Anna Selassie, CBT and EMDR therapist
I am a BABCP accredited CBT therapist and EMDR trained therapist, with NHS and private practice experience, offering careful evidence based therapy for anxiety, trauma, perinatal mental health and life transitions.
I have worked in mental health for over eighteen years, across NHS and private practice settings. My core training is in CBT, and I also draw on EMDR, compassion focused therapy, acceptance and commitment therapy, mindfulness based CBT and systemic ideas where clinically helpful.
My approach is warm, collaborative and formulation based. This means that we will work together to understand what is keeping the difficulty going, rather than simply applying techniques. We may look at current stressors, past experiences, beliefs about yourself, threat responses, avoidance patterns, relationships, identity, culture and the wider context of your life.
I aim to offer therapy that feels both clinically grounded and human. Many people come to therapy feeling overwhelmed, stuck, ashamed, exhausted or unsure where to begin. My role is to help you make sense of what is happening, find steadier ways of coping, and move towards change at a pace that feels manageable.
Areas of special interest
I have particular experience and interest in working with:
anxiety, worry, panic and phobias
trauma, PTSD symptoms and distressing memories
birth trauma and perinatal mental health
postnatal depression and anxiety
intrusive thoughts, including perinatal OCD
adjustment to long term health conditions and chronic pain
low self esteem, shame and self criticism
stress, burnout and life transitions
culturally sensitive therapy
therapy in English or Polish
CBT and EMDR
CBT helps us understand the links between thoughts, emotions, physical sensations and behaviour. It can be particularly helpful when anxiety, low mood, trauma responses or self criticism have become stuck in patterns that are difficult to shift alone.
EMDR, Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing, is a structured psychological therapy often used for trauma and PTSD symptoms. It can help people process distressing memories so they feel less vivid, less emotionally charged and less present in everyday life.
Sometimes CBT is the main focus of therapy. Sometimes EMDR is more appropriate. Sometimes the most helpful work involves integrating approaches. We would decide this together following assessment.
My qualifications
Postgraduate Diploma in CBT Therapeutic Counselling, University of Wales, Newport, 2012
Master’s degree in Clinical Psychology, Warsaw Higher School of Social Sciences and Humanities, 2007, 5 year course
EMDR therapy training, EMDR Europe Accredited Training, EMDR Academy, 2026
Additional training
High Intensity Psychological Interventions for Long Term Conditions, University of Sheffield, 2017
Trauma Focused CBT in a Perinatal Context, Oxford Cognitive Therapy Centre, 2024
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Perinatal OCD, Oxford Cognitive Therapy Centre, 2023
PTSD Type 1 and Beyond, BABCP Manchester Branch, 2014
Living Well with Pain: CBT and CFT Approaches to Pain, BABCP and Manchester University, 2013
The Compassionate Mind Approach to Postnatal Depression: Using CFT to Enhance Mood, Confidence and Bonding, BABCP Manchester Branch, 2016
Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy: Depression and Beyond, University of Wales, Newport, 2011
Professional registration
I am accredited with the British Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies, BABCP.
You can check BABCP accredited therapists on the CBT Register.
Working with me
I offer therapy face to face in Leeds and online across the UK. Sessions are collaborative, structured and paced around your needs. We will agree goals together and regularly review whether therapy is helping.
If you are not sure whether CBT or EMDR would be the right approach, you are welcome to book an initial consultation and we can think this through together.
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