(she/her)
Clients say this provider is
Hi, I'm Nicole Bakewell, MS, LMHC, NCC, a Licensed Mental Health Counselor in Florida. I believe everyone deserves a safe, compassionate space where they can feel genuinely seen, heard, understood, and accepted without judgment. My approach to therapy is warm, authentic, collaborative, and grounded in the belief that meaningful healing begins with connection. I strive to create an environment where you can show up exactly as you are, without feeling pressured to have everything figured out. Therapy isn't about being perfect; it's about understanding yourself, recognizing patterns, healing emotional wounds, and discovering healthier ways to move forward. I work with individuals, couples, and families navigating anxiety, depression, trauma, relationship difficulties, attachment wounds, infidelity, grief, life transitions, and challenges with self-worth. I am especially passionate about helping clients understand how past experiences influence their present emotions, behaviors, and relationships. In our sessions, you can expect a balance of compassion, honesty, encouragement, and gentle accountability. I'm not a therapist who simply sits back and listens. I believe in meaningful conversations, thoughtful questions, practical tools, and helping you connect the dots between where you've been and where you want to go. I recognize that reaching out for support can feel vulnerable, especially when you've spent so much time being strong for everyone else. My goal is to help you feel comfortable enough to explore the difficult things while also recognizing your resilience, strengths, and capacity for growth. Whether you're working through painful experiences, rebuilding trust, strengthening relationships, or simply trying to feel more like yourself again, I would be honored to walk alongside you. You don't have to navigate life's challenges alone, and you don't have to have all the answers before beginning. Sometimes, the most meaningful changes begin with simply feeling understood.
Your first therapy session with me is about creating a safe, comfortable space where you can feel genuinely seen, heard, and understood. I know that reaching out for help can feel intimidating, especially if you've never been to therapy before. You may feel nervous, uncertain about what to say, or worried about being judged. I want you to know that you don't have to have everything figured out before walking through my door. Our first session is an opportunity for us to get to know one another. I'll ask questions about what brought you to therapy, your personal history, current challenges, relationships, and what you hope to gain from our work together. We'll also discuss confidentiality, what you can expect from therapy, and any questions or concerns you may have. My approach is warm, conversational, compassionate, and judgment-free. You won't be expected to share your deepest experiences before you're ready. I believe trust is something we build together, and I respect that everyone's comfort level and healing journey are different. I'm not a therapist who simply sits quietly and takes notes. I engage in meaningful conversations, ask thoughtful questions, offer insight, and help you begin connecting the dots between your experiences, emotions, and behaviors. Together, we'll identify your goals and begin developing an individualized plan that reflects your needs, strengths, and priorities. Most importantly, I want you to leave your first session feeling a little lighter, more hopeful, and reassured that you don't have to navigate everything alone. Therapy isn't about being judged, fixed, or told how to live your life. It's about gaining understanding, discovering your strengths, developing healthier patterns, and creating meaningful change. You don't need to have the perfect words or know where to begin. Just come as you are. We'll figure out the next steps together, at a pace that feels right for you.
One of the greatest strengths I bring to my sessions is my ability to connect with people in a genuine, compassionate, and nonjudgmental way. I believe therapy should feel like a safe space where you can take off the mask, let your guard down, and be completely yourself without worrying about being criticized, dismissed, or misunderstood. I bring a combination of professional knowledge, personal insight, empathy, and authenticity to my work. My own life experiences have helped me appreciate how deeply childhood wounds, relationships, trauma, and unmet emotional needs can influence the way we see ourselves and connect with others. I understand that behind many behaviors are emotions, experiences, and stories that deserve to be explored with curiosity rather than judgment. While I am compassionate and supportive, I also believe meaningful growth requires honesty and accountability. I'm not a therapist who simply nods and agrees with everything you say. I ask thoughtful questions, gently challenge unhealthy patterns, offer different perspectives, and help you recognize connections you may not have considered before. My approach is collaborative, individualized, and focused on helping you understand not only what you're feeling, but why you're feeling it. I want you to leave our sessions with greater self-awareness, practical tools, and a stronger sense of confidence in your ability to navigate life's challenges. I also bring warmth, humor when appropriate, and a down-to-earth personality. Therapy can involve difficult conversations, but I believe there should also be room for laughter, hope, and celebrating progress. My greatest strength is seeing the person beyond the diagnosis, struggles, or mistakes. I believe you are more than what has happened to you or the choices you've made. My goal is to help you recognize your worth, take ownership of your healing, and create meaningful, lasting change in your life and relationships.
My ideal client isn't someone who has everything figured out or knows exactly what they need from therapy. It's someone who recognizes that something in their life isn't working and is willing to explore why. You may feel overwhelmed, emotionally exhausted, disconnected from yourself, or stuck in patterns you don't fully understand. Perhaps you've spent years putting everyone else's needs before your own, questioning your worth, struggling with relationships, or carrying emotional wounds you've never had the opportunity to heal. I work with individuals navigating anxiety, depression, trauma, attachment wounds, grief, low self-esteem, relationship difficulties, and significant life transitions. I'm especially passionate about helping those who grew up feeling unheard, unseen, emotionally neglected, or responsible for keeping everyone else happy. These experiences can shape how we love, communicate, establish boundaries, and view ourselves. I also enjoy working with couples who want to rebuild trust, improve communication, navigate infidelity, strengthen emotional intimacy, or better understand the patterns creating distance in their relationships. My ideal client doesn't have to be ready to make immediate changes. You might feel uncertain, guarded, frustrated, or even skeptical about therapy. That's okay. What matters is having some willingness to be curious about yourself and eventually explore uncomfortable truths with compassion and accountability. I believe meaningful healing requires more than understanding what happened to us. It involves recognizing how our experiences influence our choices, taking ownership of what we can change, and learning healthier ways to move forward. Whether your goal is to heal from your past, strengthen relationships, develop confidence, establish boundaries, or simply feel like yourself again, I want to help you get there. My ideal client is someone who wants to feel genuinely seen, heard, understood, and supported while discovering that their past does not have to determine their future or their worth.
Cash - $120 per session
Aetna
Aetna - Allied Benefits
Aetna - ASR Health Benefits
Aetna - Gravie
Aetna - Lucent Health
Aetna - Luminare
Aetna - Meritain
Aetna - Moda
Aetna - WebTPA
Aetna – HealthEZ
All Savers
Ambetter Health
Amerihealth Administrators
Anthem
Arlo
AvMed
Blue Cross Blue Shield
Centivo
Cigna
Cigna - HealthEZ
EAP:Cigna
EAP:Evernorth
EAP:UnitedHealthcare/Optum
Evernorth
Florida Blue
Golden Rule
GTEB
Harvard Pilgrim/UnitedHealthcare
Independence Administrators
Independence Blue Cross
Optum
OptumHealth Complex Medical Conditions
Oscar
Oxford
Surest (formerly Bind)
Tufts Health/Cigna
United Medical Resources
UnitedHealthcare Life Insurance
UnitedHealthcare Shared Services
UnitedHealthcare StudentResources
UnitedHealthcare/Optum
I use Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) as a practical, collaborative, and evidence-based approach to helping clients better understand the connection between their thoughts, emotions, and behaviors. I believe that while we cannot always control what happens to us, we can learn to recognize and change the patterns that influence how we respond to life's challenges. In my practice, CBT is about much more than simply changing negative thoughts into positive ones. It's about understanding where certain beliefs originated, how they developed, and whether they continue to serve you. Many of the ways we think about ourselves, our relationships, and the world are shaped by past experiences, including childhood wounds, trauma, rejection, and unmet emotional needs. Together, we explore patterns such as self-criticism, overthinking, catastrophizing, people-pleasing, perfectionism, and fear of abandonment. I help clients identify unhelpful thought patterns, challenge deeply rooted beliefs, and develop healthier, more balanced perspectives. My approach is warm, compassionate, and interactive. I don't believe therapy should consist of simply talking about problems without developing meaningful ways to address them. I incorporate thoughtful questions, practical coping strategies, emotional regulation techniques, behavioral exercises, and tools clients can apply outside our sessions. I also recognize that every client is different. CBT is never a one-size-fits-all approach in my practice. I tailor interventions to your individual experiences, goals, emotional needs, and readiness for change. Most importantly, I balance compassion with accountability. We can acknowledge how past experiences have influenced your thinking while recognizing your ability to make different choices moving forward. My goal is to help you become more aware of your thoughts, confident in your decisions, and empowered to respond to challenges in healthier ways. Together, we work toward lasting change, stronger relationships, improved emotional well-being, and a greater sense of self-worth.
15 ratings with written reviews
October 24, 2026
She was so warming and affirming! She made me feel seen and felt like I could pour my heart out! Felt like it was talking to a best friend
October 3, 2026
We appreciated her approach on hearing both sides and not showing favoritism. We appreciated her problem solving recommendations and her overall honesty.
September 1, 2026
I absolutely love Nicole and I'm so glad she is my provider. She understands the style of therapy that works for me and I've been in such a better place since I started with her.