Sitting down to chat with Natasha Silver Bell, Founder and CEO of internationally renowned SilverBell Global (SBC Global), Silver Bell is eager to illuminate the work she and her colleagues
do on the front of addiction, eating disorders, and mental health. Six-foot-three in heels, with a clientele that includes some of the most prominent families in the world, the fact that Silver Bell isn’t a household name speaks to her integrity— and exemplifies the values of the company she built from the ground up in 2012. Today, SBC Global provides private Concierge Care / Coaching, Crisis Management, and Intervention to clients at all stages of life from its worldwide network of signature Leadership Teams in New York, Los Angeles, Dubai, London, Sweden, France, and Ireland.
Specially designed “LifeTeams” (curated by Natasha herself) work in partnership with SBC’s resource bank of Behavioral / Health, Psychiatrists, Psychologists, Therapists, and Diagnostic Clinicians to chart clients’ and families’ roadmaps to sustainable health and healing. Working with individuals struggling with substance use and mental health disorders is not for the faint of heart. No wonder clients and families alike point to Natasha’s deep empathy and steely strength: prerequisites to helping clients chart a path out of their physical, emotional, and psychological anguish.
A grateful father speaks of “Natasha’s truly caring investment in our son.” Describing meeting Natasha as “a gift,” a now sober client says, “I had already been to numerous detoxes and three rehabs, been arrested for drug possession, and overdosed once. Natasha went above and beyond.... With a lot of tough love and the necessary steps, she brought me back from my downward spiral toward death. Today, I feel alive...happy with myself, free of substances, and fearless of the future because I know I can handle anything that comes my way.”
Time is of the essence: accidental drug overdose is currently the leading cause of death in the United States for those under 50 years old. Yet, despite these stark numbers, Silver Bell is determined to leave no stone unturned on the pathway to hope. One such pathway is Youth Prevention Mentors (YPM), created in partnership with co-founders Maks Ezrin and eminent psychiatrist Dr. Rami Kaminski. Recognizing the importance of early detection and the peer-mentorship model, “YPM’s mission is to help young pre-addicts and their families avoid the destruction and devastation of substance use and addiction,” Natasha explains. YPM’s one-on-one mentors, youth workshops, family coaching, parent workshops, and integrative, clinically supported drug testing and education interrupt the traditionally progressive trajectory of substance use, supporting the family system to mitigate, slow down, and course-correct harmful behaviors.
Natasha’s success lies in her ability to soften the jagged edges of crisis and find “openings of grace” - entry points for hope, healing, and change. An avid reader of all things spiritual, she distills SBC’s philosophy of care with a favorite quote from Thomas Merton: “Perhaps I’m stronger than I think I am.” For clients and families alike, SBC’s steadfast commitment to
championing the human spirit continues to change and save lives.
I would not have such a positive view of recovery if not for Natasha and the team she selected for me. Having a companion made me feel like I had an ad- vocate, mentor, and friend with me during the time I felt most vulnerable and misunderstood. It was such a comfortable and effective experience that I can’t imagine a more successful model for recovery. She saved my life.
~Mary Francis Gorsuch
Whether initially contacted by a client’s partner, parents, friends, or the client themselves, SBC establishes a fruitful partnership with the identified family system, providing empowerment, education, and encouragement. “We provide a safe, judgment-free space for clients and families to seek, discuss, and consider what is best for them.” Instead of advising families, SBC works in tandem with them. “I never want our expertise as specialists in the field to overshadow the experience of those living and interacting with their loved ones,” Silver Bell explains. At the heart of SBC’s signature approach is a beautifully balanced partnership: Honoring the client while restoring hope into the family system to discover new pathways towards health and healing. “I’m so grateful to Natasha for pointing us in this direc- tion. Our son is having an extraordinary, enriching, challenging experience, and so are we.”
~ A, mother
SBC’s concierge-level care allows for moment-by-moment assessment, empowering coaches to pivot their approach when necessary. Yet, despite its efficacy, Natasha recognizes that the SBC Coaching methodology of customized, high-touch, meaningful care is neither affordable nor accessible to everyone who needs or wants it. “Addiction doesn’t discriminate, so why should privilege determine access to effective care?” After consistently taking pro-bono cases over the years to correct this imbalance, Silver Bell was moved to find a more scalable solution. So, in October 2022, with co-founders Aaron Gershenson and Phillipe Grinstein, Silver Bell launched The Inservice Foundation to “provide SBC-level care to individuals for whom the cost of such care has traditionally been prohibitive.” Inservice beneficiaries apply independently or may be nominated to receive services such as hourly coaching and companion-care integrated with as-necessary clinical providers. Experiencing the SBC difference for the first time, an Inservice beneficiary remarked, “if I had this level of support years ago, I’d be a recovery coach by now.” A pioneer in the recovery space, Natasha has refined the art of coaching into a proprietary methodology. But, with equal parts prairie and small-town USA in her blood, she always keeps it real: “At the end of the day, whatever we do has to be effective.” And indeed, it is. The SBC model of wrap-around support partnered with top-of-the-line clinical providers has proven so effective that, early in 2021, an SBC Global Outcome Study (on target for publication in early 2024) was commissioned to track and measure its success.
A highlight of SBC Global’s success is the Coach Development program, fostering SBC Coaches’ personal and professional devel- opment through meaningful collaboration, education, and ongoing training with leaders in the field. Anchored by Silver Bell’s con- viction that “Trauma does not happen to us; trauma happens within us,” the Coach Development program provides training in various modalities, including Dialectical Behavioral Therapy, Motivational Interviewing, and Somatic Integration. SBC’s Coach Development Program is at the vanguard of a shift in recovery science: the recognition that coaching plays a pivotal role in achieving and sustaining meaningful recovery. Workshops slated for 2023 include Phase Two of therapist and Trauma-Training Educator Lou Lebentz’s Trauma-Infirmed Coaching certification, with coaches building on skills learned in Phase One. In addition, Natasha is thrilled to welcome Deb Dana, founding member of the Polyvagal Institute and developer of the signature Rhythm of Regulation Clinical Training Series, and Lindsay Chester, LCSW, addiction treatment/DBT Skills integration specialist, adjunct professor at Colombia University, and the Founder and Clinical Director of City Behavioral Health.
In the twelve years since establishing SBC, Natasha’s passion for helping others harness grit and grace to overcome challenging situations has only grown. Inspired in early 2021 to make the transformative spirit of SBC available to a broader audience, Natasha piloted the creation of SBC Retreats. With a signature blend of sophisticated, luxurious destinations, curated wellness experiences, and exclusive workshops from best-in-class clinicians, SBC Retreats are fast becoming a favorite for those seeking to restore their bodies and nurture their minds.
This summer, SBC Retreats presents East Meets West: A Restor- ative Wellness and Mental Health Retreat hosted at the Falcon Hotel at Castle Ashby, Northamptonshire, ancestral home to Lord Spencer, 7th Marquess of Northampton. A collaboration with esteemed psy- chotherapist and (with Lord Northampton) co-founder of The Falcon Hotel, Lady Tracy Northampton, East Meets West brings together the brightest minds in Eastern and Western wellness practices for seven days of healing on the breathtaking grounds of Castle Ashby, known for its abundant natural beauty and powerful energy vortexes. Planned offerings for 2023 include Holistic Healing in Dubai and Meditation & Sound in Sagaponack, NY.
Natasha Silver Bell’s fourteen years of sobriety and over a decade of leadership in the health and recovery space have taught her that “our truth always heals.” From trauma to harmony, isolation to connection, and secrets to truth, Silver Bell’s path mirrors that of her clients. Silver Bell is modeling a message of hope. “I want individuals and their friends, families, and loved ones struggling with substance use and mental health issues to know the path forward exists, even if they haven’t found it yet.”
“Natasha revives countless struggling people with an abun- dance of grace, elegance, compassion, and humor. She is firm but ever so kind, putting the well-being of her clients before anything else. Natasha was once a stranger I looked to for help at the lowest point of my life, and she quickly became a trusted mentor. Now, with five years of continuous sobriety under my belt and a life that extends out before me that I cannot wait to live, she remains a steadfast and lifelong friend.”
~ C, five years sober
Natasha is a trailblazer, writing each new page of her story from a deep appreciation for chapters past. In the twelve years since establishing SBC, Silver Bell has seen her ancestor’s fierce courage echoed daily in the fearlessness of SBC clients. She never questions their destiny: “Everyone deserves peace and harmony.” With that, Natasha Silver Bell is off to meet with another family, grateful for the opportunity to help them create their own peace and sanctuary.
