When Gratitude Feels Heavy: Reclaiming Appreciation on Your Own Terms
Therapy doesn’t ask you to feel grateful. It asks you to feel everything, including the parts that still ache. The Pressure to Be Thankful November arrives with a familiar emotional current: gratitude. It’s in seasonal messages, dinner table rituals, social [read more]
The Space Between: How Therapy Holds Our Emotional Contradictions
Healing isn’t about eliminating complexity, it’s about learning how to live with it. What Is Ambivalence, Really? Ambivalence gets a bad reputation. We're taught that emotional clarity is the goal, and that uncertainty signals indecision, weakness, or stagnation. But here’s [read more]
Somatic Memory vs Cognitive Memory: Why Your Body Remembers What Your Mind Forgets
Takeaway: Somatic memory refers to how our bodies hold on to past experiences, even when we can’t recall them consciously. This guide, written by a therapist, can help you understand how somatic memory shows up for you in relation to [read more]
The Grace of Release: Letting Go Without Losing Yourself
Releasing isn’t the end of something—it’s the beginning of alignment. Why Letting Go Is One of the Hardest, and Most Healing, Acts Letting go is a phrase we hear often: in books, blogs, advice columns, and therapy rooms. But [read more]
7 Best IFS Exercises for Healing at Home or with a Therapist
Takeaway: Internal Family Systems (IFS) exercises can help you connect with your inner world, gain clarity, and bring more self compassion to the parts of you that feel stuck, reactive, or overwhelmed. Whether you're working with a therapist or exploring [read more]
Emotional Seasons: A New Way to Understand Your Shifting Mood
Therapy isn’t just about insight—it’s about learning how to live in rhythm with yourself. The Myth of Consistency Let’s start with something we hear in therapy all the time: "I wish I could just be consistent." What most people [read more]
Healing Doesn’t Always Look Impressive
When we think about healing, we often picture something dramatic: a powerful breakthrough in therapy, a life-changing realization, or a complete transformation. These moments are real—and they matter. But they’re not the only way healing happens. For many people, healing [read more]
10 Best Somatic Therapy Exercises to Try At Home
Takeaway: Somatic therapy exercises, including body scans, help tap into the mind-body connection, regulate your nervous system, and gently release stored stress and trauma. Working with a somatic therapist can enhance these benefits. Understanding Somatic Therapy and Its Benefits Somatic [read more]
Navigating Mental Health Therapy: When to Seek Extra Support
Mental health is not a linear journey—there are ebbs and flows, challenges, and triumphs. While therapy can be a transformative tool, it's natural to take breaks from it, whether due to scheduling conflicts, financial considerations, or simply feeling like you've [read more]
What People Are Saying
I have been seeing Ashlie for almost a year and a half. She almost feels like a friend that I can talk to but one that offers good advice. I like having her to bounce my feelings off of and having her guidance to navigate personal and business situations. I’m feeling pretty good about things in my life right now, but I look forward to our 2x per month sessions and being able to talk things out with her.
I have been seeing Kristen Gallien for a few months and she is wonderful! She makes me feel heard and understood and has been a wonderful support! I’m so grateful I found her!
Things are going really well with our therapist. My daughter really likes going to see her and it’s great to see her high comfort level with an adult. She is wonderful.
Kristen is amazing. Very present and I love what she said in our first session—that her goal is to learn what it’s like to be me and to walk alongside me. I feel a difference since working with her and am so grateful to have found your practice and Kristen!
Thank god Kristen recommended EMDR to me. Before it, I genuinely didn’t think I was going to ever feel better, but after only about 2ish months I’m functional again. Also, I like that she said “We’re not trying to make you see your trauma in a positive light, we’re just trying to turn it into a memory that doesn’t hurt you anymore” because I was worried I’d have to act happy by the end of EMDR therapy. But no, the memory still sucks but it really doesn’t hurt anymore!
Ashlie is amazing 💙 I find myself referencing things she’s said to me, and she’s opened my mind to a lot of belief patterns I had that I wasn’t aware of. She’s also very open-minded to recommending or referring you to any other therapy methods she thinks might benefit you. I think my favorite thing about her though is she’s honest and direct, yet very in tune to take things at my pace, and never pressures me to do any type of therapy or have any type of conversation I’m not ready for. 💙
I’ve been with Ashlie for at least 3 years, (If not more?) I’ve made great strides in my therapy! I’m a childhood trauma survivor. I spent most of my life simply surviving. After another traumatic event, I finally sought help.
Ashlie helped me understand my trauma. She explained the reasons for my inner turmoil. She was patient and supportive. I felt accepted and safe. I have said many times that Ashlie saved my life and I’m grateful for the tools she provided me. I was very lost for very long and Ashlie led me through the darkness.
I have more work ahead of me and I know I can count on Ashlie to see me through the rest of my journey. “Thank you” doesn’t encapsulate the gratitude I feel for you. You helped me find true happiness!
Absolutely life-changing! My therapist is amazing and I’m so happy to be working with her! I’ve told all my friends about her!
Therapy is going so well! We are doing hard work and it’s very different than any other therapy I’ve done, but I’ve had a great experience and feel very seen and confident in my treatment. I appreciate how validating this experience has been. I always leave feeling soothed and more confident/motivated.
Start working with a Somatic therapist in Houston today
Whether you’re recovering from trauma, navigating life transitions, or simply yearning for a deeper connection to yourself, somatic and polyvagal therapy can help you come home to your body and your life.
We’re here to walk alongside you—compassionately, gently, and skillfully.

