi, Process Work, Integral Coaching ®, yoga and NLP, among other disciplines.

1 Intentional Communities: According to C. McLaughlin and G. Davidson, authors of Builders of the dawn: Community lifestyles in a changing world, an intentional community is made up of a group of people who have joined around a common purpose. They share the commitment to cooperate and create a sense of unity together. Such communities can combine the technological advances of the modern times with the values of our tribal roots, as well as a sense of belonging and closeness to others. The purposes of intentional communities vary, from the sharing of resources, the creation of family-oriented neighborhoods to the practice of environmentally sustainable lifestyles (ecovillages). Many intentional communities focus on the importance of living together and sharing life, in contrast to the individualistic trend perceived in Western culture.

Irene's work foundations

The work that Irene Goikolea has developed over the past 25 years as a life coach is firmly rooted in five basic aspects that she addresses from a psychospiritual perspective: Awakening to the sacred feminine aspect, the power of vulnerability, shadow work, soul retrieval and emotional ecology.

Irene Goikolea Biografy

THE SACRED FEMININE ASPECT

The sacred feminine aspect represents the link with life and has the ability to sacralize every daily act, endowing it with willpower, sense and feeling. This powerful energy leads us to vulnerability. Its most significant attributes are interrelatedness, collectivity, integration, unity, care of the other, healing, nutrition, compassionate action and sentient capacity.

In her courses and workshops, Irene focuses on awakening these qualities that enable us to embrace all the parts that we exclude from ourselves.

THE POWER OF VULNERABILITY

This approach to personal growth focuses on going beyond the resistance to contact feelings of vulnerability involving an unrecognized pain.

Irene differentiates between pain and suffering. Pain is a door to life, while suffering arises from the resistance to feel the pain.

In this sense, she has developed a practice oriented to touch and share the feelings of vulnerability in an empathetic and safe space, as a way towards compassion, both for oneself and for others.

The encounter with vulnerability also offers the opportunity to recover dissociated fragments of our souls and come closer to our most genuine self. Retrieving the individual soul links us to the collective soul or the soul of the world, the anima mundi.

SHADOW WORK

According to the analytical psychologist C. G. Jung, the shadow makes reference to the parts of the personality that the ego rejects for not fitting in with the ideal image that we have built about ourselves. Shadow work aims at becoming aware of unconscious contents that direct many of our actions.

In her workshops, Irene facilitates spaces in which to look at this dark part, not as something negative, but as a part inherent in all human beings. The objective is to be able to contain it and, eventually, integrate it to turn it into vital and creative energy.

SOUL RETRIEVAL

Sri Aurobindo, yogi and Eastern philosopher, defined the soul as the result of a process whereby the psyche, the spark of the divine that is present in all living beings and in all matter, begins to develop an individuality in the course of evolution, taking control of the lower bodies, that is the mental, vital, and physical bodies.

The work of soul retrieval, whose knowledge and practice is common to all indigenous traditions, aims at rescuing the parts that separated from the individual due to traumatic experiences.

In some cases, this work can lead to recover gifts and abilities that are closely related to one’s purpose of life. In others, delving into the depth of the soul can help unlock what prevents from fully participating in life.

The path to the oneness of the soul is what Irene calls “soul ecology.”

EMOTIONAL ECOLOGY

More than 20 years ago, in her talks and workshops, Irene Goikolea began using the term “emotional ecology.” This was a personal inspiration on which she based her work. Ten years later, this expression had become part of the jargon of sciences such as psychology and sociology.

Emotional ecology is based on the premise that a practice focused on inner transformation contributes to transforming the outside world.

From this perspective, human beings are a microuniverse in themselves that, in turn, are part of the macrouniverse that houses the Earth and her different social and environmental fields.

Irene contends that the interaction between micro and macro is such that "human emotional pollution finds a reflection in environmental pollution and vice versa".

For this reason, she promotes processes of introspection to unblock the emotions in order to access the denied feelings. To the extent that we flow in feelings, she says, emotions and thoughts purify. This produces a positive impact on our health and, therefore, on the environment.

Tools

The Alignment

Irene designed the alignment as a tool for personalized inner work. Its main goal is to support individuals to maintain a conscious look about the situation or aspect that they have decided to delve in.

The alignment helps to synchronize the body, the mind, and the heart; that is, action, thought, and feeling. As a result, it allows to identify the memories, images, beliefs, and unconscious emotional patterns that determine our response to the fundamental issues of our lives—safety, love, sexuality, belonging, or spirituality.

Ultimately, the alignment is a way to voluntarily transform the contents that lead to stagnation and block the natural and harmonic flowing of life. Thus, it promotes integral development and the empowerment of the individual.

Council

Council is a simple practice used to connect with the power of the word that comes from the heart and is free from the mind control. For this practice to develop accordingly with its purpose, it is necessary to respect four basic intentions: speaking from the heart, listening with the heart, being brief and being spontaneous.

The circles that are celebrated around a common purpose generate a powerful energy field, the "we space," where it is easy to experience a mutual opening that promotes contacting with vulnerability and achieving a higher order of connection, relationship, love, authenticity, intimacy, enthusiasm, curiosity and creativity.

Irene contains the movement that emerges from this space, welcoming any content that claims to be seen. Thus, it is possible to reach depths that are difficult to access only with a pre-established therapeutic action plan.

Rituals

Rituals symbolically unite the unconscious with consciousness, using the body as a vehicle of connection. Including the body ceremonially helps to counteract the tendency to separate the mind from the body. Thus, the soul can express itself, bringing consciousness and meaning.

Irene has rescued the ritual as a form of initiation in the face of the changes related to our evolution, not only regarding oneself but also one’s environment.

Family or relational constellations

“Love grows and flourishes within an order”.
Bert Hellinger

Relational constellations take into account bodily sensations. These contain the traumatic memories that are transmitted from one generation to another. If those memories are not taken care of, the family dynamics is polluted by repetitive patterns that cause suffering.

Among other issues, relational constellations deal with intergenerational trauma in order to process it and release the natural flow of love. Consequently, it is possible to develop healthier relationships, based on values such as dignity, respect, and a deep sense of belonging.

About Irene Goikolea, Life Coach