(she/her)
I'm an alternative-minded therapist and wellness practitioner with ~10 years of experience in the behavioral and mental health field. I have degrees in clinical social work and counseling psychology with an emphasis in clinical mental health. I created my own remote and holistic tele-therapy practice (Savi Counseling Services, LLC) in early 2024 which allows me to serve a larger population of southern residents from the comfort and security of my home office. I am based in Birmingham, AL and licensed in both Tennessee and Alabama as a professional mental health counselor. I have a sincere passion for working with individuals identifying with ADHD traits and other neuro-divergent features, addiction/recovery, depression, anxiety, adjustments to major life changes/events, relationship issues, codependency, complex trauma, family conflict, identity development, and more. I will make every effort to meet you where you are - mentally, emotionally, spiritually. I will compassionately guide you through the intricacies of life, to help you become the best you can be, and find self-empowerment in your healing and recovery journey. Through trauma-informed and compassion-focused processing and awareness building, I will help you build a foundation for healing as we carefully identify the dysfunctional and/or maladaptive aspects of your life and then align them with curated and evidence-based real life skills and solutions to problematic behaviors, thoughts, feelings, and experiences.
Our first meeting is called an "Intake" session and will include an evaluation & assessment of your needs and usually lasts an hour (~60 minutes). It is not uncommon to need up to [2] full initial sessions to complete a thorough assessment of your needs and diagnosis/es. I prefer using a casual-conversational style to gather information about you and your background, as it feels a lot less stuffy and prescriptive than your run-of-the-mill clinical assessment process. I want to know all about the problem areas that have brought you to therapy but we don't necessarily have to go into extreme detail during the initial session. If we decide to move forward in working together, we will work in collaboration to develop and follow a tailored treatment plan to meet your specific goals. My standard session times run ~55-60 minutes by default. I encourage you to ask any questions, share any concerns, or provide additional information for me as you remember things or they come up in sessions. I am happy to use the Grow message board to communicate in between scheduled therapy sessions as needed.
In my role as a healer, a psycho-spiritual guide, and a licensed counselor - I want to be relatable, easy to talk to, and offer you my authentic self in a professional fashion. I don't sugar-coat things but balance being assertive and confrontational while also maintaining the utmost respect and compassion for you. I purposely and intentionally strive to create a non-judgmental, safe space for my clients to build coping skills, establish a new sense of self, and source solutions to life's many stressors. In our therapy space - you are free to laugh, cry, cuss, make jokes, share your truths, reflect, banter, sigh, and even get angry. I don't believe any emotions are bad or wrong - we are designed to be both emotional and rational creatures. I want to help you understand your feelings and learn how to express yourself in the most effective and rewarding ways possible. There’s no mountain—no problem—that can’t be climbed. The climb takes work, and I’m here to help you do that work, overcome barriers, and chart your own path to success.
I work best with clients who are feeling overwhelmed, stuck, or disconnected from themselves and are ready to better understand their patterns and make meaningful changes. Many of the individuals I support struggle with anxiety, people-pleasing, boundary-setting, and relationship challenges. I’m especially well-suited for clients who are thoughtful and self-aware but may find themselves prioritizing others at the expense of their own needs. Together, we explore these patterns with curiosity and compassion, helping you build stronger boundaries, improve self-worth, and feel more grounded in your day-to-day life. My ideal client doesn’t need to have everything figured out—just a willingness to show up, reflect, and try new ways of relating to themselves and others.
Trauma Informed Care
I am a Certified Clinical Trauma Professional (CCTP) and trained in Trauma-Focused CBT. In every approach I use with my clients - I pride myself in always being the utmost sensitive to the time & space that traumatic stress takes up in the psyche, the body, and the human spirit. The strong emotions and mood fluctuations that come with stress, anxiety, and grief can be debilitating when they take control of us. I am also well versed in somatic healing practices that address trauma from a physiological and body-awareness perspective - meaning we explore more of how the Body holds onto Stress and is hyper or hypo-functioning due to an overload of overwhelming emotions and survival-based mechanisms.
Dialectical Behavior (DBT)
I have been studying and practicing DBT-informed therapy for several years. I mostly emphasize the DBT skills in my teletherapy practice. Utilizing the [4] primary skills modules in DBT helps us to develop more tangible resources and plans for positive change when working through challenging mental health struggles such as emotional dysregulation, communication deficits, identity confusion, relationship conflict, and managing distress. These modules are: Core Mindfulness, Emotion Regulation, Distress Tolerance, and Interpersonal Effectiveness. The skills in these modules span across so many domains now in treatment: disordered eating, addiction issues, relationship conflict, complex trauma, disrupted mood, emotional disturbances, self-esteem issues, and so on. At the root of it's treatment model, this therapy approach guides us to balance radical acceptance skills with the applications of change and control.
Somatic
My therapeutic somatic approach is rooted in the belief that healing occurs through the whole self — mind, body, and spirit. I specialize in supporting clients in reconnecting to their inner wisdom and cultivating a sense of safety and belonging within themselves. Through a collaborative and relational process, we explore how life experiences — including trauma, identity development, and chronic stress — show up not only in thoughts and behaviors but also in the nervous system and the body. I utilize somatic and experiential practices such as breathwork, grounding, mindfulness, guided awareness, and nature-based techniques to help clients regulate, release, and realign with their authentic selves. My work weaves together evidence-based modalities including DBT, CBT, and mindfulness-based interventions with parts-oriented and narrative therapies like IFS and identity exploration. I take a strengths-focused and compassion-centered stance, honoring each person’s unique resilience and lived experience. Ultimately, my goal is to help clients feel more deeply connected — to their bodies, their relationships, and the meaning that guides their lives — so they can move forward with confidence, clarity, and greater embodiment of who they truly are.
2 ratings with written reviews
July 9, 2025
I am extremely glad Selle and I were able to meet today, I appreciated how open and genuine she was. I felt very understood and heard which can be a challenge for me. Humor is also extremely important to me (as long as I'm not using to avoid the things I need to deal with) and I feel like this is the right fit. I look forward to our next session!
February 10, 2025
10 out of 10. Absolutely recommend!!