(805) 244-8489
Therapy for Daughters of Emotionally Unavailable Mothers
Heal the patterns you inherited and create emotionally safe relationships in your own family.
You love your children deeply
But sometimes your reactions surprise you.
A sharp tone you didn't intend.
A wave of overwhelm during conflict.
A feeling of shutting down when emotions run high.
Why did that moment feel so strong?
Later you may find yourself wondering...
Why did that moment feel so intense?
Many women who find their way to my practice carry a quiet pain:
They fear repeating the same emotional patterns they experienced growing up.
If you were raised by an emotionally unavailable mother, these reactions are not unusual.
The emotional patterns we learned in childhood often continue shaping how we mother, experience relationships, boundaries, and conflicts as adults.
Therapy can help you understand those patterns and begin creating something different for the next generation.
When Early Relationships Shape Adult Life
Growing up with an emotionally unavailable mother often leaves a subtle but powerful imprint on how relationships feel.
Many women notice patterns such as:
Feeling responsible for everyone's emotions
Becoming overwhelmed during conflict
Struggling with guilt when setting boundaries
Overthinking interactions with loved ones or at work
Worrying about repeating the same emotional patterns with their own children.
These responses are not personal flaws.
They are emotional survival strategies formed in early relationships.
With thoughtful therapeutic work, the patterns can evolve.
Therapy That Goes Beneath the Surface
Many clients initially come to therapy hoping to reduce anxiety, depression, emotional overwhelm, or relationship tension.
But what they often discover is something deeper.
Therapy offers an opportunity to understand the emotional blueprint shaped in early relationships and begin developing new ways of responding to life's challenges.
Overtime, these women begin to experience:
Greater emotional steadiness during difficult moments
Clearer boundaries and communication
Calmer interactions with their children
Stronger self-trust in relationships
Relief from long-standing shame or self-doubt
The goal is not perfection.
The goal is freedom fromm patterns that no longer serve you.
Meet Amelia
Amelia Mora Mars, LMFT
Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist
Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapist
Board Chair, Childhood Matters
Mom of 10
I specialize in working with daughters of emotionally unavailable mothers who want to understand the deeper roots of their emotional patterns and build healthier relationships in their own families.
My interest in this work began long before I became a therapist.
I never had the opportunity to meet my Abuelita. I came to know her through the stories passed down in my family, stories of the pain she carried and the fear her children sometimes felt around her.
As I grew older, I became curious about how emotional wounds can quietly move through generations, shaping how love, safety, and connection are experienced within a family.
Those early reflections stayed with me.
They eventually led me to study the ways attachment, trauma, and family relationships influence emotional patterns across generations.
Today, I help women understand how the emotional dynamics they experienced growing up continue to influence their relationships as adults, and how those patterns can change.
When this work begins to take hold, clients experience something they have been longing for:
A deeper sense of emotional steadiness, clarity, and safety in their relationships.
My Approach
Therapy unfolds in several phases:
Understanding the Pattern
We explore how early attachment experiences shaped emotional responses and relationship dynamics.
Building Emotional Stability
Clients develop stronger emotinal regulation and begin responding to difficult moments with greater calm and clarity.
Creating New Relationship Patterns
Over time, clients begin interacting differently with partners, children, and family members and feel more grounded in their relationships.
Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy
When Talk Therapy & Medication Isn’t Enough—KAP Meets You Where You Are
For some clients, the emotional patterns formed in early relationships can be difficult to shift through traditional talk therapy alone.
Ketamine-assisted psychotherapy can support the therapeutic process by creating a temporary window of increased neuroplasticity, allowing the brain to form new emotional pathways and perspectives.
While my practice specializes in working with women, ketamine-assisted psychotherapy is available for both men and women and couples who are seeking deeper therapeutic work.
My work integrates ketamine therapy through a structured approach called The Ketamine Layering Effect™.
Rather than treating ketamine as a single breakthrough experience, this method intentionally builds change over time. Research and clinical practice suggest that a series of six sessions is often considered the gold standard, as each experience helps reinforce new neural pathways and emotional insights.
Each layer builds on the previous one so that insights from the experience translate into lasting emotional change rather than temporary breakthroughs.
Preparation sessions to clarify intentions and emotional themes
Ketamine-assisted experiences conducted in a safe, supportive setting
Integration sessions to translate insights into meaning into meaningful life changes
By combining the neuroplastic effects of ketamine with thoughtful integration, clients are often able to access and reshape patterns that have felt stuck for years.
Ketamine-assited psychotherapy for men, women, and couples
Services
Ketamine Therapy
Therapy for Women
Therapy for Moms
Faith-Based Therapy
Pre-Marital Counseling
Client Experiences
"I have found joy in living, which I still consider unreal sometimes."
I was severely depressed and chronically anxious. I tried a variety of alternatives, and I didn’t seem to be able to get out of the desperate state of trauma and sadness that I was in. I felt at the end of my rope. After a decade of suffering with several mental health issues, I feel now I can handle the ups and downs of life without the extreme reaction that I used to have.
It makes a huge difference to have a therapist like Amelia, who understands trauma and is compassionate and knowledgeable about this new and rewarding treatment.
I have found joy in living, which I still consider unreal sometimes.
LS, Travel Writer
Blogs
7 Signs You May Have Grown Up With an Emotionally Unavailable Mother
Many women struggle with connection, boundaries, or the expression of their needs without realizing that these patterns began in childhood. Learn the 7 signs you may have grown up with an emotionally ... ...more
Mother Wounds
March 03, 2026•5 min read
How Mother Wounds Shape the Way We Parent—and How to Heal
This blog explores how unhealed mother wounds can affect how we parent and offers a compassionate path to healing, so you can break generational patterns and mother with confidence, clarity, and love. ...more
Mother Wounds
December 15, 2025•2 min read
Holiday Smiles, Hidden Pain
Explore compassionate support and resources for those navigating depression. Whether you're facing persistent sadness, burnout, or hidden emotional pain, therapy can help you find relief, clarity, and... ...more
Depression
December 05, 2025•1 min read
From Crisis to Clarity: One Physician’s Journey Through IV Ketamine Therapy
A high-performing physician found profound relief from trauma, pain, and suicidal thoughts through IV ketamine therapy. Discover how accelerated, intensive treatment can help professionals reset their... ...more
Ketamine for Suicidal Ideation ,Ketamine &Mother Wounds
November 20, 2025•3 min read
How Ketamine Saved My Son's Life
A personal story of hope and healing. In this post, I share how ketamine therapy became a life-saving turning point for my son during his struggle with severe depression, and what families should know... ...more
Ketamine for Suicidal Ideation
November 12, 2025•1 min read
What Is Ketamine‑Assisted Psychotherapy (KAP)?
Discover how ketamine assisted psychotherapy (KAP) supports healing from depression, trauma, and emotional pain. Learn what KAP is, how it works, and why it may help when talk therapy alone isn't enou... ...more
Ketamine ,Mother Wounds
November 11, 2025•2 min read
Our partners
In-network with Gold Coast Health Plan and Optum for talk therapy
2660 Townsgate, Suite 450, Westlake Village CA 91361
(805) 244-8489
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