Meet Maris

Psychotherapist, Midlife Specialist, Wellness Speaker, Bestselling Author

Welcome! I’m Maris, and I’m so glad you’re here.

As a licensed clinical social worker, I have 20 years of experience helping individuals navigate life’s most complex transitions.

Perhaps as importantly, I am a midlife mother myself, and I understand the layered responsibilities and identity shifts this season brings. One of the most defining experiences in my life was my father’s diagnosis and death from pancreatic cancer. In that chapter, the roles I hold as daughter, mother, wife, friend, and professional collided and competed.

I couldn’t change the pain of loss, but I could connect with how I wanted to show up for it. My mindfulness practice helped me stay connected and steady when life was the opposite, and I am on a mission to help other women experience this time period with more presence, intention, and empowerment.

Who am I?

* A midlife, married mother of two boys *

* Youngest of four kids in my tight-knit family of origin *

* As happy on a crowded dance floor getting down as I am breaking it down in a quiet corner with one other person *

* A woman who leaves voicemails and audio texts of outrageous lengths, most often while cooking or dog walking *

When I was a young child, a medical school babysitter showed me brain scans, and I became captivated by how humans grow, adapt, and make meaning of their lives. I studied psychology and sociology at Georgetown University and earned my MS in social work from Columbia University in 2006. While my fascination with neuroscience never faded, I found my purpose in the therapeutic relationship, supporting clients as they build resilience, presence, and self-trust. My clinical work is rooted in mindfulness, and returning to Columbia as an Adjunct Lecturer allowed me to share this passion by teaching a course on it as well as on the healthcare system.

My dedication to emotional awareness expands beyond the therapy room. I co-authored Piper Chen Sings with my sister-in-law, Phillipa Soo, a children’s book celebrating self-expression and personal agency, the same themes at the heart of my therapeutic approach. Speaking to readers and teaching graduate students reaffirmed how much I love guiding groups and communities and ultimately inspired the creation of my program Midlife Mothers: Pause. Reset. Reclaim.

This work exploring emotional reactivity, transition, grief, and caregiving is not theoretical for me. I have lived it. It is why I am devoted to creating space for mothers in midlife to pause, reset, and reclaim themselves.

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