ADHD
Procrastination, deadlines met only under last-minute pressure, organisation systems that last a fortnight, exhaustion from self-criticism. Psychological assessment and strategies built around how you actually function.
How it worksPsychologist · CRP 03/22210
Therapy for ADHD and anxietyOnline, in English and Portuguese — adolescents and adults.
You try to get organised, start well, and two weeks later it has all come apart again — and the only explanation left is that you didn't try hard enough. I work with people who are done with that explanation.
The first conversation is to understand what you need and see whether working together makes sense. No commitment.
- CRP 03/22210 (Brazil)
- MSc, Collective Health
- Cognitive Behavioural Therapy
- Brazilian & American
- Sessions in English
Please read before booking. Sessions are provided from Brazil by a psychologist registered with the Brazilian Federal Council of Psychology (CRP 03/22210), and are governed by Brazilian professional regulation and law. This is not a licensed health service in any U.S. state or other jurisdiction, and it does not replace care from a provider licensed where you live. Booking a session means agreeing to this arrangement, which is also set out in the service agreement.
Sound familiar?
Sentences I hear most weeks
In Cognitive Behavioural Therapy these have a name: automatic thoughts. They pass quickly, they feel like facts about who you are, and they quietly shape what you attempt — or stop attempting.
I bought the planner, the spreadsheet and the app. I used all three for a week.
I always meet the deadline — always on the last possible night, always at a cost.
People tell me I'm smart. I feel disorganised.
I leave messages unanswered for days. Not out of resentment — opening the app just freezes me.
I fall asleep replaying a conversation from three years ago.
I've been to therapy before. I talked a lot and the following week was the same.
If two or three of those landed, that isn't a character flaw or a willpower problem. It's a pattern — and patterns can be mapped, tested and changed with method. That's the work.
Areas of focus
What I work with
I see adolescents and adults. These are the areas that fill most of my schedule, and the ones I have specific training in.
Anxiety
Worry that won't switch off, replaying old conversations, avoiding things that matter, physical symptoms. CBT has well-established protocols for anxiety, and that is what I work from.
How it worksEmotion regulation
Emotions that arrive out of proportion, regret after the reaction, mood instability. I draw on Dialectical Behaviour Therapy skills, and in bipolar disorder I work alongside the treating psychiatrist.
How it worksHow it works
What happens after you send a message
You write
A WhatsApp message, in your own words. You don't need the problem organised or named.
First conversation
I explain how I work, listen to what brought you here, and we agree a time and format. If your situation needs different care, I'll say so plainly and point you somewhere useful.
Early sessions: understanding
We rebuild your history and map the patterns that repeat. For ADHD, this is where standardised assessment comes in.
Agreed goals
We define together where we're heading. In CBT goals are explicit, reviewed and adjustable — you always know what we're doing and why.
Work between sessions
The session is fifty minutes; the week is the rest. You leave with something concrete to notice or try, at your pace.
Who you'd be working with
Sabrina Steele
I trained in Psychology at Universidade Estadual de Feira de Santana and hold a master's degree in Collective Health from Universidade do Estado da Bahia, with a dissertation on personality and burnout among military firefighters. I formerly taught in the medical programme at UNIDOMPEDRO and have taken part in research through Fiocruz, Brazil's national public health research foundation.
I am a dual Brazilian and American national and work in both languages.
I work in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and draw on Dialectical Behaviour Therapy skills. I chose evidence-based practice because I want to be able to explain why we're doing each thing — not ask you to trust me in the dark.
Common questions
What people ask before starting
Are you licensed in the United States?
No. I am a psychologist registered with the Brazilian Federal Council of Psychology under CRP 03/22210, and I work from Brazil. Sessions are delivered remotely under Brazilian professional regulation and law, which permits serving clients located abroad when they agree to that arrangement. This is not a licensed health service in any U.S. state, and it does not replace care from a provider licensed where you live. I'd rather be plain about this than have you find out later.
Who is this actually a good fit for?
I hold dual Brazilian and American nationality and work in both languages. Most of my English-speaking clients are Brazilians and Portuguese speakers living abroad, and people of other nationalities who can work in Portuguese or English. If you need a provider who can coordinate with a U.S. medical team, bill insurance, or write documentation recognised locally, I am not the right choice — and I'll tell you that directly.
Does online therapy actually work?
There is a consistent body of research comparing video-based psychotherapy with in-person sessions for conditions such as anxiety and depression, and outcomes are largely comparable. What carries the work is the quality of the relationship, regularity, and method. Online is not suitable for every situation; if I judge that your case needs a different level of care, I will say so.
How do I know whether it's ADHD or just disorganisation?
That question doesn't get settled by an internet quiz. ADHD is a neurodevelopmental condition: signs are present from childhood, appear across more than one area of life, and cause real impairment. Situational disorganisation usually has a beginning, a cause and an end. In assessment I rebuild that timeline with you and use standardised instruments. Formal medical diagnosis is a physician's role, and I refer when it's needed.
What language are sessions in?
Whichever you prefer — Portuguese or English. Many people find it easier to talk about difficult things in their first language, and living abroad often means spending all day operating in a second one. Having the choice matters.
How do time zones work?
We agree a time that works in both places. Tell me which country you're in when you first message and I'll take the difference into account when proposing slots.
Next step
A conversation before you decide
You don't need to arrive with the problem explained, or know the name of what you're feeling. Send a message describing it in your own words, and I'll explain how the work would go from there.
Want a feel for her work first? Follow on Instagram @sabrinasteele.