01 · Who Lauren works with

Lauren works with stress, Anxiety, relationship issues and family conflicts

Lauren lists 13 specialisms and 14 further focus areas. Specialisms are the subjects Lauren chose to list first, which is the closest a listing gets to “this is my actual practice”.

02 · In Lauren's own words

What Lauren says about the work

Reproduced in full and unedited - not summarised, not tightened, not rewritten in a house voice.

I think that each of us at one time or another struggles with self worth, coping with crisis, interpersonal conflicts, or problematic behaviors and can benefit from a caring counselor who understands, helps identify solutions, and who doesn't judge. Together we will work as a team towards the goals that you set, and assess our progress as we go. The hardest part is recognizing the need for help and having the courage to get started. I look forward to taking the next steps with you.

My style is to focus on the here and now, with practical strategies for making meaningful changes that fit you and your situation. I rarely dwell on the past, although at times it may lend helpful insight or identify patterns or beliefs that are affecting you today. My approach is to focus on strengths and solutions - without psychobable.

I am licensed in California, with over 20 years of experience in helping individuals, couples, and families experiencing life changes, parenting challenges, family conflicts, relationship problems, or substance use issues. I also have expertise and experience working with people who are experiencing difficulties with recent or past traumatic experiences.

Advanced Training: Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), Trauma Resiliency Model (TRM), Collaborative Problem Solving (CPS)

Lauren Ball, on the BetterHelp listing · read 10 Oct 2026

03 · How Lauren works

The 4 approaches Lauren lists, in plain English

These are the clinical methods Lauren lists. The descriptions are Maker Therapy's, not Lauren's - a general explanation of what each method is, so the list means something before you have spoken to anybody. They are not a claim about how Lauren runs a session.

Cognitive Behavioural TherapyCBT

Structured, present-focused work on the loop between what you think, how you feel and what you then do. Usually means noticing a thought pattern in the room, testing it against evidence, and practising something different between sessions. Among the most heavily researched talking therapies for depression and anxiety.

Dialectical Behaviour TherapyDBT

A structured skills-led adaptation of CBT built around holding two things at once: accepting yourself as you are and working to change. Teaches concrete skills for distress tolerance, emotion regulation and relationships. Developed for people whose feelings arrive at overwhelming intensity, and strongest-evidenced there.

Solution-Focused Brief TherapySFBT

Starts from where you want to end up rather than from how you got here. Sessions look for the times the problem is already smaller and work out what is different about those, so the number of sessions tends to be short and the work concrete.

Trauma-Focused TherapyTF-CBT · trauma-informed

CBT adapted for people whose difficulty is rooted in a frightening or overwhelming event. Pacing is the point: safety and stabilisation come first, the memory itself is approached gradually and only when you are ready, and the aim is that recalling it stops hijacking the present.

04 · What happens next

From this page to a first session

Lauren practises through BetterHelp, so the route in is BetterHelp's. This is that sequence, written by Maker Therapy from the platform's published process - not a description of Lauren's own practice, and not a promise about how quickly anything happens.

1. A questionnaire, not a booking form

   BetterHelp opens with a set of questions about what you are dealing with, what you want from therapy, and any preferences on the therapist. You are not booking Lauren at this point.

2. Naming Lauren specifically

   BetterHelp matches algorithmically by default, so asking for Lauren is a step you have to take. There is a field for requesting a specific therapist during sign-up, and you can switch afterwards from your account. Starting from a link on this page does not by itself assign you to Lauren.

3. If the caseload is full

   You will be offered somebody else rather than put on a waitlist. Worth knowing, because it is easy to assume a match is the person you asked for.

4. The first conversation

   A first session is typically history and orientation: what brought you, what has been tried, what you want to be different. It is also where the questions in the next section belong.

5. If the fit is wrong

   Changing therapist on BetterHelp does not need a reason. A first session that does not click is common and is not a verdict on therapy. That option existing is the main practical difference between a platform and a private practice.

05 · Before you commit

3 questions worth asking Lauren

Built from what Lauren actually lists, so they are answerable and specific rather than generic. Maker Therapy's, not Lauren's - Lauren has not seen them and is under no obligation to answer any of them.

• “How do you decide when someone is ready to work on a traumatic memory itself?”

  Pacing is the biggest safety question in trauma work. A clear, unhurried answer here matters more than any credential.

• “With 21 years in, what has changed most in how you work?”

  Long experience is only an advantage if it has been examined. This tends to surface whether it has.

• “How do you handle the gap between sessions if something comes up?”

  On BetterHelp this varies a great deal by therapist. Better to know the rhythm now than to discover it on a bad week.

06 · Practical details

Credentials and licensing

Credential

LCSW

Licensed in

California

Licence

CA LCSW 19560

Licence number

19560

Licence expires

31 Jul 2027

NPI

1568013399

Years in practice

21

Gender

Female

Languages

English

International clients

Not accepted

Listed since

15 May 2026

07 · Provenance

Where every line on this page came from

Lauren's name, credential, state, subjects, approaches and biography are read from BetterHelp's therapist roster, which Maker Therapy re-reads once a day; this page reflects the reading taken on 10 Oct 2026. The licence number and NPI are cross-checked against public registers.

The plain-English method descriptions, the first-session walkthrough and the questions are written by Maker Therapy and labelled as such wherever they appear.

Maker Therapy is not BetterHelp, does not take bookings, and has not met Lauren. There are no reviews or ratings on this page because we have no way to verify one. If you start therapy through a link here, we may be paid a commission - it does not change your price and it does not affect who appears here or in what order.

Something on this page wrong or out of date? Report it and it will be checked against the source.