Daniela LUZ
Hello, I am Daniela, an international mindfulness mentor, retreat leader, trauma-informed teacher trainer, somatic yoga facilitator and ceremonialist. Accredited as a Yoga Alliance RYT 200Hr and advanced RYT 500Hr Yoga Teacher Trainer, I am the founder of Luz Retreats and creator of the Luz Method, an integrative approach that combines somatic yoga, mindfulness, breathwork, nervous system regulation, emotional healing and trauma-informed practices.
My passion for sharing the transformative benefits of Yoga and Meditation is deeply rooted in my own journey of emotional healing, self-love, burnout recovery, and reconnecting with the wisdom of the body. Over the past decade, I have dedicated my life to supporting individuals in moving from survival mode into greater presence, authenticity, emotional resilience, and embodied wellbeing.
With significant collaborations cultivated over the years across Australia, Africa, Asia, and Europe, I organize and facilitate retreats, workshops, trainings, corporate wellbeing experiences, women’s circles, and therapeutic sessions, both online and in-person. My work integrates modern nervous system education with ancient mindfulness and embodied healing practices, creating spaces where people feel safe to reconnect with themselves in a grounded and compassionate way.
Having supported thousands of people in reducing stress, anxiety, emotional overwhelm, and disconnection from the body, my mission is to offer practical and transformative tools that help individuals regulate their nervous system, develop self-awareness, and cultivate a more conscious and fulfilling life.
Through Luz Retreats and the Luz Method, I invite you into a journey of healing and self-discovery that is: grounded in the body, expanded through the heart and guided by mindful presence.
MISSION
Rooted in heart-centred practices, at Luz Retreats we guide you to ignite limitless potential in a safe haven for emotional healing & nervous system regulation.
Cultivating a harmonious fusion of ancient wisdom, science, and modern insights, we nurture personal growth in intimate settings.
My Journey
Take a trip down through this memory lane to see how was my journey till today.
Before 2008
I am soul seeker, for as long as I can remember. I had my first contact with meditation and yoga in 2003. This was the entrance door to a whole new world! Moved by a sense of justice and equality, I went to university to study social education, while also spending many years volunteering in communities that were most in need. After my degree, I deeply dedicated myself to social projects in Portugal, Italy and Mozambique.
2010
Mozambique was a milestone in my life, on every level and throughout every cell of my body. In a humble rural community, I found the most extreme scenarios. I went there as a volunteer to provide support through social work and ended up receiving SO much!! I founded the volunteer group “Boluka Kua Zua – The Sunrise” along with 2 other friends. We aimed to help this community to have more autonomy through adult education, and help under-nourished children and families to get support through sponsorships for their basic needs. This project grew wings and attracted many volunteers. They continued the project and also gave an important contribution in other African countries until 2018.
2010 to 2015
In Sydney, Australia, for nearly 5 years I had the opportunity to lead a pilot project with children with special needs and families at risk, another project which greatly impacted my life. At this stage, I had to be prepared to anything that could arise, in order to give effective support to those families at risk and of course to my team. My role in this profession, however, was extremely demanding on a psychological level. During these years, my attention and care was mostly on others… and I felt a great need to bring my attention inwards, in order to “digest” all the suffering from others. Nearly to a burn out, I felt the need to pause and turn the attention back to myself… I found refuge in such places as retreat centre’s, urban groups, a lovely monastery in the forest and also just by myself. Gradually, my yoga practice became more intense and regular. My vitality came back and I could be more present in my body and centred. It was only here that I realized that I was missing one very basic aspect: to love myself and to take care of myself.
2015
2 years afterwards, even though I was passionate I left my social work career logging for self-healing. Therefore, I dedicated myself to the study of yoga, meditation and ayurveda, in Australia but particularly in India, Thailand, Bali, Laos and Cambodia. With vision, creativity, knowledge and cultural enrichment, driven by my passion for self-healing work and through helping others, I decided to fully dedicate myself to a more holistic service wherever I go. When I returned to Portugal, I felt the need to share the experience I have gained throughout my journey on earth.
2016
I worked full time in a well recognized 5star resort in the Algarve – Vila Vita Park, as a Yoga and Mindfulness Teacher, organizing wellness events and providing group and one-on-one sessions therapeutic yoga sessions.
2018
I founded Luz Retreats in the end of 2018 with the aim to provide a safe space for reconnection, as I experienced a deep transformation through attending retreats in Asia. It was too good to not be shared. In the last years, I have been working specifically with entrepreneurs and individuals in leadership positions at the international level, focusing on stress, anxiety, and burnout management and release. This work encourages her students to reconnect with themselves, rediscover their 'centre,' and internal joy. It also empowers them to apply this knowledge in their practical lives, enhancing a fulfilling lifestyle. Through the combination of my knowledge and self-healing, I created my own method that encourages my students to create a deeper awareness of the self, more body mind connection, to have tools that can help them to understand and manage stress and anxiety, empowering them to find inner peace and to be the leaders of their own life.
2019 to 2020
After years of studies and trainings across Thailand, India, the UK and the USA, I began training yoga teachers internationally and deepening my work in mindfulness, somatic practices and nervous system regulation. Over the years, my approach evolved beyond traditional yoga into a more trauma-informed and embodied methodology, integrating emotional healing, breathwork, mindfulness and somatic awareness to support people in reconnecting with themselves in a grounded and sustainable way.
2021 to 2022
Motherhood became a profound turning point in both my personal healing journey and professional path. Through navigating burnout, emotional overwhelm and deeper layers of self-discovery, I immersed myself in studies around trauma, nervous system regulation, family constellations and embodied healing. This period deeply transformed the way I guide others today, bringing greater sensitivity, presence and understanding to emotional healing and the body’s wisdom.
2023 to 2025
This period marked a profound evolution in both my personal and professional journey. Through motherhood, burnout recovery, emotional healing and years of continued studies in trauma-informed practices, nervous system regulation, somatic healing, mindfulness and breathwork, my work naturally evolved beyond traditional yoga into a more integrative and embodied approach. During these years, I facilitated retreats, trainings, workshops and therapeutic experiences internationally, while developing the Luz Method: a methodology that combines somatic yoga, mindfulness, emotional healing and trauma-informed practices to support individuals in moving from survival mode into greater presence, safety, self-awareness and authentic connection. Today, my work is centered around creating grounded and transformative spaces that support nervous system regulation, emotional wellbeing and embodied healing for individuals, groups and professionals worldwide.
2026
2026 marks a new chapter of expansion, integration and deeper embodiment within my work. After years of facilitating retreats, trainings and therapeutic experiences internationally, I am now devoted to expanding the Luz Method through trauma-informed somatic yoga, mindfulness, nervous system education and emotional healing programs designed for both personal transformation and professional development. My intention is to continue creating grounded and transformative spaces that support individuals, facilitators and wellbeing professionals in reconnecting with the body, regulating the nervous system and cultivating a more authentic, conscious and embodied way of living.