Cynthia Manuel-Shah, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist

Cynthia Manuel-Shah, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist Bay Area therapist for moms (36+) with newborns & aging parents. Release perfect, find flow. Hey there mama. in motherhood. Call me today.

Feeling a rollercoaster of emotions, and need a moment to think out lout w/o judgment? Maybe you are the mama that has experienced a miscarriage, high risk pregnancy, baby in NICU, or infertility. Or perhaps you are having difficulty adjusting to motherhood, not connecting with your newborn and feeling anxious/depressed. Sometimes partners, family and friends don't understand what it's like to experience the joys and pains of creating a little human. One moment there is excitement, the next there is pain when finding out things aren't going as planned. If you are a BIPOC woman, the natural thing to do would be to say that everything is fine, be strong, and power through all of it on your own b/c that’s how we are “built.” You know what dear mama? This is something that we have been taught to survive, but I am here to let you know that you don't have to do this alone. I know what it like to experience the joys, pains, isolation, etc. Please reach out, so that we can work together to help you evolve into your best self through this transformative (and complicated) process.

✨Cheers to my amazing friend while my 5-year-old melts down in the background because he's done with whatever activity h...
08/31/2025

✨Cheers to my amazing friend while my 5-year-old melts down in the background because he's done with whatever activity he was doing and wants something else RIGHT NOW.

This photo is peak motherhood at 40-something: trying to celebrate people you care about while juggling everyone's needs from across town. Holding a drink in one hand, an activity bag in the other, and somehow trying to show up for both worlds.

Got there late, left early to go fill a month's worth of pills before September 1st because someone has to remember these deadlines.

Your friends matter. Your family needs you. Your heart wants connection AND you want to take care of everyone. All true, all exhausting.

This is what love looks like when it's spread across generations and responsibilities and a really good celebration you're trying to squeeze into real life.

If you're ready to stop feeling guilty about wanting both connection and family time, I'd love 💕 to support you.

Send me a DM or visit the link in my bio to schedule a consultation.

Hey Mama. Sending you a reminder to be extra gentle with yourself today. You've been through a LOT. With love and grace,...
08/29/2025

Hey Mama. Sending you a reminder to be extra gentle with yourself today. You've been through a LOT.

With love and grace,
Cynthia

Expect nothing! Setting expectations to get nothing done and being pleasantly surprised with what you witnessed, felt, ...
08/16/2025

Expect nothing!
Setting expectations to get nothing done and being pleasantly surprised with what you witnessed, felt, and co-experienced will offer you more than recognition and crossing off a task on your list. This is good practice for you to:
-See things from your child's eyes
-Savor moments they teach you how they experience life for the first time, and for you ... again.
- Notice their creativity
- Reminded of how to be curious which will offer you more richness than being "right," you might be surprised with what else you find...
I'm exhausted, but being with him, connecting, correcting, calming and soothing felt like this is what we both needed without even known knowning.

You leave that appointment feeling unheard and misunderstood. Your hesitations about seeking support feel validated, so ...
08/07/2025

You leave that appointment feeling unheard and misunderstood. Your hesitations about seeking support feel validated, so you decide to push through postpartum on your own.

I'm ashamed to admit this happened to me too.

Worried about seeking support and being labeled?

Scared to voice those dark thoughts that you know won't happen, but still visit you in dreams or keep your anxious mind spinning at 2am?Need somewhere to unload and process this whole experience without someone jumping in to "reframe your irrational thoughts"?

You want someone who will witness your story, validate your reality, and sit beside you as you heal—at your own pace.

Here's what I've learned: specialized perinatal mental health training makes all the difference. Working with someone who understands the unique complexities of this season, recognizes the additional layers later-in-life BIPOC mothers navigate, and takes the time to truly know your story? That changes everything about how your healing unfolds.

Ready to work with someone who gets it? Send me a DM or visit the link in my bio to schedule a consultation. You deserve support that meets you exactly where you are.

Today marks 15 years that we have been married 💕He knew all of me and we struggled together through many growing pains. ...
08/01/2025

Today marks 15 years that we have been married 💕

He knew all of me and we struggled together through many growing pains. But through the losses, fertility treatments, hospital stays, and a pandemic - even though he was by my side, there's no way he truly understood what I was going through.

Fertility treatments didn't happen to my arm and belly - they happened to ME.

As the strong, independent, do-things-without-asking-for-help Filipina 🇵🇭🇺🇸 I was raised to be, I handled miscarriages, pregnancy complications, and postpartum depression and anxiety exactly how you'd expect - alone. I didn't want to admit I was struggling.

He was there 24/7 when the world shut down. Supportive as anyone could be. He did all the things. But I was still alone in my thoughts. His words and actions were meant to comfort, but because of PMADS, I couldn't receive them.

And there was no way I could share my unfiltered thoughts because they felt too dark, too scary, too much.

This is ONE example of the cost of untreated PMADS.

Sometimes I wonder if I would have enjoyed the newborn stage more, been less hard on myself, if I had just leaned in to receive the type of help I needed. But honestly? I didn't know what I know now. How raw, intrusive, and isolating it could feel - EVEN when support you think you need is right there.

PMADS affects 1 in 5 birthing people. You're not alone, even when it feels like you are. And it is treatable and WORKS.

That's why I'm here as a BIPOC Perintal Mental Health Therapist for, who is also a Later-in-Life Mom. I get it. Let's work together so you can finally:

❤️Regulate your nervous system
💜Receive the support that's waiting for you
💙Rest in the comfort of your own thoughts, body, and community

You don't have to carry this alone like I did.

Ready to stop suffering in silence? DM me "SUPPORT" and let's talk about how therapy can help you feel held, not just helped. 💙

🌐www.cynthiamanuelshah.com

🌸 It's official—I'm now a Perinatal Mental Health Certified Provider.Sometimes life has a way of showing you exactly whe...
07/25/2025

🌸 It's official—I'm now a Perinatal Mental Health Certified Provider.

Sometimes life has a way of showing you exactly where you belong. My 20s taught me I was called to support people of color through their mental health journeys and find liberation.

Fast forward to my own journey toward motherhood—infertility, high-risk pregnancy, NICU stays, and endless appointments with my IUGR baby. I did what I'd always done as a Filipino woman who'd faced challenges before—powered through with a smile while drowning inside.

Finding the PMH-C with two years later felt like coming home. Here was training that actually understood stories like ours—the messy, beautiful, complicated reality of becoming a mother when life doesn't go according to plan.

I get to show up for Bay Area BIPOC women experiencing first-time motherhood at 36+. Not just as their therapist, but as someone who's been there. A Thera-MAMA who knows what it means to be re-birthed, rePURPOSED by our own experiences.

This is my calling, refined and deepened by everything I've lived through and NOW here to be with you on your unique journey 💙 into motherhood. Let's drop perfection, and step into confidence with who you are becoming without the guilt. I don't know where you need to be, we can get there 🙏🏽

Love that he displays his brown skin and sees all the different parts of himself.
07/18/2025

Love that he displays his brown skin and sees all the different parts of himself.

Join us for the next Mamas Sama SamaA virtual support group for Bay Area later-in-life moms created by and for BIPOC wom...
07/17/2025

Join us for the next Mamas Sama Sama
A virtual support group for Bay Area later-in-life moms created by and for BIPOC womyn.

📆 Aug 20
⏱️ 12-1
✉️ cynthia@cynthiamanuelshah.com

I finally got pregnant after years of treatments, diet changes, TCM, prayers, healing sessions, and now everyone expects...
06/24/2025

I finally got pregnant after years of treatments, diet changes, TCM, prayers, healing sessions, and now everyone expects me to be nothing but grateful.

Here's what they don't tell you about your🌈 "rainbow baby" story: Being the "inspiration story" is exhausting when you're still processing the trauma of miscarriages, medical treatments, hospital stays or having a baby in the NICU. People want the highlight reel - the happy ending that makes their discomfort about your struggle disappear. But you're still carrying the weight 🏋🏽‍♀️of years of injections, procedures, and hope that got crushed month after month.

You can be deeply grateful AND still grieve what you lost along the way. You can love your child fiercely AND still feel angry about the path it took to get here. You're allowed to feel complex emotions around what it took to get here. You're allowed to grieve the naive excitement you thought you'd have. Your story is yours - not inspiration content for others.

Ready to honor both your gratitude🙏🏽 AND process all that has happened including your grief? I work with moms who understand that pregnancy after infertility comes with complex emotions. Let's create space for ALL your feelings - not just the socially acceptable ones. Let's connect. Link in bio 🔗

Come see me this Saturday along with other amazing birth workers. No judgment, no pressure - just information and a good...
06/23/2025

Come see me this Saturday along with other amazing birth workers. No judgment, no pressure - just information and a good conversation.

Whether you're preparing for your first baby or navigating the tender space of early motherhood, this is your chance to connect with people who understand that your story matters.

Event Details:
📅 Saturday, June 28th
🕐 2pm - 6pm
📍 4546 El Camino Real #246, Los Altos, CA 94022

💗 Every mom deserves a village💗That overwhelming feeling when you're holding your sleeping baby and wondering if you're ...
06/19/2025

💗 Every mom deserves a village💗

That overwhelming feeling when you're holding your sleeping baby and wondering if you're doing any of this right? You're not broken. You're not failing. You're just a real person that is allowed to be tired.

This isn't about having all the answers – it's about having a place where the questions are welcome. Where "I love my baby but I'm struggling" isn't whispered in shame, but shared with understanding nods.

Our free monthly online support group is for Bay Area moms who are ready to trade perfection for connection. Who want to laugh about the chaos instead of carrying it alone.

Because surviving motherhood is done with community.

Your village is waiting. 🤱

RSVP at cynthia@cynthiamanuelshah.com
We meet every 3rd Wednesday of the month
12:00-1:00pm

The perfect fantasy mom in your head had it all figured out. The real mom reading this? She's figuring it out as she goe...
06/19/2025

The perfect fantasy mom in your head had it all figured out.

The real mom reading this? She's figuring it out as she goes.

And that's exactly as it should be.

After sitting with Bay Area moms navigating this exact gap, I've learned that the disappointment isn't about your mothering - it's about unrealistic expectations that never served you anyway.

What expectation did you have to let go of? Share in the comments below 👇

Let's connect! 🔗 In bio.

Address

San Jose, CA

Opening Hours

Monday 8am - 5pm
Tuesday 8am - 5pm
Wednesday 8am - 5pm
Thursday 8am - 5pm
Friday 8am - 5pm
Saturday 8am - 5pm
Sunday 8am - 5pm

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