I have a sincere passion for working with individuals impacted by addiction, depression, anxiety, mood disorders, adjustments to major life changes/events, relationship issues, codependency, family of origin trauma, and various other complex trauma. I want to help you be the best you can be and find self-empowerment in your therapy journey. Through mindful processing and awareness building, I will help you build a foundation for healing as we carefully identify the not so great parts of your life and then pair curated and evidence based real life skills and solutions to problematic behaviors, thoughts/feelings, and experiences.
What can clients expect to take away from sessions with you?
Our first session will include an evaluation and assessment of your needs and usually lasts an hour (60 minutes). I prefer using a casual-conversational style to gather information about you, your background, and problem areas that have brought you to therapy. Also during this time we can both decide if I am the best person to provide the services you need to meet your treatment goals. If we agree to begin therapy, I will usually schedule one 45-60 minute session per week with you at a time we agree on.
At anytime in your therapy process 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 outside of therapy sessions when needed.
Explain to clients what areas you feel are your biggest strengths.
Having worked with a variety of clients in a wide range of settings for over 6 years now, I have grown most in my ability to authentically connect, empathize and validate my clients' feelings, thoughts, and experiences. I cherish social and human connections so much so that I want to be relatable, easy to talk to, and offer you my authentic self in a professional/therapeutic space - I purposely and intentionally strive to create a non-judgmental, safe space for my clients to find self-empowerment, a new sense of energy, and solutions to life's many stressors.
About Sellers Terrell
Appointments
Virtual
My treatment methods
Mind-body approach
When The Mind and The Body disconnect or detach from one another, we feel "out of sorts" and more prone to nervous system dysfunction (aka emotionally overwhelmed)! This is also a sign that our Fight-Flight-Freeze system is working overtime and pumping way too much stress into our bodies 'to react' to everything. When we are overly or chronically stressed, basic functions such as emotion regulation decreases so that our more primitive Survival instincts can take the driver's seat. An unpleasant outcome of this often shows up as generalized anxiety (rampant worries, racing thoughts, rapid heartbeat, brain fog, mental agitation) or panic attacks, chronic irritability, depression, and/or misdirected anger/frustration.
Using an approach in talk therapy that encompasses redirecting the human mind to communicating effectively with our body helps us learn how to nurture and stabilize our inner self, which makes it much easier to address everything else outside of our physical being. WHEN the body is calm it sends messages to the brain that we are SAFE and we are so much better able to manage conflict and chaos in our external environment when that sense of safety is intact. With this approach we are reconnecting the mind and body where trauma, stress, and other strong emotional experiences have probably created a wall to help us maintain our survival-based behaviors and thought patterns. Now stop what you're doing for 5 seconds and take a big deep breath...and exhale...
Cognitive Behavioral (CBT)
My goal with this method of therapy is to place an emphasis on real-life, usable skills that address patterns of behavioral dysfunction (aka unhealthy or negative coping mechanisms) and cognitive distortions (which is a fancy way of labeling 'unhealthy thinking patterns'). I teach the thoughts-feelings-behaviors cycle to my clients so we understand the connections between internal and external triggers and how those patterns negatively affect our everyday functioning. Behavioral therapy has so much educational value and the skills are often integral in modifying our way of dealing with difficult emotions, thoughts, and behaviors - once we learn these skills, we will easily practice them in our day to day life.
Dialectical Behavior (DBT)
I heavily utilize this therapy model when I need to hone in on specific skills to help you with emotion regulation and interpersonal communication. DBT also encompasses valuable mindfulness skills as well as distress tolerance skills (aka coping skills!) I really love this skill-based therapy approach when I am working with those who struggle with suicidal ideation, self-harm behaviors, quality of life deficits, and have difficulty with communication in relationships.
Trauma Informed Care
In every approach I use with my clients I pride myself in always being the utmost sensitive to the 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 trauma can be debilitating when they take control of us. I am trained in Trauma-Focused CBT and 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 malfunctioning due to an overload of overwhelming emotions and survival-based behaviors.
Acceptance and commitment (ACT)
There is actually something pretty powerful about learning to truly Accept our negative emotions and experiences right along with the positives. Acceptance does not mean we agree with, condone, or enjoy the circumstances. It more or less means we need to face the reality of what we can and cannot control within and around us. Once we learn to accept the parts that will not or cannot be so easily coping-skilled away or avoided any longer, we move into a phase of Commitment where we focus more on all that We CAN Change or Control within and around us. ACT helps us to experience the notions of Acceptance as energizing and Commitment as empowering.
