Are you seeking to make life changes, increase self-awareness and fulfill a positive beginning? My mission is to empower and guide individuals through life transitions, making life changes, overcoming barriers, finding solutions, or simply providing empathy and understanding. My dedication to counseling is creating a safe and a supportive therapeutic environment for individuals to express their thoughts and feelings in addition to establishing a collaborative therapeutic relationship. My commitment to understanding and addressing the diverse needs of my clients reflects the compassion that I have for mental health and the well-being of others. I am a Licensed Professional Counselor, a Certified Substance Abuse Counselor-supervisee and a Certified Rehabilitation Counselor. I have years of experience working in community mental health settings and in private practice while providing clinical mental health and vocational counseling services. I specialize in treating depression, anxiety and substance abuse. My theoretical approach is rooted in evidence-based practices, including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Dialectical Behavior Therapy, Motivational interviewing and other evidence-based modalities.
What can clients expect to take away from sessions with you?
In our initial session together, we will begin with brief introductions, discussions about our expectations for the therapeutic relationship, identify your reasons for seeking therapy and how I can best assist you in achieving your goals. This will serve as an opportunity for me to build a strong rapport, assess your needs and it will allow us to establish a foundation for open communication and trust. In addition to our initial setting, I will conduct a biopsychosocial intake to gather additional information about your background, experiences, and presenting circumstances. Together, we will collaboratively discuss and set goals that will be implemented into your personalized treatment plan. Following our initial session, we will explore the most suitable course of action for your unique needs and objectives going forward. This may involve discussing the frequency and format of future sessions, exploring specific therapeutic approaches, and determining the overall direction of your therapeutic journey. My aim is to ensure that our collaboration is tailored to support your individual growth and well-being.
Explain to clients what areas you feel are your biggest strengths.
As a therapist, my dedication to supporting individuals in the community sets the foundation for my strengths in this profession. I am committed to assisting those in need by bringing forth an unwavering work ethic and a genuine desire to help others address and overcome life challenges. One of my many strengths lies in my ability to help clients set and achieve meaningful goals and manage healthy lifestyles. I believe in the importance of creating a roadmap for personal growth and allowing individuals to be in the driver's seat, shaping their own stories and paths toward success. My counseling approach is characterized by empathy and collaboration. The significance of building a strong therapeutic relationship is important and I strive to create an environment where clients feel heard, understood, and respected. I am excited to embark on this journey with you of self-awareness and positive change. By working together we can create a space for self-discovery, personal growth, and the foundation for new beginnings.
About Nicole Hargraves
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VirtualMy treatment methods
Cognitive Behavioral (CBT)
Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a structured, goal-oriented type of talk therapy to help manage mental health conditions, such as depression, anxiety and emotional concerns. My purpose for using CBT is to guide individuals towards understanding how their thoughts affect their actions and unlearning irrational thoughts and behaviors into modifying healthier thinking patterns and habits. As your therapist I will work with you to implement healthy coping skills.
Dialectical Behavior (DBT)
Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) is a structured therapy that focuses on teaching four core skills (mindfulness, acceptance & distress tolerance, emotional regulation, and interpersonal effectiveness) to help individuals create a meaningful life for themselves. My purpose for utilizing DBT is to help individuals become fully aware of thoughts, behaviors and feelings in the present moment, changing what is possible and accepting what cannot be changed, building distress tolerance for intense emotions in difficult situations, controlling your emotions, navigating your environment by setting healthy boundaries and effectively communicating your needs and wants in relationships while maintaining respect for yourself and others.
Motivational Interviewing
Motivational interviewing (MI) is a counseling approach designed to help individuals find the motivation to make a positive behavior change. My experience in utilizing MI is to uncover conflicted feelings and desires that individuals have towards changing their behavior and exploring their reasons for change within an atmosphere of acceptance and compassion. For individuals dealing with substance abuse or generalized anxiety disorder my mission is to help you work through the stages of change (precontemplation, contemplation, preparation, and action) and draw out your true motivations for change to make the recovery process effective.
Person-centered (Rogerian)
Person-centered therapy empowers individuals to take ownership of their mental well-being. My experience with providing person-centered therapy is to create a safe space for individuals to become more self-aware and find their own solutions; to work as a team within the client-counselor relationship. My goal is to help individuals gain trust within themselves and their abilities, create healthier relationships with others, create a world view of understanding and create healthier communication skills.
Psychodynamic
Psychodynamic therapy is an approach that helps people gain insight into their lives and present-day problems; evaluating patterns that individuals develop over time and how those patterns affect the internal self. My goal is to review life factors (emotions, thoughts, early-life experiences and beliefs) with a person and recognize recurring patterns that can help individuals become aware how they avoid distress or develop defense mechanisms to cope. In my experience I've used visualization and imagery as a way to uncover meaning and insight behind generational patterns or behaviors that people want to change.