‘Hey, come in. I'll make you a coffee. Let's talk about some hard stuff and let's build some skills and help heal you.’
WIMBERLEY — Approximately 16% of adults in the U.S. stated in a 2024 survey that they were currently being treated by, or in therapy with, a psychologist or other mental health professional. While this is an increase from the previous year, Hays County is still considered to be in need of more accessible mental health services — something that Catia Hernandez Holm has been trying to alleviate with her practice in Wimberley.
Bright Light Marriage & Family Therapy, located at 13501 Ranch Road 12, Suite 301, Wimberley, is designed to be a safe, comfortable space with bright colors for intentional healing.
Founded in August 2024, Bright Light Marriage & Family Therapy was created by Hernandez Holm, a licensed marriage and family therapist associate and certified conscious parenting coach with years of experience and specialized training in trauma, family systems and intergenerational healing. She developed the practice as more of a safe space designed for intentional healing by being particular in choosing the colors in the office and the overall environment to soften the experience for clients.
Hernandez Holm, 42, did not initially start her career in therapy; it was a journey through different milestones and industries before she got there. Her professional career is as follows:
• 2004: Earned a bachelor’s degree in business at the University of Texas at Austin as a first-generation university graduate.
• 2006: Earned a master’s degree in hospitality management at the University of Houston and then, became a restaurant manager at Edde V’s Edgewater Grille in Austin.
• 2008: Worked in marketing and business development at Holiday Wine & Liquor in the Rio Grande Valley
• 2010: Started writing a weekly blog
• 2011: Led a team of 50 in a 3,000-seat theater at Austin City Limits-Live
• 2017: Published the book, “The Courage to Become: Stories of Hope for Navigating Love, Marriage and Motherhood”
• 2018: Hosted a TEDx talk, “Choose Joy or Die”
• 2020: Became a certified Conscious Parenting Coach and started graduate school at Texas State University
• 2023: Published her second book, “A Gentle Return: A Mother’s Meditations on Embodying Pleasure, Fulfillment, and Worth”
• 2024: Graduated with a master’s degree in marriage and family therapy at Texas State University and then, opened Bright Light Marriage & Family Therapy in Wimberley
For Hernandez Holm, there is a local need for more mental health services and resources that people can use when they just need some support in whatever they may be going through, especially because taking the first time in going to therapy can be scary.
“I feel like there's definitely a need for mental health services in Hays County and to have accessible mental health services for families and couples and just individuals looking for a little bit of support. Navigating getting into a mental health space can be really daunting,” Hernandez Holm said. “You call somebody, maybe they call you back, maybe you get an intro call, then you meet them and maybe they're not fit and it's kind of nerve wracking to, in the moment when you really need help, have to navigate the logistics. That's hard. That's hard on somebody who's already having a hard time.”
She added that there’s also a lack of visibility as, even as a therapist herself, she has a hard time seeing where the therapists are in Wimberley because they are often tucked away in corners.
However, Hernandez Holm intentionally has her space right off the Wimberley Square, welcoming for people to walk by, see the bright colors, where kids draw on the windows and she can say: “‘Hey, come in. I'll make you a coffee. Let's talk about some hard stuff and let's build some skills and help heal you.’”
“The more comfortable the client is, the easier these interactions are for them. Then, also me as a therapist, knowing that it's a process, it's going to take some time, they're not going to just trust me right off of that, nor should they. It should be a little bit at a time, at a pace that is not overwhelming to them. Then, every week we talk about something. We do expressive parts. We do breathing techniques,” Hernandez Holm explained. “I teach them how to relax their nervous system, so I’m folding in all these tools during therapy to make the experience beneficial and not overwhelming. Because if I overwhelm them, it's of no use to them. It can often leave them worse off. So, I'm very careful not to do that. I really tend to their capacity and their heart as much as I can.”
It can be challenging to distinguish when it may be time to contact outside sources, like therapy. Hernandez explained if a person is ruminating on a thought over and over, and it’s hard to let go of that thought — whether it’s a break in some kind of relationship or even major life transitions — and it’s causing a lot of stress, then it may be worth getting an outside perspective.
“When we are going through difficult times in our own lives, it's often really hard to understand why. Not because we're not smart or capable, just because we're so close to it. So, if you can get somebody else's perspective, that can often help release that kind of stronghold,” she said.
At Bright Light, Hernandez Holm gives people and families the resource and hope to live with confidence and joy. She offers individual (pre-teen and older), family and marriage therapy services, but her speciality is working with family systems. She also offers both in-person and virtual sessions, whichever is best for the client’s situation.
While general hesitancy of trying something daunting for the first time can steer some people away from therapy, the cost can, as well. Therefore, outside of her private practice, Hernandez Holm will soon be able to offer therapy part-time at the Springs Family YMCA in Dripping Springs in order to be more accessible to the local community.
“We all have hearts to serve or else we wouldn't be therapists. So, of all the therapists I know, we all find a way to serve people who can't necessarily pay traditional hourly rates … There are so many free therapy services available in the community, you just have to find the organizations that do it. I know, as interns, we worked for free for a year,” she shared. “Part of your licensure is you have to work for free for a year under the supervision of another therapist, so I worked at the YMCA and I also worked at Canyon High School in New Braunfels … There are so many little pockets, different nonprofits or different church groups or different mental health organizations around this county to provide free or very low-cost services, as well.”
Bright Light Marriage & Family Therapy is located at 13501 Ranch Road 12, Suite 301, Wimberley. To find more information, visit www.catiaholm.com.
