LYALA

Greetings, I hope your heart is well.

My name is Lyala Aje.

I was first called Lyala by a South African elder who supported my spiritual growth. The name and its meaning resonated deeply, and over time I chose to carry Lyala as my spiritual name.

I was born in England, with Jamaican heritage and African roots—shaped by three worlds, and therefore three rhythms: Africa, Jamaica and England (AJE).

From this understanding, I chose Aje as a spiritual second name—a quiet summary of my identity.

Lyala Aje is the name I carry in this work, and the name under which my spiritual and ancestral practice continues to grow.

DECOLONISE YOUR LIFE

I didn’t create Decolonise Your Life to teach, I ‘guide’ and help others find their path, their way.

I am still listening to the ancestors and walking my own path as this work unfolds, so what I am offering is a ‘foundational understanding’ of reconnecting with ancestors and decolonising lives.

My work is primarily geared towards those of us who, for whatever reason, have become separated from ancestral wisdom. Too many of us are not awake to this important missing piece of our life’s journey.

Decolonise Your Life grew from a desire to share what I have been gifted—ancestral wisdom, reflections on purpose and ways of understanding how trauma moves through lineages and lives in the body and spirit.

Truth is, many of you are decolonising areas of your lives already, you just don’t name it in that way. I hope that what I am offering can be an additional light helping you to see you are already doing the work… gently guiding you into a deeper process.

LYLA

Before Decolonise Your Life took form, my journey began in offices, group circles, classrooms and theatres, where the work of healing was already underway.

I was a counsellor, dramatherapist, actor, playwright, arts activist and educator. In those roles I am still Lyla. I hold space for those experiencing emotional, mental and spiritual trauma, generational pain, racial trauma, relationship difficulties, violence and abuse, and struggles with identity.

My early work explored the lived realities of Black people in the UK and the lasting impact of colonial history on everyday life.

Decolonise Your Life was birthed to continue the therapeutic work but with a ‘decolonised’ energy and service, it could no longer be just Western therapeutic concepts and theories - counselling alone did not feel like my purpose any more. The work felt as if it needed to be more intentional and focussed on the Black diaspora.

This was not about exclusion. It was about creating conditions for healing that centre the Black Diaspora, while also—through a decolonial lens—offering support to others too.

With this in mind, the work holds three strands: the Black Diaspora, the Colonised Diaspora, and the Community. Each carries different needs around ancestral work, and this is honoured gently.

It is important that no one is silenced, and no one is asked to translate their pain in order to be heard.

COUNSELLING, DRAMATHERAPY & ARTISTIC ACTIVISM

In my work as a therapist, I offered support rooted in culturally grounded care. Alongside this, my background in theatre shaped many projects that brought attention to injustices experienced within the Black community, focusing on:

• Racial trauma and the psychological impact of systemic oppression
• Healing from generational silence and survival mechanisms
• Creative expression and embodiment through dramatherapy and theatre
• Counselling for relationships - domestic violence - sexual abuse - childhood abuse - ancestral trauma

Black Education & Liberation-Focused Work

As an educator and facilitator, I led workshops, talks and community events exploring:

• The psychological impact of slavery and colonisation
• Healing-centred programmes for schools and youth
• Identity, belonging and voice for Black students and families

WHY MY FOUNDATION MATTERS TO THIS WORK

My foundation as a therapist, activist and educator is not separate from my current work - it is the soil from which Decolonise Your Life has grown. All that has changed is the frame.

This website, the books, the living archive all now serve the same purpose: to bring healing, share memories and experiences and work towards transformation… except this time with and through the lens of ancestral reconnection.

From clinical to communal. From private to collective. From silence to story.

IN DECOLONISING MY PRACTICE I LEARNED THIS…

While the details of our lives may differ, the ache is often familiar and our experiences are shaped by familiar actions or events. We may hurt in different ways and respond to that hurt in even more diverse ways, but there is a collective awareness of the root of our pains.

WALK WITH ME - through the legacy and the now…

Visit the site below for some insight into previous work. The site is not at this time available for counselling or events.

➡️ Legacy Site