Tara Wagner , LCSW

Tara Wagner is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) practicing in Indiana with 12 years of professional experience. She has worked in inpatient and outpatient settings, medication-assisted treatment programs, and academic environments, providing care to adults 18 and older across a range of behavioral health concerns. Her clinical focus includes addictions - both chemical and behavioral - trauma and abuse, mood disorders such as depression and bipolar disorder, anxiety, and co-occurring conditions. She also works with issues related to self-esteem, motivation, relationships and family dynamics, grief, intimacy, parenting, anger, and coping with life transitions, along with more specific concerns such as attachment and abandonment, codependency, dissociation, and alternative sexual cultures including BDSM and kink.

Tara approaches each person with respect, sensitivity, and compassion, tailoring conversations and treatment plans to fit individual needs and goals. She believes every person has inherent worth and adapts therapeutic techniques to match the complexity of each case. Her clinical toolkit includes Solution-Focused Brief Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Motivational Interviewing, and client-centered approaches, which she applies when addressing addiction, trauma, personality-related concerns, and co-occurring disorders. She recognizes that beginning therapy requires courage and honors the step clients take toward support.

Approaches for Online Care and Therapeutic Collaboration

Tara draws on client-centered therapy, which centers the individual's experience and priorities and helps people feel heard while exploring personal goals and values. She also uses Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), a practical approach that examines how thoughts, feelings, and behaviors interact and offers strategies for managing anxiety, depression, and patterns that maintain distress. Motivational Interviewing is another tool in her practice - a collaborative, goal-oriented method that strengthens a person’s own motivation to change, often useful for addictions and ambivalence about treatment.

Choosing the right approach is part of the therapeutic process. Tara works collaboratively with each person to identify which methods align with their needs, goals, and preferences, adjusting the plan over time as progress and circumstances evolve. This collaborative stance helps tailor care for complex or co-occurring challenges.

Online therapy with video calls, phone sessions, live chat, or text-based messaging provides flexibility for different schedules and comfort levels. These formats can make it easier to access licensed professionals from home, manage ongoing treatment around life commitments, and maintain continuity of care when in-person visits are difficult. The variety of options supports practical, consistent engagement with therapy.