Laney Bassham never set out to be an entrepreneur. In grad school, private practice wasn’t even on her radar. But after years in residential addiction treatment and nonprofit management — and feeling the weight of professional fatigue alongside family medical challenges — she made a bold move in spring 2022: launching her own virtual therapy practice.
That leap became Summer Tree Therapy, a Texarkana, Texas, based online counseling service specializing in trauma-informed psychotherapy for adults navigating anxiety, grief, and traumatic stress. What started as a way to keep her license active has quickly taken root as a successful business.
Building a Vision for Growth
Bassham earned her counseling license in Texas in 2016 and spent years honing her clinical skills. By 2022, she shifted fully into telehealth, offering individual sessions, group therapy, intensives, and speaking engagements. While her expertise as a therapist was strong, running a business felt overwhelming.
“I had administrative experience, but no background as an entrepreneur,” she said. “It felt like a constant scramble with no real metric for success.”
That turning point came in May 2025, when she attended Communities Unlimited’s (CU) Small Business Success Summit in Texarkana. There, she connected with the CU Entrepreneurship Team and Management Consultant Trent Thomason, whose work in East Texas is supported by the T.L.L. Temple Foundation. Together, they began laying the foundation Bassham needed: aligning her budget with long-term goals, clarifying her vision, and developing a marketing system. Thomason encouraged her to “play less defense and more offense,” a phrase Bassham keeps posted by her computer as a daily reminder.
From Mental Blocks to Marketing Momentum
Bassham’s greatest challenge wasn’t the numbers — it was her mindset. Imposter syndrome, fear of criticism, and doubts about pricing often kept her from putting herself out there. With CU’s support, she began to push past those barriers.
She built a step-by-step marketing plan, studied successful competitors, and reshaped her messaging to highlight her focus on trauma and intensives. Soon, she was showing up at Texarkana Chamber events, attending local networking socials, and preparing for the Women’s Business Expo this November. She also revamped her website with new content and launched a page dedicated to intensives.
The shift paid off quickly. In August, she led her first multi-day intensive — a milestone that boosted both her confidence and her visibility. By fall, her practice had grown by more than 20% compared to the previous quarter, proof that her new strategy was working.
For Bassham, the changes have gone far beyond spreadsheets and marketing plans. The support has given her a sense of stability at a time when business ownership often felt overwhelming.
“Owning a business comes with emotional pressures, and Trent has been a stabilizing force. He helps me find clarity when I get lost in the details.”
— Laney Bassham, Summer Tree Therapy
Looking Ahead
Summer Tree Therapy is steadily building toward long-term sustainability. Bassham has sharpened her vision, centering her practice on private-pay intensives for clients working through complex developmental trauma, while preserving the flexibility of telehealth to fit both her life and her clients’ needs.
For her, the business is more than a career — it’s a calling that blends service with balance. The autonomy of entrepreneurship allows her to be present for her family while creating space for clients to heal.
“I feel privileged to support people and create space for their stories,” Bassham said. “It’s an honor to help them realize they don’t have to keep doing what they once needed to survive.”
With renewed confidence, a clear strategy, and CU’s continued support, Bassham is positioning Summer Tree Therapy for lasting growth — and expanding access to critical mental health care across Texas.
