Deb Shell

My approach is rooted in understanding the family's unique story, its hidden patterns, and the unspoken dynamics that may be causing disharmony. Through gentle exploration and active listening, I help family members rewrite their narrative, replacing blame with empathy and resentment with understanding. I empower each member to express their needs and desires, fostering a sense of shared responsibility and collaboration.

Anxiety can take hold of a person and control various aspects of their lives and relationships. Do you relate? I help my clients eliminate shame, understand triggers, gently confront fears, create healthy coping strategies, and understand their relationship with anxiety, while learning how to take control of anxiety rather than allowing it to control them.

Imagine replacing frustration with structured routines and clear expectations, offering brain breaks that refuel focus, and creating systems for organization that feel fun, not forced. We'll explore mindfulness and grounding techniques to tame fidgets and anxieties, and harness the power of positive reinforcement to build confidence and celebrate small wins. Remember, ADHD doesn't have to be a daily battle. It can be a source of passion, innovation, and boundless creativity.

Internal Family Systems (IFS) therapy views the mind as a system of various "parts," each with its unique role, thoughts, feelings, and experiences. These parts work together to protect you from emotional pain and ensure your survival. I help you understand and have compassion for each part of yourself and why certain behaviors come to the surface which allows for transformation in the relationship with oneself and others.

In CBT, we'll take a look at your automatic thoughts. We'll identify if they are accurate and founded on truth or if they hold inaccuracies brought on by anxiety and misinformation. Thoughts impact feelings and feelings impact behavior. You'll learn to challenge distorted thinking patterns, reframe anxious narratives, and build new, empowering beliefs. When we shift our thoughts to more by more accurate and positive, we feel better which leads to improved behaviors.

When I work with families, I take an unbiased role as the facilitator and hold each person's unique experience within the family system with unconditional positive regard. We talk as a group about the presenting issues and often I will meet with family members separately to give each person a private, safe place to share their perspective and help prepare them for a group conversation where I can support the process of collaborative problem-solving.