Learn About The Village
Our Mission
Matrescence is a time filled with potential, but it is inevitably messy. Many women and their partners have expectations they are not even aware of, and if anything is universally true about becoming a parent, it is that things will not go as expected. And when things go a bit sideways while you are sleep-deprived, undergoing immense physical, emotional, and cognitive changes, and adjusting to a new family dynamic—support is more meaningful than ever.
The Village was created as a space for those moving into new parenthood, with a mission to set women and their partners up for success, and then support the transition into and through matrescence. The group offers connection, education, and mental health support from pregnancy through the postpartum period.
Becoming a parent is a process of unraveling. The Village provides education in the necessary and productive unraveling of previous expectations, scary or confusing unknowns and the donning of a totally new identity, while offering insight and support for the feelings of grief, overwhelm, joy and even fear that often come with these changes.
The Facilitators
The Village is facilitated by Sarah Straus, AMFT, and Cassie Blom, ACSW. Both are therapists specializing in perinatal mental health, and both are also mothers of littles.
Sarah Straus, AMFT
Hi, I’m Sarah.
I work with women who are moving through seasons of change - especially pregnancy, postpartum, early motherhood, and the many identity shifts that can come with them. These transitions can be beautiful and deeply meaningful, but they can also feel overwhelming, lonely, messy, or unlike anything you expected.
As a therapist and a mother, I know how easy it is to lose sight of yourself while trying to care for everyone else. I also know how healing it can be to have a space where you can exhale, speak honestly, and feel supported without the pressure to have it all together.
In the groups I facilitate, I care deeply about creating an environment that feels genuine, supportive, and emotionally safe. I’m less interested in perfection or performance and more interested in helping people feel comfortable enough to be real. I believe healing happens in relationships and that there is something deeply powerful about being witnessed by others who truly understand. My hope is that group members leave feeling less alone, more understood, and more connected to themselves and one another.
Outside of my work, I’m a mother who is in my own season of becoming. I love adventuring outdoors with my husband and our toddler, whether that be at one of our local beaches or among the redwoods. These special moments remind me of the importance of slowing down, staying connected, and finding joy in the midst of constant change.
Cassie Blom, ACSW
Welcome! I’m Cassie.
I’m a mother of two young kiddos, and a therapist passionate about supporting moms and their partners through what is arguably the messiest and hardest transition a human can endure. Matrescence is a time of extraordinary potential, and it can test us in the most primal of ways. It is a process of simultaneously undoing, unfolding, and becoming.
My own experience of matrescence has been both singular and universal, and my curiosity flows with abandon each and every day as I sit with clients who are untangling their own selves, narratives, expectations, and core beliefs. The overlap in experiences is astounding, as is the uniqueness each new mother brings to her own matrescence.
Having had the honor and joy of participating in a CenteringPregnancy group during my first pregnancy, it became my goal to form a mental health–focused group that could offer the same breadth and depth of community that has been a lifeline to me throughout my 7+ years of matrescence. The Village is that vision come to life, built on clinical experience and specialized training, lived experience, and research from the field of maternal mental health.
Location & Timing
The Village groups are held at Shine a Light Counseling Center at 700 Frederick Street in Santa Cruz. We do not have a virtual option available at this time.
The cohorts meet weekly starting at around 20 weeks pregnant. The weekly meetings will typically only include the moms-to-be, with partners invited once a month for partnership-focused work—education and growth in relationship dynamics and expectations.
Group Structure
The Village groups consist of up to 10 pregnant people and, as scheduled, their partners or other support people, as applicable.
The groups are formed based on due date, so you will be in a group with others due in the same month as you. This is based on the CenteringPregnancy model, an evidence-based format providing group medical care to pregnant women.
As a cohort-based program, you will get to know the people in your group, and group membership will not change throughout the life of the group. This helps build trust, consistency, and deeper relationships among group members.
The Village groups are part psychoeducation—what to expect from a mental health standpoint, how to cope, helpful strategies, what is normal vs. what requires additional support, etc.—and part support group, providing space for complex feelings, processing change, understanding fears, celebrating growth, and more. While we have a curriculum, we also tailor group sessions to what the group is needing most in that moment.
The groups start in the month that participants reach 20 weeks pregnant, and continue into the postpartum period.
Cost & Commitment
The Village is offered on a sliding scale. Sessions are held weekly, and are $50 – $70 each (per couple). We do not offer refunds. During the enrollment process, we will discuss the fee that best suits your financial situation.
Due to the intimate nature of the group, we ask that each participant join with the intention to participate for the duration of the group. We understand that life changes, and needs shift, but the power of our groups is in the long-term, evolving relationships built within the space, so we do ask for the intention to attend group sessions regularly during that period.
Sessions are held weekly, and the group works best if everyone does their best to attend each week.
There is no contract to sign, and we will never pressure you to stay in the group if it doesn’t feel right for you.
Joining
If you are currently pregnant and would like to join The Village, the first step is to fill out the form on this page. Once we have your information, we’ll reach out within a couple of weeks to ask you some more questions to make sure everything sounds like a good fit.
If you just have some general questions, find our contact information here.