WELCOME
Matrescence: The process of becoming a mother. The physical, psychological and emotional changes a woman goes through after the birth of their child.
FOUNDER BIO:
Wife. Mama. Human.
Armenian-American
Hi 👋🏼 My name is Liana and I'm so happy that you've found my page. I have a beautiful three year old son who is the absolute love of my life and the catalyst for my desire to create this service and space. Motherhood has been THE greatest and most profound transition of my life; one that I wish I had been more prepared for and supported in. Although I consider the birth of my son to be the greatest blessing, I struggled in my new role and experienced a difficult postpartum period. I constantly felt overwhelmed, anxious, and isolated.
While I was pregnant, I meticulously curated items for the most aesthetically pleasing nursery and infant wardrobe... but did little research for my own postpartum care, including resources to build community. Truthfully, I didn’t even know that I would come to desire that. I knew that becoming a mother would change my life, but I definitely underestimated the impact it would have on me physically, emotionally and relationally. Once my son arrived, I was shocked by how much more difficult it all was, and how much I didn't know; Caring for a newborn, grieving the birth plan I had hoped for but wasn’t able to have, navigating marriage as parenting partners, adjusting to my new role, balancing my other responsibilities as a student, grieving the old versions of myself, setting and implementing boundaries with family, the desire to keep my son safe and protected amidst a pandemic, and so much more.
I was shocked at how much I would long for a group of women who were sharing in the same journey and season of life as I was. And then when I realized that I did, it was so difficult to find, especially amidst the pandemic where many places of business were still operating remotely. I truly believed that my own feminine energy and maternal intuition would guide me through and that I would shine in motherhood. But many times, it didn't feel enough. There were many times I felt incompetence and self doubt. But I see now that I wasn't giving myself enough grace to process through the learning curve. I believe having a community of women to share in the experiences of motherhood could have made such a fundamental difference to my postpartum experience and my maternal mental health.
MISSION (Postpartum Support Groups):
I feel a really deep sense of comfort and connection when I meet a mom who can help validate and normalize my experiences simply by sharing theirs. I would love to help facilitate that feeling of relatability to other moms as well.
I believe that our season of matrescence should be deeply honored and shared; The good, the bad and even the mundane in between. In my early months of motherhood, I really wished for a local space here in the San Fernando Valley, like the one I hope to create. I wished for support, connection and perspective from other new moms as I was trying to navigate through early motherhood. My goal is to create a space in which local mamas (Granada Hills + surrounding San Fernando Valley areas) connect weekly, to build friendships and community, commiserate about the challenges, but most importantly to share in the beauty that is motherhood and our evolution as women.
I don't think that our society as a whole gives new mothers the appropriate time and sensitivity to heal and acclimate with our new family dynamics after the birth of a child. Early motherhood can feel like a really sensitive and delicate time.That’s why I believe that we should be as nurturing to new mothers, as we are to the tiny, brand new humans that we have just birthed.
While I feel as though the length of time to qualify someone as a “new” mother can be difficult to truly quantify or label, and as a toddler mom myself, three years in, I know that the learning curve is indefinite. And so, these services extend into toddlerhood. I feel like I am constantly getting to know new versions of my own son as he has grown.
MISSION (Parent + Me Play Groups):
I also hope to provide a safe and nurturing play space that is minimalistic and Montessori inspired for children to explore based on specific age ranges. The purpose of the playgroups is for early learning and development and engagement with other children in a small group (capacity is 6 adults + 6 children.)
I have toured many local preschools in the area, and although there are some that seemed wonderful and promising, I always found myself pushing back against the idea of leaving my son in the care of anyone else. And so... there lies the magical in between space of a semi-structerd play groups in which parents are present and involved.
I feel as though parent + me playgroups are a really wonderful way to introduce an early learning environment while still being able to stay with your child as they learn and explore; So that they have the comfort of their attachment figure, and the caregiver has the peace of mind that their child is safe and being given an opportunity to engage with other children in a similar state of development.
EDUCATION / WORK / INTERESTS:
I earned my bachelor's of science degree in Family and Consumer Sciences with a focus on Family Studies from CSUN in 2019. If you're wondering what that means... let me try to explain…Family Studies incorporates a bit of child development, human development and social studies. It studies the ways in which the context of our social development impacts us as individuals and our family dynamics. Essentially, it's focus is on understanding familial relationships and interactions in order to create healthy functioning and family resiliency.
While working toward my bachelor’s degree, I worked an administrative position at a treatment facility for addiction, trauma, and mental health for three years. There, I grew even more passionate about becoming a facilitator of healing. Sadly, this opportunity came to end shortly after the pandemic and shut downs began.
In August 2021, (in the thick of the Covid pandemic), I began my coursework in a master's program for Marriage and Family Therapy. Just one month into the program, I became pregnant with my son and gave birth in June 2021. At this point in my education, I was a therapist in training with a small caseload of clients and returned to seeing clients (virtually) just two weeks after the birth of my son. Two months later, I began my third semester in the program. My plan and hope was that if I tried to continue on with my education and training, and stay as busy as possible, that I would somehow be exempt from any negative effects in postpartum. I wasn't :( And in hindsight that plan was absolutely ridiculous. It was as if I was hoping that my child would just be some type of “add on” to my life while I tried to stay as unchanged as possible. But with his birth, came the birth of a new version of myself also. He is THE MOST important person in my life and so is being a mother. When the covid restrictions were lifted and I was told the following semester would return to campus, I couldn’t accept the thought of having to leave my then infant in the care of anyone else. After a lot of deliberation, I eventually made the soul crushing decision to leave the program. I was a 4.0 student in the program (yes, this is a total brag) and had centered a huge part of my identity around being a model student and my future career as a therapist. Leaving the program is still a decision I grieve. With the loss of a job that I loved, and leaving school, I felt like I had given up much of myself. I was relieved to be able to focus solely on being a mother, immerse myself fully and no longer stay up writing papers through broken sleep, but there were also feelings of sadness, grief and resentment. I’ve evolved a lot since then and have come to embrace my life as a full time, stay-at-home mom.
One thing that has not changed, regardless of my schooling, is that I regard myself as a highly sensitive person, who is a natural empath. I believe that every single person has a story to tell if we listen. I've always been deeply curious about the human experience.
THANK YOU:
Thank you for taking the time to read about me and what I hope to achieve in this space. I hope that you will allow me the opportunity to get to know about you and to work with you in your season of matrescence and beyond.
⚠ DISCLAIMERS:
I am NOT a licensed therapist. I am not qualified to, nor do I claim to diagnose or treat postpartum anxiety, depression, psychosis or any other psychiatric disorders. If you are having thoughts of hurting yourself or others please seek out emergency help by calling 911.
Although there is a therapeutic element in connection with other women, The Supported Mama LA is not intended to replace the expertise of a licensed therapist in the case that you are experiencing postpartum depression and/or anxiety. Additionally, The Supported Mama and it's associates are not qualified to diagnose or treat any developmental delays.
Parents must accompany children for the entire duration of the play group as the allotted time is not intended to serve as child care.
FREE POSTPARTUM RESOURCES:
Postpartum Support International (PSI)
1.800.944.4773
Maternal Mental Health Hotline
1.833.852.6262
801.305.3171
SERVICES
SUPPORT GROUPS
