Meet Your Therapist

Hi, I'm Maring.
I'm so glad you're here.

I'm an Associate Marriage and Family Therapist based in San Diego, specializing in neurodivergent couples and individuals who are ready to stop surviving their relationships and start truly living in them.

Associate Marriage & Family Therapist, AMFT #145908
Supervised by Dr. Harry Motro, LMFT #53452
Neurodivergent-Affirming · EFT · Somatic · IFS
San Diego & Online Across California
Maring Higa, AMFT — Associate Marriage and Family Therapist in San Diego

"This work is personal. And that's exactly why I do it."

"I came to this work not just through training — but through living it. As a parent, as a partner, and as someone who has navigated my own neurodivergent journey."
— Maring Higa, AMFT

My Story

I Know This Territory From the Inside

I didn't find this work by accident. I came to it through my own life — through the experience of parenting a neurodiverse child and learning, in real time, how differently two people can perceive the same moment. Through being in a neurodiverse relationship and discovering how much love can coexist with genuine confusion and disconnection. And through my own neurodivergent journey, which gave me a very personal understanding of what it means to move through the world with a brain that doesn't always fit the mold.

"I know what it feels like to love someone deeply and still feel like you're speaking completely different languages."

Those experiences didn't just shape who I am — they shaped the kind of therapist I've become. Someone who doesn't just understand neurodivergence theoretically, but who has sat in the discomfort, the grief, the relief, and the hard-won growth that this work requires.

I became a therapist because I wanted to offer what I wish had been available to me: a space that truly sees both people in the room, that doesn't pathologize difference, and that holds space for real change.

As a Parent

Parenting a Neurodiverse Child

Raising a neurodiverse child taught me more about attunement, flexibility, and unconditional love than any textbook ever could. It also showed me how profoundly a family system can shift when one person is finally understood.

As a Partner

Navigating a Neurodiverse Relationship

Being in a neurodiverse relationship gave me deep empathy for both sides of the dynamic — the longing for connection, the frustration of miscommunication, and the beauty that becomes possible when two people truly commit to understanding each other.

As an Individual

My Own Neurodivergent Journey

My own experience with neurodivergence has been one of the greatest teachers of my life. It has given me genuine empathy for clients who are still finding their way — and a deep belief that difference, understood, becomes a source of strength.

Why This Work

What Drives Me to Show Up Every Day

Neurodivergent couples are one of the most underserved populations in therapy. So much of couples counseling was designed with neurotypical brains in mind — which means neurodivergent couples often leave sessions feeling more misunderstood than when they arrived.

That's what I'm here to change. I believe every couple — regardless of how their brains are wired — deserves a relationship that feels like a safe place to land.

🌿

Both People Matter

I hold space for both partners equally — the neurodivergent partner who is tired of being "the problem," and the neurotypical partner who is tired of feeling invisible.

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Difference Is Not Deficit

I approach neurodivergence from a strengths-based, affirming lens. Your brain is not broken. It is different — and different, supported well, can be extraordinary.

💛

Real Change Is Possible

I have seen couples who were on the verge of giving up find their way back to each other. That possibility is what I carry into every session.

I Don't Just Do This Work.
I Believe In It.

There is something that happens in a room when two people finally feel understood — not just by their therapist, but by each other. When a pattern that has played out for years suddenly becomes visible and nameable. When the person you love stops being your adversary and becomes your partner again.

That moment is why I do this work. I have been lucky enough to witness it many times. And I believe it is available to every couple who is willing to show up and do the work together.

If you're reading this, I think you're already halfway there.

How I Work

My Approach to Therapy

I don't believe in one-size-fits-all therapy. I draw from several evidence-based frameworks and weave them together based on what you and your relationship actually need.

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Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT)

EFT is one of the most research-backed approaches for couples. It helps us identify the cycle driving disconnection and create new patterns of reaching and responding to each other.

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Somatic & Body-Centered

I believe the body holds what words sometimes can't express. Somatic awareness is woven throughout my work — helping clients regulate, process, and reconnect from the inside out.

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IFS-Informed Parts Work

Internal Family Systems helps us understand the protective parts of ourselves that can get in the way of intimacy — and access the softer, truer emotions underneath.

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Attachment-Based

Understanding how early attachment patterns show up in your current relationship is central to my work. We build toward earned security — together, in the therapy room.

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Neurodivergent-Affirming

Every aspect of my practice is adapted for neurodivergent brains — pacing, communication, sensory considerations, and the way I hold space in session.

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Practical & Skills-Based

Insight matters — but so does having tools. I make sure clients leave sessions with concrete skills, repair rituals, and communication frameworks they can actually use.

Training & Credentials

Education & Professional Background

🎓

Associate Marriage & Family Therapist

AMFT #145908 · State of California

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Private Practice

maringhigacounseling.com · San Diego, CA
Specializing in neurodivergent couples, individuals, and somatic therapy

🏢

New Path Counseling

Associate therapist at a neurodiverse couples and individuals practice

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Clinical Training

EFT, IFS-informed, somatic psychotherapy, attachment-based approaches, and neurodivergent-affirming practice

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Licensed Acupuncturist

Dual-licensed practitioner with a deep belief in the body-mind connection

A Note on Supervision

As an Associate MFT, I practice under the clinical supervision of a licensed therapist. This is a required part of the licensure process in California — and it's something I genuinely value.

Supervision means that your care is informed not just by my training, but by ongoing clinical oversight and consultation. It's an additional layer of support for you, and a commitment to the highest standard of care.

I work under the supervision of:

Dr. Harry Motro LMFT #53452

Let's Connect

Ready to Take the
First Step Together?

I'd love to hear what's been happening and talk about whether we might be a good fit. Start with a free 15-minute consultation — no pressure, no commitment.

Book My Free Consultation

Or call / text Maring: 619-387-8725

Maring Higa, AMFT

Neurodivergent-affirming couples and individual therapy. Somatic healing. Couples retreats. Serving San Diego and all of California online.

Associate Marriage & Family Therapist #145908
Supervised by Dr. Harry Motro, LMFT #53452

Services

Neurodiverse Couples Partner Support Somatic Therapy Couples Retreat

Contact

[email protected] 619-387-8725 Book a Free Consult
Maring Higa
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Maring Higa
Associate Therapist & Acupuncturist
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Thank you!
Maring Higa
maringhiga@gmail.com
Hours
Wed 13:00 to 18:00
Fri 13:00 to 18:00
Sat 09:00 to 14:00
 
 

MARING HIGA Registered Associate Marriage and Family Therapist #145908

(supervised by Dr. Harry Motro LMFT #53452)

619 387 8725

 

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