Sevasti Xanthou lived in Arnavutköy, in Constantinople, along with her mother Mariora and her two sisters, Euphrosyne and Eleni. At the age of 17 (1815) and only a year after the foundation of Filiki Eteria, Sevasti married one of its founders, Emmanuil Xanthos. Together they had three children; Nicholas, Pericles and Aspasia. When the Greek Revolution broke out in 1821, her family, with her mother and sisters as well, moved from Constantinople to Izmail for safety reasons. In 1822, Sevasti felt that they were in hostile environment and on her initiative they left Izmail and moved to Chișinău. Emmanuil Xanthos was absent for long periods of time, firstly as a result of taking over the responsibility of organizing the Greek Revolution and secondly because of his inclusion in Margineni Monastery. During his absence, people he trusted took care of his family, like his brother in law, Michail Michaloglou (husband of Euphrosyne) and Michail Fokianos, who undertook the management of family finances.