“I started at the secret space about 3 to 4 years ago when I was a recovering addict. A recovering addict from heroin and crack cocaine. My friend Claire took me to meet a lady called Gabriella. Gabriella made me believe in myself because she said I am worthy of a normal life. She took me on as a Secret Space Volunteer and I was taught basic working skills like reception work, banking and talking with members of the public. She put her trust in me and from that I started trusting myself. If it wasn’t for the secret space I truly believe I wouldn’t even be alive and wouldn’t be the woman I am today. Today I stand a confident woman and drug free and a mother of a 17-month-old beautiful clever little boy. I am forever grateful for all the secret space has done for me. I stay involved and pop in to see my new family whenever I can. Please help to support The Secret Space so more people like me can find happiness and a new life.”

“Well, for me recovery has been a rocky road but I’d like to think I’ve weathered it! The Secret Space was a place that I was involved in from the start and the early days were not easy, but now we have this most wonderful community that I’d like to think provides a haven for all…whether its yoga, meditation, massage, acupuncture, nutrition, reiki, volunteering…and the list goes on (apologies to anyone I’ve missed off!). I have been able to restart my life, to create a happy future and to make peace with my past. Being involved with the Secret space community has allowed me to rebuild my life, make amazing friends and be healthy. For that I will be eternally grateful and I would encourage anyone to get involved even if you’re not into yoga, it’s never too late for a ‘do-over’!”

From October 2012 to April 2015 I was an inpatient in a psychiatric hospital. In November 2015 whilst still a day patient at the same hospital I began working as a volunteer at the Secret Space where I still work today. The warm, friendly and supportive environment has helped me grow in confidence and prove that I can be a trustworthy, competent and reliable member of the team. This in turn has improved my self-esteem and has helped me remain well since leaving hospital, something you can’t put a price on! I love working at the Secret Space and hope to remain a part of this wonderful venture for the foreseeable future. I will always be grateful to the team for giving me a chance and for giving me my first steps back into the world of employment.

I came upon the Secret Space while I was at CGL (Change Grow Live) . They were offering a free class for anyone in recovery on a Wednesday and I started going. Before long I realised that one of the managers was a person who I had met while I was in rehab, and who helped me significantly in dealing with flashbacks from past experience by way of reiki and led meditation, which had a profound effect on my bad memories. I became a volunteer – reception, a bit of admin, watering the plants, welcoming people to the space, and generally just being so grateful to be able to spend time in a place with such a beautiful and loving vibe. The charity has sponsored me in becoming a reiki practitioner, I am first Aid certified, and even in lockdown there was a special class for us volunteers .

After struggling for several years with alcohol I started to attend CGL in Hertford. . Whilst there I was introduced to The Secret Space, a social enterprise charity providing volunteer employment opportunities for people in recovery. Being accepted, the next 3 years I mainly did reception duties but due to the small staffing a lot of other things were included!! I was offered the opportunity to train as a Holistic Therapist, which was both an exciting and daunting prospect as it was many years since I had studied. After qualifying I continued to volunteer and also built up a client base. I had found an incredible and exciting new career and I embraced it and adding several affiliated treatments. Today I am self employed and will be forever grateful for the kindness understanding and incredible patience afforded to me from the management of Secret Space.

Discovering Secret Space and immersing myself in yoga and meditation programs has been nothing short of transformative. Through regular practice, I've experienced profound benefits that extend far beyond the mat. Yoga has become my sanctuary, providing me with physical, mental, and emotional nourishment. The supportive community at Secret Space has been instrumental in my journey, fostering a sense of belonging and encouragement every step of the way.

I'm immensely grateful to Secret Space for providing me with the space and guidance to explore the depths of my practice. Their commitment to creating a welcoming and inclusive environment has allowed me to thrive and grow in ways I never imagined possible. Secret Space isn't just a yoga studio for me, it's a sanctuary where I can reconnect with myself, find peace, and cultivate joy. Thank you, Secret Space, for being such a wonderful and transformative part of my life.

“Volunteering at The Secret Space offers me a work opportunity in holistic therapies, which is a field I have grown a huge passion for in recent years. This follows a career change and so is providing me with valuable work experience, including administration tasks, money handling and giving massage and reiki treatments, to name but a few. This is an avenue, which I believe is unique to TSS and may have otherwise been closed to me as my work experience was previously in social care. I feel trusted responsible and accountable which are things I have struggled with while in active addiction. TSS is a safe space in which I feel I can do numerous things, including getting in touch with my spirituality, practising holistic therapies and learning new skills every shift. I feel connected to other people and to a charity, which is all about wellbeing, physically and mentally. This connection is vital as the anti-dote to my isolation and addictions. I feel part of a loving team. Feeling socially excluded when in my addiction and through mental health difficulties has been a huge part of my story so this is monumental for me. I have suffered with social anxiety in the past and still can. The secret space eases this because I have contact with various people, including other volunteers, staff, teachers, other therapists and clients. My confidence is growing and I hope this will continue to grow alongside this fantastic charity.”

I first came upon The Secret Space when I was a placement counsellor at Spectrum in 2012. Once I qualified, I began hiring a room so I could carry out my private practice. The place has always held a warm space in my heart, as it offered volunteers from backgrounds of addiction and poor mental health, opportunities to learn new skills and qualifications. The staff and volunteers are always warm and friendly, keen to lend a hand and an ear for a good chat. I have seen people’s confidences rise as they develop inter-personal relationships and support one another. There were a couple times when I volunteered to offer sample sessions of reiki. This was such a positive experience, as people were able to have a taste of various complimentary therapies, which they may have never experienced before. Thank you to The Secret Space for offering such a nurturing environment for our community.

I originally joined the Secret Space as a volunteer. At that time my life had been very chaotic and I was struggling to overcome serious health problems. Having previously had a successful career in a completely unrelated profession I had been unable to work for some time and was lacking direction and focus. After hearing about the project I decided to totally change my focus and retrained as a holistic therapist with the help of the Secret Space. With the support and encouragement of other staff and volunteers at the Secret Space I have undertaken professional training in a number of different therapies and am now in a position to work as a therapist. It is work that I love which allows me to meet a whole variety of people and genuinely help them. Every day is different and exciting. As well as meeting new people I have also been lucky enough to build a consistent client base of those I see on a regular basis. Having clients return to see me has massively boosted my confidence and also allows me to fine tune my treatments to each client as I have become more familiar with their needs. I am thoroughly grateful for the Secret Space and give thanks to all of the volunteers, therapists and teachers who work here. Without you all I genuinely don't know how I would have got my life back on track.

Thank you so much to Esme for the TCTSY course. I really did not know what to expect.
For me, who has been so detached from my body for so many years it has helped hugely with the reconnection and the joy of feeling sensations, stretches and moving again.
The feeling of safety within those 4 walls was amazing, I felt completed safe and unjudged and free , I also felt cared for by not just you but all the other group members , it was a feeling of us all holding our hands out for one another with support and kindness , it really was an amazing feeling and very hard to come by.
I am now getting so much more from movement and I am noticing how it feels far more than I did and I am finding this to be a fabulous thing .
The techniques I learned in this course will be part of my every day from now on.