Llapanchik Hampinakuy LLC started from a need we, Teresa and Joicy (the Co-founders), observed in our own lives with finding therapeutic and healing services specifically provided by Indigenous providers/professionals. This experience, however, is a collective experience that was shared by many others who mentioned the struggles of finding Indigenous and Native representation in their therapeutic care. We are both in healing spaces, psychotherapists by vocation. We both have Quechua roots from the Andean region of Peru and understand the importance of representation in a therapeutic space. Moreover, the importance of bridging the gap between those who provide the services and folx seeking those services. Within our practice, in our individual journey, and through our indigeneity we have come to reconnect with the fact that healing isn’t exclusive of western psychotherapy.

We met through social media in 2022 and through that connection we began sharing our experiences as Quechua women who migrated to the United States and other layered and intersected identities. Part of the many conversations shared was the importance of bridging the accessibility gap of connecting Indigenous people with community providers who look like them and can understand the intersectionality ( the interconnected nature of social identities, experiences, and systems of oppression) of experiences and lives. We were intentional from the beginning to build a community beyond borders inclusive of all types of healers (i.e. community elders, medicine people, shamans, psychotherapists, nutritionists, brujes, etc.) whilst meeting our communities’ needs and developing a process to vet services and providers.