Darlene Nicks
When healers need healing, where do they go? Usually, right here. I’ve built a distinct reputation as a "therapist’s therapist." Clinicians, medical professionals, and seasoned helpers trust me because I speak fluent clinical language, skip the superficial fluff, and understand the heavy toll of carrying everyone else's trauma.
Yes, you are in the right place! When you work with the therapist’s therapist, you get the advanced-level, zero-fluff strategy that mental health pros rely on—tailored straight to your life.
Behind my strength-based, holistic approach lies both hard-earned lived experience and sharp clinical precision. True success means helping you unearth your core values, build rock-solid boundaries, and step into your most evolved, emotionally intelligent self. That is the essence of achieving Dynamic Total Wellness. While Grow Therapy is a fantastic home base for our sessions, my primary clinical hub—featuring expanded availability and a deeper look at my practice philosophy—can always be explored over at DynamicsTotalwellness.com. Whether you’re holding space for an entire caseload or simply trying to reclaim your own Main Character Energy, you deserve a safe space where you get to be the client. Let’s get to work.
First session
Think of our first session as a warm-up, a mutual interview, and an initial probe into the "why" behind the noise. Our initial meeting is all about getting to know each other, making sure our clinical chemistry feels right, and figuring out what finally made you say, "Okay, it's time for therapy." Fair warning: Session One involves a lot of questions. It looks a bit different from our future sessions, which will feature fewer intake forms and more real-world action, deep reflection, and maybe even a little homework. We’ll map out what brought you through my virtual door, unpack how long your symptoms have been crashing your party, and respectfully tour your history—family dynamics, past trauma, and all. We will always move at a pace that respects your nervous system. But as we get rolling, the magic happens when we pair your core values with ironclad boundary work and radical acceptance—turning those values into an internal GPS that guides your choices. Before we even press start, if you want a sneak peek at the full blueprint for trading survival mode for intentional living, head over to DynamicsTotalwellness.com. Take a look around, see if the philosophy hits home, and when you’re ready, let’s get to work!
Strengths
My niche is helping individuals recover their self-worth and dignity. I also specialize in codependency and narcissism relationships. Culture, race, upbringing, and life experiences shape individual world views, akin to "eyeglasses". Cumulative trauma can distort these perceptions, causing cognitive distortions (biased, irrational thoughts that misrepresent reality). Such distortions can cause relationship ruptures, depression, and anxiety. Recognizing, restructuring, and removing these distorted "eyeglasses" is an essential step in achieving Total Dynamic Wellness. By focusing on integrating various dimensions of well-being—such as psychological, social, and spiritual health- I will teach you to gain discernment, safety, balance, and clarity. These acquired insights will empower you to regulate your emotions and self-esteem. You can become your most authentic self by utilizing the concepts of Dynamic Total Wellness. Over time, after doing the work & digging deep enough, you can learn to grow through what you have been through and bloom where you have been planted. 🪻🌿 🪴🌿🪻 Darlene Nicks- Dynamics Total Wellness Virtual Psychotherapy, Counseling & Coaching
Ideal clients
Welcome to the portion of your life where you stop playing an extra in everyone else's drama. My practice is built exclusively for adults (18+) who are thoroughly exhausted by "survival mode" and ready to upgrade to intentional, high-functioning living. If you’re looking to unpack complex psychological and spiritual layers, build ironclad boundaries, and step into your full Main Character Energy, you’re in the right place. My approach is direct, integrative, and zero-fluff. While we can get incredible work done right here on Grow Therapy, if you'd like a full, unedited peek behind the curtain into my clinical philosophy (and see what else I'm up to ), feel free to explore my personal website at DynamicsTotalwellness.com.
Treatment methods
Trauma-Focused CBT
Trauma-Focused Therapy is a specific approach to therapy that recognizes and emphasizes understanding how the traumatic experience impacts an individual’s mental, behavioral, emotional, physical, and spiritual well-being. This type of therapy is rooted in understanding the connection between the trauma experience and the individual’s emotional and behavioral responses. The purpose of trauma-focused therapy is to offer skills and strategies to assist you in better understanding, coping with, processing emotions and memories tied to traumatic experiences, with the end goal of enabling you to create a healthier and more adaptive meaning of the experience that took place. Trauma-focused (TF) psychotherapy uses different techniques to help people process traumatic experiences. Some involve visualizing, talking or thinking about the traumatic memory. Others focus on changing unhelpful beliefs about the trauma or use of creative arts, movement, or music therapies. TF therapies usually last about 8-16 sessions but may take longer depending on the client.
Acceptance and commitment (ACT)
Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT therapy) is a type of mindful psychotherapy that helps you stay focused on the present moment and accept thoughts and feelings without judgment. It aims to help you move forward through difficult emotions so you can put your energy into healing instead of dwelling on the negative. The six core therapeutic processes in ACT are contacting the present moment, diffusion, acceptance, self-as-context, values, and committed action. ACT highlights the ways that language traps clients into attempts to wage war against their internal lives. Clients learn to re-contextualize and accept these private events, develop greater clarity about personal values, and commit to needed behavior change. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy typically lasts between 8 and 16 sessions. Sessions are 50 minutes in length, and are usually scheduled once per week. Should more intensive treatment be required, the session length and frequency may be adjusted.
Couples Counseling
Counseling in which guidance and advice focus on issues confronting relationships between partners. Couples counseling is short-term and problem oriented; it may include a variety of approaches to such difficult areas as shared responsibilities, expectations for the future, and loyalties.
Christian Counseling
If requested I will provide a safe space for you to address mental health concerns within the framework of faith, providing a supportive environment to explore their beliefs and apply biblical principles to navigate life challenges, potentially leading to deeper spiritual growth and improved emotional well-being while feeling connected to a higher power. This treatment modality can be helpful if you are dealing with issues like depression, anxiety, relationship conflicts, or trauma by offering guidance through scripture and a focus on God's teachings.
Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT)
I will provide space for individuals to develop a deeper understanding and acceptance of emotions, allowing them to effectively manage feelings (and the messages encoded within feelings), and ultimately achieve greater psychological well-being by addressing the underlying emotional needs driving behaviors, rather than just surface-level symptoms. Healing can be achieved through techniques that encourage awareness, expression, and processing of emotions, leading to more adaptive coping mechanisms and personal growth.
Location
Virtual sessions
Identifies as
Top specialties
Other specialties
Licensed in
- AlabamaLicense 5522C
- New JerseyLicense 44SC06325700
- PennsylvaniaLicense CW023875