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Plant Shadow
Maring Higa

Maring Higa, AMFT

Therapist for Blended Families, Co-Parents, and Couples | Blended Family Therapy Center
🏡 Blended Families Are My Life's Work
 

I don’t just work with blended families—I live in one.
 

My son is from my first marriage, and my daughter is from my second. I’ve been a biological parent, a co-parent, and a parent navigating divorce. I’ve worked through the pain of letting go of a vision for my first family—and the joy, challenge, and complexity of building something new.
 

Nothing has stretched me more—or taught me more—than learning how to love fully in a blended family.
 

The loyalty binds, the different parenting styles, the confusion around roles, the awkward holiday plans, the protectiveness over your children... it’s all real. And so is the possibility of creating a family system that works—for the adults, and for the kids.
 

I work with:
 

  • Couples blending families and figuring out how to be a united team
     

  • Step-parents navigating the push and pull of bonding with kids who aren't "theirs"
     

  • Bio-parents struggling to make space for new partners while staying connected to their children
     

  • Co-parents trying to communicate with exes and protect their children’s emotional world
     

I bring lived empathy, real-world tools, and a deep belief that healing is possible—even when things feel tangled and stuck.

👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Co-Parenting After Divorce
 

Co-parenting isn’t just about exchanging drop-off times. It’s a relationship that requires strategy, boundaries, and emotional resilience.
 

I’ve been there—text threads gone sideways, miscommunications that spiral, trying to coordinate school events without tension, protecting the kids while also trying to stay sane.
 

I help clients:

  • Create respectful, child-centered communication strategies
     

  • Navigate disagreements without dragging the kids into the middle
     

  • Set and hold boundaries with clarity and kindness
     

  • Move from conflict to cooperation—even if the other parent isn’t on board yet

🌱 Parenting in a Blended Family
 

My parenting journey spans two marriages.

My 14-year-old son is autistic, and my 9-year-old daughter brings her own fierce spirit to the mix. Parenting in a blended family means juggling different needs, histories, and loyalties—while still trying to show up with love.
 

Later in life, I was diagnosed with ADHD. That diagnosis helped me make sense of years of overwhelm and hidden burnout, especially in parenting.
 

Now, I support other parents with grace and practical strategies—because raising kids in a blended family isn’t about perfection. It’s about connection, repair, and doing the best you can with what you’ve got.

🧠 How I Work with Blended Families and Couples
 

Blended family therapy isn’t one-size-fits-all. Each person carries their own story, hopes, and pain into the room. I create a space where everyone—parents, step-parents, and children—can feel seen.
 

I help families and couples:
 

  • Navigate the power struggles and emotional landmines that come with blending households
     

  • Clarify roles and expectations to reduce confusion and resentment
     

  • Support kids through transitions in a way that honors their voice
     

  • Build strong couple bonds that can withstand the stress of stepfamily life
     

  • Heal ruptures and learn how to repair in a way that models emotional safety for the whole family
     

My approach draws from:
 

  • Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) – for building trust and attachment
     

  • Imago Therapy – to explore past dynamics that show up in the present
     

  • Internal Family Systems (IFS) – to bring compassion to each person’s inner world
     

  • Somatic Therapy & Bioenergetics – to process emotion through the body and build nervous system resilience
     

  • Gottman Method – to strengthen communication and create rituals of connection

🌿 Healing Through the Body
 

Before becoming a therapist, I spent 17 years practicing acupuncture and holistic bodywork. That work taught me that healing doesn’t just happen in the mind—it happens in the body, too.
 

Blended family life can bring a lot of tension: stress you carry in your shoulders, overwhelm you feel in your chest, shutdowns you don’t even notice until you’re in a cycle. I help clients tune into those signals and find grounding, safety, and release through body-based practices.
 

Many of us walk through life disconnected from our physical selves—numbing out, powering through, or living in a state of constant tension without even realizing it. That disconnection can show up in relationships, too—through misattunement, reactivity, or emotional shutdowns that feel like “just the way it is.”
 

Through breathwork, somatic tracking, and gentle movement, I help clients learn to listen to their bodies again. We create safety from the inside out—something especially important in blended family systems, where the emotional undercurrents can be intense and hard to name.
 

This work supports:
 

  • Partners struggling to stay grounded during conflict
     

  • Step-parents who feel invisible or overwhelmed
     

  • Bio-parents trying to hold it all together but feeling on the edge
     

  • Anyone who’s exhausted from the inside out and doesn’t know why
     

My training and experience include:
 

  • Acupuncture and embodiment practices
     

  • Somatic therapy and bioenergetic release
     

  • Trauma recovery and nervous system regulation
     

  • Postpartum and women’s health support
     

  • Personal experience as an athlete and performer
     

This embodied lens helps me support individuals and couples whose nervous systems are working overtime—and who are ready to feel more at home in themselves and each other.

📚 Education & Clinical Training
 

  • M.A. in Counseling Psychology (Marriage and Family Therapy) – National University
     

  • M.S. in Oriental Medicine – Pacific College of Oriental Medicine
     

  • Certified Bioenergetics Therapist (in progress) – Southern California Institute of Bioenergetics
     

  • Registered Associate Marriage and Family Therapist #145908
     

  • Supervised by Dr. Harry Motro, LMFT #53452
     

Trained in:
 

  • Somatic Therapy & Nervous System Regulation
     

  • Internal Family Systems (IFS)
     

  • Trauma-Informed Couples Work
     

  • Fertility, Pregnancy, and Postpartum Mental Health
     

  • Women’s Health & Holistic Medicine
     

  • Acupuncture and Embodiment Practices

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