01 · Who Mary works with

Mary works with stress, Anxiety, relationship issues and self esteem

Mary lists 13 specialisms and 21 further focus areas. Specialisms are the subjects Mary chose to list first, which is the closest a listing gets to “this is my actual practice”.

02 · In Mary's own words

What Mary says about the work

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

My name is Mary Hargarten and I am a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. I am located in Milwaukee, WI. I have been doing therapy in person and online for 25 years. I have done therapy with individuals, couples and families. I have worked with clients around issues such as anxiety, depression, panic attacks, relationship issues, family issues, domestic violence, self-esteem, sexual abuse, women’s issues, aging and issues at different life stages.

It is my belief that we all have the resources we need inside of us to cope with the challenges that life throws at us. Sometime we just need a little help finding those coping skills and bringing them out. We all have strengths that we can develop and build on to help us cope better in day to day life. I believe that our family of origin can have a lot of influence on our ideas and beliefs so it is important to explore that influence and how it may be helping or hurting us in the present day. I believe in treating the whole person and in trying to find a good balance in all areas of our lives - physical, emotional, intellectual, social and spiritual.

My style is to be warm, caring, non-judgmental, compassionate and I have a good sense of humor. I try to step into your shoes so I can better understand exactly where you are coming from. You are the expert on your life and I am the expert on therapeutic strategies so we need to work together to see what will work best to get you where you want to go in your life. I think it takes tremendous courage to go to therapy and talk about your deepest feelings and fears. So just taking that step shows you are already moving in the right direction to shift your life in the way you want it to go.

I use different types of therapy - Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy, Solution Focused therapy, Motivational Interviewing, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy and Bowen’s Family System’s therapy. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy helps us look at our thoughts and beliefs and actions and how they are working positively or negatively for us. Solution Focused Therapy is about focusing on one issue at a time and setting goals to solve the problem. Motivational Interviewing is about finding out what motivates you to make changes in your behaviors. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy teaches how to accept the things we cannot change and commit to changing the things we can. It also teaches Mindfulness which is a very useful tool in everyday life. Bowen’s Family System Therapy talks about how we each need to “individuate” from our families by developing our own values and beliefs as an individual.

I truly look forward to working with you. I love doing this work and being reminded daily of the strength of the human spirit.

Mary Hargarten, on the BetterHelp listing · read 7 Nov 2026

03 · How Mary works

The 7 approaches Mary lists, in plain English

These are the clinical methods Mary lists. The descriptions are Maker Therapy's, not Mary'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 Mary runs a session.

Acceptance and Commitment TherapyACT

Rather than trying to argue a painful thought away, ACT works on loosening its grip and getting on with what matters to you anyway. Sessions spend real time naming your values, then building action around them while difficult feelings are still present.

Client-Centred TherapyPerson-centred · Rogerian

The therapist does not steer toward a technique or a diagnosis. They offer sustained, non-judgemental attention and reflect back what they hear, on the premise that people find their own direction when they are genuinely listened to. Often what people mean by “someone who just gets it”.

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.

Mindfulness-Based TherapyMBCT

Trains attention on what is happening right now - body, breath, the thought as it arrives - so distress can be observed rather than automatically acted on. Strongest evidence is in preventing depression from recurring, and it is usually taught as a practice you keep doing outside the session.

Motivational InterviewingMI

A way of talking about change with somebody who is genuinely in two minds about it. The therapist does not argue for the change; they help you say your own reasons out loud, which is the part that predicts whether it happens. Common around substance use and health behaviour.

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

Mary 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 Mary'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 Mary at this point.

2. Naming Mary specifically

   BetterHelp matches algorithmically by default, so asking for Mary 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 Mary.

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

4 questions worth asking Mary

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

• “You list both Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and Client-Centred Therapy. Which do you lean on with someone like me?”

  Those two point in different directions - one structured and led by the therapist, the other led by you. The answer tells you what the sessions will actually feel like.

• “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 25 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

Wisconsin

Licence

WI LCSW 7107-123, WI LMFT 676-124

Licence number

7107-123

Licence expires

28 Feb 2027

NPI

1629174040

Years in practice

25

Gender

Female

Languages

English

International clients

Not accepted

Listed since

15 May 2026

07 · Provenance

Where every line on this page came from

Mary'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 7 Nov 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 Mary. 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.