James Wankel, LCSW, LISW-CP

James Wankel is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, LCSW, practicing in North Carolina. He focuses on stress, anxiety, addiction, trauma and abuse, coaching, and ADHD. He aims to make therapy practical and straightforward for people who feel overwhelmed or stuck.

He uses Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, client-centered methods, mindfulness, motivational interviewing, and narrative techniques. Sessions work on identifying troubling thoughts, building coping skills, and trying small changes between meetings. He keeps explanations simple and concentrates on what the person wants to achieve.

James brings five years of clinical experience to his work. He draws on a variety of approaches to match the situation rather than relying on a single method. That lets him address different problems like chronic pain, eating concerns, or substance use in practical ways.

People often come with issues around abandonment, communication problems, body image, blended family strains, or first responder stress. He helps them sort through difficult memories, manage dissociation, and develop steps to reduce harmful behaviors. Sessions move at a pace the person can manage.

He emphasizes respect and acceptance, creating space for identity-related concerns, kink or alternative-sex-culture topics, and questions about fatherhood or parenting roles. Work can include focused coaching around goals as well as therapy for trauma or addiction. James aims to help people gain tools, clarity, and confidence to handle day-to-day life.

How therapeutic approaches work online

James commonly uses Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and client-centered work to help people change unhelpful thought patterns and to make therapy feel guided by the person's needs. CBT focuses on identifying upsetting thoughts and testing out small changes to behavior, which can reduce anxiety and make daily tasks easier. Client-centered therapy centers the person's experience and priorities, offering listening and reflection to help someone clarify goals and feel understood.

He also draws on mindfulness techniques to teach simple attention and breathing practices that reduce stress in the moment. These short exercises can be used between sessions to manage overwhelm and strengthen emotional regulation.

Finding the right approach is part of the work. The therapist will collaborate with each person to choose methods that match their goals, preferences, and what feels manageable. That may mean trying a mix of CBT, client-centered conversation, and mindfulness practices and adjusting based on what helps.

Online sessions are offered as video calls, phone sessions, live chat, or text-based messaging to provide flexibility. Video is useful when visual cues help the work, phone can be lower bandwidth, live chat and text support quick check-ins or when shorter, more frequent contact is helpful. These options make it easier to fit therapy into busy schedules and to continue progress between sessions.