Hi, I'm Amalya.
I started Untangled Path Therapy because I kept seeing the same gap: women who were doing everything right on the outside, and quietly falling apart on the inside, with no one in their corner who understood the full weight of what they were carrying.
I'm a Licensed Clinical Social Worker in California and the founder of Untangled Path Therapy. I hold my Perinatal Mental Health Certification (PMH-C) through Postpartum Support International, which means my training in maternal mental health goes beyond interest. It's a clinical specialization backed by the field's highest standard of credentialed care.
How I Work
While I have over a decade of clinical experience here in Los Angeles and extensive training in evidence-based methods (like CBT, ACT, DBT, Emotionally Focused Therapy, and the Gottman Method), what my clients appreciate most aren’t the acronyms; it’s that I can understand. I’ve lived it and am a mother, too. There are days in motherhood where joy, guilt, exhaustion, and doubt all show up in the same hour. And most of the time, there aren’t words for what that actually feels like. It is an unparalleled kind of love, one that is incredibly rewarding and deeply fulfilling, and at the same time, one of the hardest things you will ever navigate. Both of those truths exist together and both deserve space.
My approach as a therapist is both warm and direct. I’ll always hold space for the feelings that need room to breathe, but I won’t let you stay stuck in the comfortable patterns that brought you here. I want you to leave every single session with tools you can use: a way to name the unnamed, a clearer picture of what’s tangled, and an honest sense of where you’re heading.
Where This Comes From
As a first-generation Armenian-American (and a fluent Armenian speaker), I know firsthand what it’s like to grow up in a household where mental health simply wasn’t discussed. There was no language for it because it was both stigmatized and the education about it was not accessible. Watching someone I deeply love silently struggle with their mental health changed the dynamics of our entire family. That experience planted a seed in me when I was just twelve years old, and my passion for this work has only deepened since.
In many Armenian families, we carry a cultural expectation to be strong and to never burden others with our struggles. This is common in other cultures as well. While that comes from a beautiful place of resilience, it often leaves new mothers feeling incredibly lonely and ashamed of what they’re going through. Silence only deepens our suffering. Because of this, I built this practice, in part, to be a safe place where that silence ends.
If this resonates with your experience, please know that you won’t have to exhaust yourself explaining the cultural context before we can get to the real work. I already understand it from the inside out.
If you’ve been managing well on the outside for a long time, you already know that isn’t the same thing as actually being okay. I built this practice for you.
My goal is simply to help you untangle what’s gotten heavy and navigate you to where you’d like to go next.
Beyond the Therapy Room
Outside of the therapy room, I absolutely love having a creative space to share what I’ve learned with a wider community. Over the years, it’s been such an honor to guest on podcasts, speak at events, and contribute to various media features and publications.
I’m also passionate about bringing mental health education beyond the therapy room and into the spaces where people spend their time. I regularly visit organizations, companies, schools, and community groups to provide psychoeducation on topics like anxiety, maternal mental health, burnout, and breaking the stigma around asking for help. If your organization is looking for a guest speaker or workshop facilitator, I would love to hear from you.
See Media & PressTherapy Modalities
Amalya draws from a range of evidence-based approaches, selecting and blending methods based on what each individual client needs most.
What Amalya Specializes In
Amalya has deep experience in a wide range of presenting concerns, with particular expertise in anxiety, women's issues, and the unique challenges facing millennial women.