Dr. Sahar Martinez, LMFT

Dr. Sahar Martinez, LMFT Helping individuals, couples and families through transitional phases of life. Specializing in maternal mental health, couples, and women's wellness.

I used to think I was perpetually in a burnout cycle.But if I’m honest, I wasn’t collapsing.I was still delivering. Stil...
03/03/2026

I used to think I was perpetually in a burnout cycle.

But if I’m honest, I wasn’t collapsing.
I was still delivering. Still holding everything together.

What I eventually realized was something else entirely:

I had quietly become the default nervous system in too many areas of my life.

The one who absorbs tension.
The one who anticipates needs.
The one who keeps the emotional temperature steady when things start to escalate.

Over time, I started noticing patterns in the women around me too.

Four roles we slip into without even realizing it.

To be clear, none of these are diagnoses. They’re simply patterns many of us move through when we’ve spent years holding more than our share.

I’m curious, do any of these resonate for you? I’m landing in the quiet rebel, but have definitely had my seasons in each of these archetypes.

Read the full essay over on substack 🤍

Our new besties .door photographed our team at our annual Process Day. What an incredible reminder of the magical helper...
03/02/2026

Our new besties .door photographed our team at our annual Process Day. What an incredible reminder of the magical helpers, healers and deep feelers I get to walk alongside every day. Grateful to these women for the ways in which they show up every single day.

My favorite part of our annual gathering? Getting a whole day to hang with our team and their loved ones (aka babypalooza!).

In a time where things feel particularly dark, I’m grateful to these folks for being the light ✨

(swipe to the end if you’re curious about the aura of two kids that have been in love for 20+ years 😻)

this & accountability.
02/01/2026

this & accountability.

There’s something I need to name — with care and clarity.If you are a therapist with a platform and you’ve been silent w...
01/26/2026

There’s something I need to name — with care and clarity.

If you are a therapist with a platform and you’ve been silent while families are being torn apart, while ICE raids escalate, while fear is being normalized under the banner of “policy;”I want to lovingly but firmly ask: why?

I know the stories we tell ourselves.
“I don’t want to alienate clients.”
“I’m not a political account.”
“I do my advocacy quietly.”

But neutrality has never been neutral — especially in moments like this.

We are trained to understand trauma, attachment, nervous systems, and power. We know what chronic fear does to the body. We know what state-sanctioned harm looks like. We know that silence does not protect the most vulnerable; it protects comfort.

You don’t need to have the perfect language.
You don’t need to be an expert in immigration law.
You don’t need to post every day.

But if your work is rooted in healing, justice, and dignity, this moment asks something of us.

Even one post.
Even one resource.
Even one clear sentence that says: this is not okay.

This is me calling you in, not to perform, but to show up

The both/and is a space that I live in perpetually, as we all do, but something about the duality of this season hits di...
01/25/2026

The both/and is a space that I live in perpetually, as we all do, but something about the duality of this season hits different. There is a violent shift in the in between and the whiplash is unbearable. What I’m learning is this: Micro joys are how I stay regulated; macro grief is what I refuse to bypass. I’m holding both.

The world feels impossible and still I am grateful to be alive everyday.
Another murder in Minnesota and my Khaleh finally made it out of Iran.
A soul nourishing conversation on the drive to work and having an unexpected conversation about ICE with my children.
Collective rage hand in hand with collective gratitude and joy. Both/And.

It’s strange to hold both at once — the joy that fills my cup and the rage that drains it.

But this is the human heart: expansive enough for celebration and for mourning, even when it’s inconvenient, uncomfortable, or downright hard.

Here’s to loving deeply, standing for justice, and choosing presence — in grief and in joy. Here’s to keeping the glimmers in sight and celebrating them alongside our grief.

Most of all, F**K ICE.

I didn’t expect stopping HRT to affect my mental health the way it did. Within days, my nervous system felt destabilized...
01/19/2026

I didn’t expect stopping HRT to affect my mental health the way it did. Within days, my nervous system felt destabilized in a way that was both terrifying and strangely familiar, like being transported back to a version of myself I worked very hard to heal.

I wrote about what happened, not as medical advice, but as lived experience. Because hormones can hijack mental health in ways we are not warned about, and because too many women end up blaming themselves when their bodies are actually asking for care.

If this resonates, the full essay is on Substack. Read with care 🤍

Everyone talks about The Artist’s Way like it’s either✨ life-changing ✨ or something you “failed” at.Both miss the point...
01/14/2026

Everyone talks about The Artist’s Way like it’s either
✨ life-changing ✨ or something you “failed” at.

Both miss the point.

The Artist’s Way isn’t about productivity or output.
It’s about repair.

Repairing the relationship between you and your inner voice, especially if that voice learned early on to be quiet, useful, or small.

Morning Pages aren’t meant to be good.
Artist Dates aren’t meant to be impressive.
And the process isn’t linear.

You’re not behind.
You’re not doing it wrong.
You don’t have to be “creative enough” to begin.

✨So here’s the invitation
Starting February 2, I’m beginning The Artist’s Way again—and you’re welcome to join.

No perfection.
No catching up.
No pressure to finish every week.

Just a shared start date, some structure, and a willingness to listen a little more closely to yourself.

If this has been tugging at you, in that quiet maybe now feeling, consider this your sign.

Save this post if you’re in.
Comment or DM me if you’re joining.
We’ll start together on February 2nd.

01/08/2026

Fear as policy is violence. If people are afraid to exist, that isn’t safety, it’s terror. Legality and morality are not the same thing. I work with the aftermath of fear for a living. This is what systemic trauma looks like.

These are the truths I keep coming back to: in my work, in my body, and in my own healing.Not because they’re trendy.But...
01/08/2026

These are the truths I keep coming back to: in my work, in my body, and in my own healing.

Not because they’re trendy.
But because folks keep sitting across from me thinking they are the problem, when in reality the systems around them are quietly doing harm.

If one of these hills feels tender, that’s not weakness.
That’s awareness.

You’re allowed to build a life that actually fits your nervous system. I promise you it’s worth it.

12/05/2025

Shout out to Mr. Campbell. Hope you’re doing well, my guy.

Signed,
Dr. Sahar Martinez, Psy.D, LMFT, PMH-C

10/30/2025

We escaped to the desert for a few days with our bests, an annual trip that has become something we look forward to every year. No work, no schedules — just 4 days of togetherness. I’m so grateful our people — friends that have become family and family that we can call friends. It’s easy to lose sight of the good things when life can feel so damn hard, and this weekend was a really, really good weekend

We came home with a sunshine hangover and the best memories. Recharged and ready for the week.

A reminder for you (and me) that we all need to embrace the present more often and let ourselves get caught up with the small joys of life. Sometimes we don’t have to go too far for a needed escape.

There’s connection in the disconnection and it feels damn good ✨💫✨

10/30/2025

What started as a dream to make mental health care more accessible became a room full of people showing up for themselves, each other and our community.

The Retreat was a testament to what happens when community, care, and courage meet in one space. A single idea manifested with that became a container for healing, connection and joy.

Every ticket, every conversation, every moment moved our mission forward. Thank you for being part of this work.

To the amazing women that held space for each of us in their uniquely beautiful ways, thank you thank you thank you. Your presence meant the absolute world.

A special thank you to the best team in the universe for always being game for the wild ride (there’s officially too many of us to tag 🥹), none of this would be possible without each and every one of you 💫

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92612

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