Rae Ann Hamilton, LPA
Rae Ann Hamilton has more than twenty-five years of experience working with individuals of all ages doing both therapy and evaluations. She earned a Master’s Degree in Counseling Psychology and is licensed by the North Carolina Psychology Board. Mrs. Hamilton has worked in a variety of settings including: private and group practices; pre-school, primary, secondary and postsecondary educational venues; and community mental health. She enjoys working with individuals, couples and families. In both therapy and testing she treats all presenting problems. Mrs. Hamilton also has a high regard for our military families, for whom she has sought specific training that enables her to meet their unique needs.
Mrs. Hamilton provides both educational and psychological evaluations. She has specialized training and experience diagnosing and working with adults and children/teens with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (AD/HD, also commonly called ‘ADD’) and Specific Learning Disabilities (also commonly called ‘LD’). Through a comprehensive evaluation process, Mrs. Hamilton identifies specific issues that are causing learning and/or life difficulties and then makes effective recommendations for interventions and treatment decisions. In addition to AD/HD and SLD assessments, she has evaluated individuals for giftedness as well as emotional and behavioral issues. Mrs. Hamilton has also completed evaluations for individuals seeking to adopt.
Mrs. Hamilton believes it is essential to the therapeutic process to have a therapist with whom you feel comfortable and with whom there is mutual trust and respect. This type of therapeutic alliance, in conjunction with an empathetic, non-judgmental environment, allows the client and therapist to work together to resolve issues that are causing distress. Mrs. Hamilton incorporates several therapeutic approaches in her work including Client-Centered, Humanistic, Cognitive-Behavioral, Insight-Oriented (Psychodynamic), Behavior Management, and Psychoeducation, depending on the client’s presenting issue(s). Mrs. Hamilton considers it a privilege to assist courageous individuals and families in their personal journeys to improve their lives.
Therapy with Adults: Over the years, Mrs. Hamilton has worked with adults confronted with a wide variety of challenges including struggling with anxiety, depression, stress, life transitions, and interpersonal relationship difficulties in the workplace or home setting. With expertise in marital conflict and teenager/parental discord, she is particularly interested in working with couples and families, focusing on communication skills, conflict resolution, decision-making and parenting skills.
Rae Ann Hamilton enjoys working with couples and provides them with a safe, non-judgmental environment that allows them to identify issues causing distress in their relationship. Those issues may range from communication difficulties to life transition issues to infidelity. Broken trust, parenting differences, and an inability to resolve conflicts are also common difficulties that cause unhappiness and heartache. Mrs. Hamilton incorporates several therapeutic approaches in her work including Client-Centered, Humanistic, Cognitive-Behavioral, Insight-Oriented (Psychodynamic), Behavior Management, and Psychoeducation, depending on the couple’s presenting issues. It is her belief that the most effective change happens when there is a therapeutic alliance of mutual trust and respect between the therapist and clients. Mrs. Hamilton considers it a privilege to assist courageous couples in their journeys to improve their lives.
Mrs. Hamilton enjoys working with tweens and teens (ages 10 and older). Issues she has training and experience in with young people include: anxiety (general, social, test, etc.), depression, Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, learning difficulties, social problems, anger management, behavior management, self- esteem, giftedness, and life transitions such as from high school to college. Mrs. Hamilton incorporates several therapeutic approaches in her work including Client-Centered, Humanistic, Cognitive-Behavioral, Insight-Oriented (Psychodynamic), Behavior Management, and Psychoeducation, depending on the individual’s presenting issues. Mrs. Hamilton considers it a privilege to assist courageous young people in their journey to improve their lives.
The loss of a family unit to divorce creates uncertainty about the future for everyone. Ms. Rae Ann Hamilton provides a safe, nurturing environment that allows the children and parents to grieve the loss and express their feelings, which may range from confusion to anger to sadness, without judgment. It is important for parents to learn children’s typical reactions to divorce, so they know what to expect and what can be done to help them. The process of rebuilding a different, yet healthy, family system depends greatly on the parents’ ability to set aside any animosity they may have for each other to place their children’s welfare first. The development of an efficient coparenting relationship is essential. Assisting the parents and children identify positive support systems, such as social or church involvement and/or extracurricular activities, can help ease the transition process to avoid feeling isolated and alone. “It is not the event of the divorce itself that has the greatest impact on a child; it’s the actions parents take during and after the divorce that make the difference between a child who is unscathed and one who is scarred for life;” quote from Crossroads of Parenting & Divorce curriculum. Separation and divorce is a specialty area of Rae Ann’s and as such she is trained as a formal Parenting Coordinator in NC, and has helped numerous families in that role over the years, as well as helping children, teens and adults as a therapist during the divorce process and thereafter around issues related to the divorce.