THE MOTHERHOOD PRACTICE
Hello
I'm Marissa Goldenstein, MA, MBA, PD Educator, Master Certified Coach
I am a Master Certified Parent Coach and trauma informed Somatic & Embodiment Facilitator for Mothers. I am deeply informed by my own motherhood journey. I am Mother to two boys currently 8 and 6 years old. My motherhood journey has been anything but easy and peaceful. It has invited me into the depths of myself, again and again. I walk alongside you as I mother with my family's unique and similar generational patterns.
Read more on my background & training below.
My Motherhood Story
“You’ll be such a great mother!”
These words echoed in my head as I sat in the bedroom staring at my newborn baby.
I felt completely blindsided by the motherhood experience.
By pregnancy.
By labor and birthing.
By the realities of disciplining children.
By the strain it placed on my marriage.
By the immense responsibility of shaping a family system.
From day one, I felt like anything but a “great mother”.
Instead, motherhood revealed to me all of my deepest insecurities.
The parts of me who grasped for control and perfection.
The parts of me that were trying so hard to get it all right.
The parts of me that wanted so badly to be seen as “good” by everyone around me.
And maybe most painfully, motherhood invited me to look clearly at the maternal lineage I came from.
A lineage of deeply loving and well-intentioned women who were also profoundly overwhelmed -- surviving more than living -- resulting in emotional neglect quietly women through the family system.
As a deeply feeling and sensitive human, I've had to learn to toward the neglected places inside myself with compassion instead of shame. I am still learning.
Motherhood has been my greatest challenge and my greatest invitation to growth.
My firstborn arrived screaming at the top of his lungs. And he's remained deeply connected to his will (and vocal range) ever since. People might label him as “strong-willed”, “intense”, “disobedient”, and “deeply feeling”.
And he’s been one of my greatest teachers.
His fierceness and strong will has taught me to become sturdier and more grounded in my leadership, transforming permissive patterns into more secure ones.
And my second born mirrors back to me the softer, more relational parts of myself - the empathetic child who learned to adapt, please, and keep the peace in order to stay connected. As I continue untangling my own patterns of self-abandonment, I find myself understanding him more deeply too and learning new ways to show up as a mother.
Motherhood has been a living laboratory for understanding humanity, healing generational patterns, developing compassion, and learning how to lead with both love and strength.
And this is the work I now share with other mothers.
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My Training
EDUCATION
Masters in Psychology, San Diego State University
Masters in Business Administration, UCLA
Bachelors in Psychology, Chapman University
CERTIFICATIONS AND FACILITATION
Master Certified Parent Coach, Jai Institute for Parenting
Certified Positive Discipline Educator, Positive Discipline Association
Heart Coach Facilitation Training, Lead by Heart, taught by James Fish Gil
Integrative Somatic Trauma Therapy, The Embody Lab (in process)
Feelings & Embodiment Mentorship with Bela Crowder, Creator of The Embodied Heart (ongoing)
WORK EXPERIENCE
I currently work for Jai Institute for Parenting as a Master Trainer & Coach helping to support curriculum development and the implementation of a coaching program for Parent Coaches. I also work as a Parent Coach for Maven, the world’s largest virtual healthcare platform dedicated to women and families.
Prior to my current roles, I co-created an innovative elementary school for changemakers called InWonder Academy, involving a multi-year project reimagining education, traveling to visit other school models, implementing and Parent Partnership program, and operating an on-site school for 1 year before funding fell through. Since closure, I have been part-time homeschooling my kids and experimenting with my education vision at home, asking how we can accept more of our kids while guiding them to exist in the real world we live in.
Alongside coaching and facilitating others, I have co-facilitated in person and virtual retreats and led song circles. I am a singer and songwriter and have a passion for creating tools, stories, characters, songs, and ideas to support families to grow and learn together.
"Marissa is amazing! So much capacity for the group, grateful for that."
My Commitments to You
You are your own expert.
I am dedicated to leading you towards your own inner expertise. I'm here to see you, respect you, empower you, and guide you back to yourself.
There is no "bad" in you.
I am here to help you de-shame with parts of yourself that you have learned are "wrong", "bad", or "broken".
We don't grow or heal in shame. We grow in safety, compassion, respect, and trust.
We go at your pace.
I am committed to supporting you to find your own natural pace and to honor and respect it.
Our patterns are our opportunities.
Every human on this planet is carrying generational and cultural patterns, both unique from and similar to each other. I hold a belief that our patterns are our opportunities and we get to learn how to play and be with them without feeling shame or wrongness.
Contact
Questions, reflections, or even just a hello is welcome. Let's connect.