The "Internal Bench": Turning Internal Combat into Collaboration
Imagine a long, wooden bench set in a quiet, sun-dappled corner of a garden. On this bench, there is room for everyone. There is space for the part of you that is terrified of making a mistake, the part that wants to hide away from the noise of the world, and the part that feels an urgent, vibrating need to please everyone around you. Often, we spend our lives trying to push these parts off the bench, treating our internal friction like a "problem" to be solved or a "defect" to be fixed. We engage in an exhausting internal combat, hoping that if we just fight ourselves hard enough, we will finally become the "productive" or "easygoing" person society demands.
In our work together, we stop the fight. We stop trying to "fix" you and instead start inviting your internal team to the table—or, in this case, the bench.
From Internal War to Strategic Cooperation
For the neurodivergent and trauma-impacted system, these "difficult" behaviors are almost always brilliant protective strategies. That part of you that "freezes" when faced with a to-do list? It might be pulling the emergency brake to save you from total sensory burnout. That "pleasing" self? It likely learned that staying small and helpful was the only way to stay safe in a chaotic environment.
By moving away from pathologizing these responses, we create a "no-performance" sanctuary where you can finally put down the mask of competency. We prioritize System Navigation over symptom management.
Befriending the Protectors: Using Internal Family Systems (IFS), we acknowledge the protective intent behind your anxiety or "stuckness," moving from self-judgment to genuine self-compassion.
Somatic Literacy: We treat your physical needs—the urge to move, to hold a pillow, or to sit in silence—as vital clinical data, not inconveniences to be "managed".
Radical Relational Equity: In this private-pay partnership, you are not a chart number or a diagnosis code. We have the luxury of pacing—moving at the speed of safety so that your system can truly integrate change rather than just "performing" wellness.
The goal isn't to make you a "better machine" for a high-demand world. The goal is to help you become a more regulated, authentic human who can finally listen to their own internal compass and choose a life aligned with their true values.
Ready to trade internal combat for a restorative partnership?
I provide 100% virtual, neuro-affirming somatic therapy for adults across Minnesota who are ready to move from internal conflict into a life of embodied, values-aligned peace.
About the Clinical Approach
My approach to therapy is rooted in the belief that true healing begins when we stop working against ourselves. At Fig Tree Services, I specialize in neurodivergent-affirming, somatic-informed trauma care. My work utilizes an integrative, evidence-based toolkit, including:
Internal Family Systems (IFS): We compassionately explore the parts of you—the exhausted, the protective, and the critic—to help you find inner harmony rather than self-judgment.
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT): We focus on building the psychological flexibility to pursue a values-aligned life, even while navigating chronic pain or trauma.
Sensorimotor Psychotherapy: We use your body’s signals as a roadmap to gently release stored stress and trauma, moving beyond just "talking about" your symptoms.
AEDP (Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy): We build a deeply relational, attuned space where you can safely feel and process emotions, knowing you are not alone in the work.
...to help clients move beyond trauma-driven adaptation toward authentic self-assertion. This creates a safe, relational container that honors individual capacity and fosters nervous system regulation. To learn more about the therapeutic modalities used at Fig Tree Services, visit www.fig-tree-services.com.
Therapy Isn't a "Practice Room"—It’s the Real World.
The rhythm in the song "Wheel Well" by Bad Books feels like the steady, percussive hum of a car in motion—a constant, reliable cycle that persists whether you are sitting in a quiet therapy office or navigating the noise of a grocery store aisle. It’s a rhythmic reminder that your humanity doesn't have an "off" switch. Like the wheel spinning within the well of a car, you are always in motion, always connected to the air in your lungs, the weight of your feet, and the history you carry in your cells.
We’ve been conditioned to treat therapy like an island—a safe, quiet space you visit to "do the work," and then leave behind to return to the "real continent" of your actual life. But the truth is, the healing you seek isn't something you can bottle up in an office. By compartmentalizing therapy, we accidentally reinforce the very isolation we’re trying to escape.
In AEDP (Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy), we often talk about the "undoing of aloneness." This is the core of our work together: the realization that you are not meant to navigate the chaos of your internal or external world by yourself. When we create this space, we aren't just "talking about problems"; we are sharing the weight of your experience so that you don't have to hold it in a vacuum. You aren't "doing therapy"—you are finding a relational anchor that makes the rest of your life possible.
Think of the wheel well: it is the specific space where the tire meets the car—the physical, essential point of contact where raw motion becomes stability. In our work together, we are looking for those same points of contact in your daily life: a breath, a sensory grounding, a shared moment of recognition. These aren’t just "coping skills"; they are the infrastructure that keeps you connected to your true self and to the support you deserve, even when the world feels chaotic.
This is why I choose to work outside the insurance model. Traditional healthcare often forces us to fragment you into "symptoms to be treated." That isn't how your system works. You aren't a puzzle of broken pieces needing a patch; you are one integrated, relational system. Private-pay therapy gives us the freedom to stop "treating" a diagnosis and start building your capacity to carry that sense of wholeness—and that sense of not being alone—with you, whether you’re in a high-stakes meeting or your living room.
We aren't here to keep you safe in a container; we are here to help you carry that connection with you, so you can be whole, grounded, and present—everywhere.
(If you are feeling overwhelmed by the idea of being "integrated" right now, it is OK to let yourself take a moment. If it feels OK, try breathing deeply until you can imagine the air flowing into your feet. In our work, there is no rush to get this "right.")
Ready to trade the feeling of being "siloed" for the freedom of carrying your sense of peace everywhere you go.
I provide 100% virtual, neuro-affirming somatic therapy for adults across Minnesota who are ready to move from a life of trying to "manage" their internal states into a life of embodied, values-aligned peace.
About My Clinical Approach
My practice is rooted in a "Body-First" philosophy, prioritizing your nervous system's capacity over rigid, directive protocols. I draw from Internal Family Systems (IFS), Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, ACT, and AEDP to help you navigate trauma and neurodivergence without pathologizing your experiences. I believe your spiritual life, your joy, and your connection to nature are not separate from your healing—they are essential evidence of it. Because my practice is private-pay, we are able to focus entirely on your real-time needs and pacing, rather than satisfying the requirements of a third-party payer.
Befriending the Gatekeepers
The afternoon light is slanting across the floor, catching the dust motes in a slow, rhythmic dance while the weight of your body settles into the familiar, soft resistance of your chair. There is a subtle, almost invisible bracing in your shoulders—a quiet "on call" energy that has been holding the fort all day. This is the tactile language of your protectors: the diligent inner managers who have learned that the only way to keep the system safe is to never truly rest.
The Sacred Work of the "Retirement Plan"
In the world of Internal Family Systems (IFS), we often talk about the process of "unburdening." But before we can ever reach those tender, exiled parts of us that carry the heavy weight of worthlessness or shame, we must first sit with the ones who have been standing guard. These managers are not "defects" to be bypassed; they are parentified inner children who were pressed into service far too young.
The clinical shift we practice isn't about firing these protectors. It’s about offering them a retirement plan. When a protector finally trusts that the "Self"—that compassionate, calm essence within you—is actually capable of leading, it can finally transition from a high-stakes survival role into a healthier, preferred way of being. A harsh inner critic might become a discerning advisor; a hypervigilant manager might become a source of focused creativity.
Why We Choose the Unrushed Path
This transition cannot be forced by a manual or an insurance-mandated deadline. In our private-pay partnership, we prioritize what I call "the luxury of the slow down." We respect the "speed of safety," meaning we never push past a protector without its explicit permission.
If we rush to "fix" the symptom, we often trigger a "backlash" from the very parts trying to help us. Instead, we take the time to ask the protector: "What do you fear would happen if you stopped working so hard?" This question, asked from a place of genuine curiosity rather than clinical performance, allows the nervous system to unbrace. We move from "internal combat" to a collaborative "internal bench," where every part of your team is finally seen and valued.
Ready to trade the exhaustion of constant inner bracing for the ease of Self-led flow?
I provide 100% virtual, neuro-affirming somatic therapy for adults across Minnesota who are ready to move from internal fragmentation into a life of embodied, values-aligned peace.
About the Clinical Approach
Internal Family Systems (IFS) is a non-pathologizing, evidence-based model that views the mind as a system of "parts" (Managers, Firefighters, and Exiles) led by a core "Self." Healing involves befriending protective parts to gain permission to access and unburden the wounded "inner children" (Exiles) they protect. This "bottom-up" approach integrates somatic awareness and relational equity to foster lasting internal harmony and Self-leadership.
Finding God in the Garden: How Holistic Healing Incorporates Your Spiritual Values
There is a reason we find ourselves drawn to the garden when the noise of the world becomes too much. Whether it is the quiet rhythm of weeding, the smell of damp earth, or the visual safety of green-on-green growth, nature provides a regulation that words alone often cannot reach. For those of us navigating high-achievement, neurodivergence, or the weight of trauma, the garden isn't just a hobby; it is a somatic sanctuary. Here, the 'to-do' list fades, and we find a space where the Divine isn't demanding performance, but simply inviting us to exist.
Moving from Spiritual Performance to Presence
Many of us carry an internalized pressure to 'do' spirituality correctly, which can lead to performance-based guilt. In the garden, that pressure shifts. We move from the 'active striving' of faith into the 'passive receiving' of the natural world. By grounding your spiritual identity in the rhythm of the garden—the seasonal cycles of growth, rest, and dormancy—you can begin to see your own nervous system through a lens of grace rather than judgment.
The Garden as a Somatic Sanctuary
Healing happens when we move beyond the abstract and into the sensory. Imagine the tactile grounding of cool, damp soil against your palms—a physical weight that anchors a fluttering nervous system. There is a rhythm in the garden: the steady, meditative pace of weeding, the smell of sun-warmed earth, and the visual quiet of green-on-green growth. These aren’t just hobbies; they are direct somatic interventions. A 'garden' of the mind serves as a powerful visualization where you can invite an exhausted, protective part of yourself to finally sit down. People sometimes use this visualization as an IFS-based anchor. When their inner "fixer" begins to spin, they can imagine that part resting on a shaded bench, allowing the Divine presence to hold the weight of the work while their body simply breathes with the rhythm of the living world.
A Sanctuary for Your Whole Self
The benefit of a private-pay therapeutic partnership is the freedom to focus entirely on your personal goals without the constraints of insurance-mandated "standardized" models. We have the luxury of time to explore the intersection of your psychological needs and your spiritual journey, ensuring that your faith supports your capacity rather than adding to your depletion.
You don’t have to "fix" your internal world or banish your doubts to find peace here. You simply need a space where your unique "colors and shapes" are honored, and your spiritual identity is respected as a refuge for your body.
Ready to trade the pressure of spiritual performance for a space of true sanctuary?
I provide 100% virtual, neuro-affirming somatic therapy for adults across Minnesota who are ready to move from spiritual obligation into a life of embodied, values-aligned peace.
You can request to schedule your initial consultation here: https://www.fig-tree-services.com/specialized-therapy-services-mn.
About the Clinical Approach
My approach to therapy is rooted in the belief that true healing begins when we stop working against ourselves. At Fig Tree Services, I specialize in neurodivergent-affirming, somatic-informed trauma care. My work utilizes an integrative, evidence-based toolkit, including:
Internal Family Systems (IFS): We compassionately explore the parts of you—the exhausted, the protective, and the critic—to help you find inner harmony rather than self-judgment.
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT): We focus on building the psychological flexibility to pursue a values-aligned life, even while navigating chronic pain or trauma.
Sensorimotor Psychotherapy: We use your body’s signals as a roadmap to gently release stored stress and trauma, moving beyond just "talking about" your symptoms.
AEDP (Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy): We build a deeply relational, attuned space where you can safely feel and process emotions, knowing you are not alone in the work.
to help clients move beyond trauma-driven adaptation toward authentic self-assertion. This creates a safe, relational container that honors individual capacity and fosters nervous system regulation. To learn more about the therapeutic modalities used at Fig Tree Services, visit https://www.fig-tree-services.com/.
Finding Your Rhythm: How to Carry "Home" With You
Listen to the opening of The Stable Song by Gregory Alan Isakov. Before a single word is sung, there is the steady, rhythmic picking of the acoustic guitar. It’s delicate, but it has a gravity to it. It mimics something biological—a heartbeat, or the cadence of a breath when you are finally, truly at rest.
When you listen, it creates an immediate auditory space—a quiet pause in the middle of a noisy environment.
We often come to therapy looking for that same specific "quiet." Many of my clients initially view our sessions as the only place they feel safe, the only room where their nervous system is allowed to drop its guard. It is a relief to have that container, certainly. But the goal of our work isn’t to keep you tethered to this office, or to a specific hour of the week, in order to feel regulated.
The goal is to help you build that "stable" structure inside your own nervous system, so you can inhabit it anywhere—in a library, in nature, or even in the middle of a chaotic commute.
Because I work in a private-pay, neuro-affirming model, we aren't racing to meet the requirements of an insurance company. We have the space to slow down and practice the "carry-over." We don't just talk about your challenges; we map your body’s unique language for safety. We practice anchoring that feeling so that when life feels intense, you aren't just looking for an external exit—you are finding the "stable" rhythm you’ve cultivated within yourself.
This is the shift from dependency to autonomy. I’m not just "holding space" for you; I’m teaching you how to hold your own space. It is a practice of liberation. You are the architect of your own safe home, and the best part is that you get to take the blueprints with you wherever you go.
Ready to trade the need for an external "safe place" for the ability to build "safe space" within your own nervous system?
I provide 100% virtual, neuro-affirming somatic therapy for adults across Minnesota who are ready to move from a state of external reliance into a life of embodied, values-aligned peace.
About My Clinical Approach
My practice is grounded in the belief that the body holds the wisdom you need to heal. I integrate Internal Family Systems (IFS), Somatic Experiencing, and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) to help you untangle internal conflicts and restore nervous system regulation. My work is neuro-affirming and trauma-informed, meaning we honor your unique neurotype and avoid pathologizing language. We focus on capacity, autonomy, and sustainable, "bottom-up" healing—helping you move from simply surviving to inhabiting a life that feels authentic to you.
The Internal Compass: Finding Your Way Home Through Mapping
The soft, rhythmic scratching of a pencil against paper—a charcoal line curving into a circle, then another—can feel like a homecoming. There is something deeply grounding in the act of externalizing the internal, of taking the swirling, often contradictory weather patterns of your mind and giving them a shape, a name, and a place to rest. In our sessions, we often start here, not with a goal to "fix" what is broken, but with a quiet curiosity about the landscape that has been expertly designed to keep you safe.
The Shift: From Confusion to Clarity
In Chapter 5 of No Bad Parts, Richard Schwartz introduces the foundational practice of mapping the internal system. This isn't just an intellectual exercise; it is a clinical anchor that transforms how we relate to our own complexity. Instead of viewing yourself as one "messed-up mind," mapping allows you to see yourself as a vibrant internal ecosystem of parts, each with its own history and noble intent.
When we begin to map, we identify three primary groups on your internal "team":
Exiles: These are the young, sensitive parts of you—often delightful and creative—who were forced to carry burdens like worthlessness or terror after a trauma or injury. We often exile them to keep their overwhelming pain at bay, not realizing we are also locking away our most precious resources.
Managers: These are your "parentified inner children." They work around the clock to prevent your exiles from being triggered, often by controlling your environment, appearance, or performance. They are the tired, stressed-out protectors who may use self-criticism or intellectualization to keep you "safe" and small.
Firefighters: When the world inevitably triggers an exile, these reactive protectors rush in to "douse the flames" of emotion. Their methods are often impulsive—dissociation, substances, or intense distraction—acting as a desperate emergency response to help you survive a perceived internal fire.
Why it Matters: The Luxury of the Slow Down
Mapping matters because it honors the speed of safety. In a private-pay, somatic-informed practice, we have the luxury of an unrushed environment. We don't use cookie-cutter protocols or insurance-mandated labels that pathologize your protectors. Instead, we take the time to notice how these parts manifest in your body—the tightened jaw of a manager, the hollow ache of an exile, or the buzzing energy of a firefighter.
By mapping these parts, we move toward Self-leadership. You begin to realize that you are not your anxiety or your shame; you are the "Self"—a compassionate, wise essence that can hold all these parts with curiosity rather than contempt. This process doesn't require "fixing"; it requires a sacred witness. As you unburden these parts, they naturally return to their essential goodness, allowing you to lead your life from a place of embodied harmony.
Ready to trade internal warring for the clarity of your inner map?
I provide 100% virtual, neuro-affirming somatic therapy for adults across Minnesota who are ready to move from internal chaos into a life of embodied, values-aligned peace.
About the Clinical Approach
My work is rooted in a somatic, trauma-informed perspective that honors the body as the primary site of healing. I integrate Internal Family Systems (IFS) to facilitate self-leadership, Sensorimotor Psychotherapy for nervous system regulation, and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) to help you align with your deepest values. As a neuro-affirming therapist, I do not pathologize your lived experience; instead, I hold space for the unique, often non-linear ways your system has learned to survive. My practice is intentionally private-pay, ensuring that your care is unique, unrushed, and entirely free from the constraints of insurance labels or cookie-cutter protocols. We work together as humans—not as "expert" and "patient"—to build a sustainable path toward peace that honors your capacity, your autonomy, and your humanity.
Reclaiming the "Middle Ground": Pacing for the Long Haul
In a world that demands we either "go big" or "go home," many of us have lost the art of the middle ground. For high-achievers navigating neurodivergent burnout or the unpredictable flares of chronic illness, life often feels like a racehorse hitting the starting gates—all-or-nothing, full-throttle or total collapse.
If you are tired of the "crash and burn" cycle, I want to offer you a different strategy: The "Controlled Trot."
Moving Beyond "All-or-Nothing"
When your nervous system is stuck in "high activation," every deadline feels like an emergency and every task feels like a mountain. We often spend our "big guns" just trying to look okay, leaving us with nothing left for the actual logistics of living.
In our sessions, we move away from this "Whack-a-Mole" approach to symptoms. Instead of pushing through until the system blows up, we practice "brick by brick" pacing. This isn't about doing less because you're "failing"; it's about building a sustainable momentum that keeps your nervous system online.
The Clinical Value of "Slow"
As a private-pay specialist, I don't answer to insurance-mandated timelines that demand rapid "fixes". This gives us the luxury of speed-of-safety pacing. We treat your fatigue, brain fog, and "no" as vital data rather than barriers to productivity.
Together, we build:
Somatic Literacy: Learning to catch the physical "no" in your body before it becomes a forced collapse.
Systems Mapping: Befriending your "Go Part" (the one that drives you) and your "Grounded Part" (the one that protects you) so they can finally start collaborating instead of fighting.
Authentic Capacity: Redefining success as honoring your actual energy levels today, rather than an external expectation of "wellness".
Healing happens when we stop trying to force your system into a neurotypical mold and instead build a life that honors your unique way of being.
Ready to trade the "all-or-nothing" crash for a sustainable, controlled trot?
I provide 100% virtual, neuro-affirming somatic therapy for adults across Minnesota who are ready to move from survival into a life of values-aligned choice.
You can request to schedule your initial consultation here: https://www.fig-tree-services.com/specialized-therapy-services-mn.
About the Clinical Approach
My approach to therapy is rooted in the belief that true healing begins when we stop working against ourselves. At Fig Tree Services, I specialize in neurodivergent-affirming, somatic-informed trauma care. My work utilizes an integrative, evidence-based toolkit, including:
Internal Family Systems (IFS): We compassionately explore the parts of you—the exhausted, the protective, and the critic—to help you find inner harmony rather than self-judgment.
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT): We focus on building the psychological flexibility to pursue a values-aligned life, even while navigating chronic pain or trauma.
Sensorimotor Psychotherapy: We use your body’s signals as a roadmap to gently release stored stress and trauma, moving beyond just "talking about" your symptoms.
AEDP (Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy): We build a deeply relational, attuned space where you can safely feel and process emotions, knowing you are not alone in the work.
to help clients move beyond trauma-driven adaptation toward authentic self-assertion. This creates a safe, relational container that honors individual capacity and fosters nervous system regulation. To learn more about the therapeutic modalities used at Fig Tree Services, visit https://www.fig-tree-services.com/.
Finding Your Anchor: Navigating Anxiety Through the Body
There is a precise moment in Novo Amor’s "Anchor" when the finger-picked guitar melody lands—a soft, rhythmic settling that feels less like a song and more like coming home to your own skin. If you listen closely, you can hear the transition: the shift from the high-arousal storm to the quiet, weighted stillness of a safe container. It is the sound of a nervous system finally deciding it doesn’t have to keep fighting the wind.
For so many of us, that storm is all we know. We feel the anxiety—the racing heart, the swirling brain—and our first instinct is to try to steer the ship faster, to outrun the gale, or to "fix" the ship so it stops listing. We view the anxiety as an enemy to be defeated or a defect to be corrected.
But what if anxiety isn’t the storm? What if it’s just the echo?
The Echo in the Body
Anxiety often arrives as a physiological echo in the body long before it becomes a coherent thought in the brain. When you feel that tightness in your chest or that sudden, inexplicable "frozen" sensation, your system is already sounding the alarm. In our culture, we’re taught to ignore that alarm or, worse, to talk ourselves out of it. We try to intellectualize our way to calm, which often just adds more noise to the system.
In my practice, we shift the focus entirely. Instead of treating your anxiety as a problem to be solved, we view it as a sovereign relationship to be built. Your nervous system is trying to protect you, but it’s currently operating as if it’s untethered in a hurricane.
Therapy isn't about stopping the wind. It’s about learning to drop the anchor.
Why the "Sovereign Relationship" Matters
By learning to notice, label, and regulate these somatic responses, you begin to change your fundamental stance toward your internal world. You stop being the ship that is constantly hijacked by the weather, and you start becoming the anchor that holds steady, no matter how hard the wind blows.
This work requires a specific kind of space. Because I operate a private-pay practice, we aren't chasing insurance-mandated symptom management or rushing through "cookie-cutter" protocols. We have the luxury of intentional pacing. We move at the "speed of safety," giving you the time you need to actually feel the difference between reacting to chaos and choosing your response. We allow the nervous system to learn that it is safe enough to land, safe enough to settle, and safe enough to simply be.
Ready to trade the constant, exhausting reaction to life’s chaos for the steadiness of choosing how you respond?
I provide 100% virtual, neuro-affirming somatic therapy for adults across Minnesota who are ready to move from a life of constant reaction into a life of embodied, values-aligned peace.
You can request to schedule your initial consultation here: https://www.fig-tree-services.com/specialized-therapy-services-mn
About the Clinical Approach
My approach to therapy is rooted in the belief that true healing begins when we stop working against ourselves. At Fig Tree Services, I specialize in neurodivergent-affirming, somatic-informed trauma care. My work utilizes an integrative, evidence-based toolkit, including:
Internal Family Systems (IFS): We compassionately explore the parts of you—the exhausted, the protective, and the critic—to help you find inner harmony rather than self-judgment.
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT): We focus on building the psychological flexibility to pursue a values-aligned life, even while navigating chronic pain or trauma.
Sensorimotor Psychotherapy: We use your body’s signals as a roadmap to gently release stored stress and trauma, moving beyond just "talking about" your symptoms.
AEDP (Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy): We build a deeply relational, attuned space where you can safely feel and process emotions, knowing you are not alone in the work.
This creates a safe, relational container that honors individual capacity and fosters nervous system regulation. To learn more about the therapeutic modalities used at Fig Tree Services, visit https://www.fig-tree-services.com/.
The Living Ecology: Why Your Internal World Mirrors the World Outside
The scent of damp earth after a summer rain has a way of grounding us, reminding us that we are part of a vast, interconnected web. In the quiet of a forest, you can see how the health of a single fern is tied to the canopy above and the fungal networks below. There is no part of nature that exists in a vacuum; every leaf and stone is part of a delicate, stabilizing ecology. Your internal world is exactly the same.
The Shift: Your Inner System as an Ecology
In our work, we often look at the clinical anchor from Chapter 4 of No Bad Parts: your internal system is a mirror of the larger societal systems we inhabit. Just as a forest can be disrupted by external toxins, our inner worlds are often "polluted" by the high-demand, performance-driven paradigms of our culture.
When we feel internal conflict—like a part of us wanting to rest while another screams about productivity—it isn't a "defect." It is a system trying to find homeostasis in a world that often demands we ignore our own rhythms. As Richard Schwartz notes, exiling parts of ourselves is toxic to our internal system, just as exiling people is toxic to a society.
Why it Matters: Healing Beyond the "Fix-It" Trap
This perspective is why the "Luxury of the Slow Down" is so vital to your healing. Most traditional models treat symptoms like isolated "glitches" to be managed or deleted. But in a private-pay, personalized space, we have the freedom to be systemic thinkers.
We don't just ask "how do we stop this anxiety?" We ask, "what is this part trying to protect within the larger context of your life?" By honoring the "speed of safety" and refusing to push past your protectors, we allow your internal ecology to re-stabilize naturally. This isn't about a cookie-cutter protocol; it’s about restoring the "Story of Interbeing" within yourself—where your parts move from polarized roles back into a harmonious, Self-led team.
Ready to trade the exhaustion of internal warring for the peace of systemic harmony?
I provide 100% virtual, neuro-affirming somatic therapy for adults across Minnesota who are ready to move from internal chaos into a life of embodied, values-aligned peace.
About the Clinical Approach
My work is rooted in a somatic, trauma-informed perspective that honors the body as the primary site of healing. I integrate Internal Family Systems (IFS) to facilitate self-leadership, Sensorimotor Psychotherapy for nervous system regulation, and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) to help you align with your deepest values. As a neuro-affirming therapist, I do not pathologize your lived experience; instead, I hold space for the unique, often non-linear ways your system has learned to survive. My practice is intentionally private-pay, ensuring that your care is unique, unrushed, and entirely free from the constraints of insurance labels or cookie-cutter protocols. We work together as humans—not as "expert" and "patient"—to build a sustainable path toward peace that honors your capacity, your autonomy, and your humanity.
When "Doing More" is Actually Doing Less: The High Cost of the "Fixer" Mask
In our sessions, I often meet clients who are brilliant at managing life. They are the ones who handle the logistics, "save" others from emergencies, and keep every plate spinning—all while navigating the invisible weight of chronic illness or neurodivergent burnout. On the outside, they look high-functioning. On the inside, they are running on fumes, their "big guns" spent entirely on the performance of competency.
If this sounds familiar, I want to offer a radical reframe: your urge to "fix," "push through," or over-function isn't just a personality trait. It is a deeply intelligent protective strategy.
The Trap of the "Hero" and the "Fighter"
Using Internal Family Systems (IFS), we begin to identify these "parts" of your system—the "Hero Child" who feels responsible for everyone’s peace, or the "Fighter" who believes stopping is a failure. These parts were born out of a need to survive environments where "just being" wasn't enough.
The cost of keeping these masks on is physiologically expensive. When you are constantly "playing goalie"—defending against chaos or other people's opinions—you lose the bandwidth for your own life values. Your body’s "symptoms"—the brain fog, sudden fatigue, or task-based paralysis—are often the only way your system can say "no" when you won't.
Moving Beyond "Talk" into System Navigation
My approach to therapy isn't about giving you more "adulting" strategies or homework to add to your list. Instead, we shift from "doing" to "being":
Somatic Literacy: We move past the "mental loop" of overthinking and start listening to the body’s signals. We treat physical tension or heaviness as vital data, learning to "turn on the AC" before your system blows up.
The Power of the Pause: In a culture that demands speed, we prioritize the "art of the slow down". We build the capacity to sit with the discomfort of conflict or a looming deadline without the reflexive rush to "fix" it.
Radical Autonomy: This is a low-demand space. You don’t have to arrive with a perfect agenda or "perform" wellness to be worthy of support. Whether we need to spend a session in deep somatic stillness or process a vocational crisis, your nervous system sets the pace.
From Survival to Aligned Choice
The goal of this work isn't to make you a more productive machine; it’s to help you become a more regulated, authentic human. When you stop fighting an internal war against your own fatigue or neurodivergence, you reclaim the energy to choose the life you actually want to live, rather than the one you’re just trying to survive.
Ready to trade the "push" for a restorative partnership?
I provide 100% virtual, neuro-affirming somatic therapy for adults across Minnesota who are ready to move from survival into a life of values-aligned choice.
You can request to schedule your initial consultation here: https://www.fig-tree-services.com/specialized-therapy-services-mn.
About the Clinical Approach
My approach to therapy is rooted in the belief that true healing begins when we stop working against ourselves. At Fig Tree Services, I specialize in neurodivergent-affirming, somatic-informed trauma care. My work utilizes an integrative, evidence-based toolkit, including:
Internal Family Systems (IFS): We compassionately explore the parts of you—the exhausted, the protective, and the critic—to help you find inner harmony rather than self-judgment.
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT): We focus on building the psychological flexibility to pursue a values-aligned life, even while navigating chronic pain or trauma.
Sensorimotor Psychotherapy: We use your body’s signals as a roadmap to gently release stored stress and trauma, moving beyond just "talking about" your symptoms.
AEDP (Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy): We build a deeply relational, attuned space where you can safely feel and process emotions, knowing you are not alone in the work.
to help clients move beyond trauma-driven adaptation toward authentic self-assertion. This creates a safe, relational container that honors individual capacity and fosters nervous system regulation. To learn more about the therapeutic modalities used at Fig Tree Services, visit https://www.fig-tree-services.com/.
The "Vienna" Pace: Why Healing Isn't a Race
There is a specific rhythm to Billy Joel’s "Vienna"—the steady, deliberate thrum of the piano chords that feels like a physical grounding. It is the sensory equivalent of taking the phone off the hook, a moment where the high-pressure noise of a world demanding constant output finally goes quiet. In that silence, the frantic need to be "somewhere else" begins to soften into the reality of where you actually are.
The Pressure to Perform "Wellness"
"Slow down, you're doing fine / You can't be everything you want to be before your time."
For many of the high-achieving, neurodivergent, or trauma-surviving individuals I work with, these lyrics hit a tender nerve. We live in a culture that treats mental health as just another project to be managed, optimized, or "solved". This often translates into an internalized pressure to show up to therapy "perfectly"—with a polished agenda, a list of symptoms to fix, or a subconscious need to prove that you are doing the "work" correctly.
When therapy becomes another task on an overflowing to-do list, it stops being a place of healing and becomes another arena for performance.
Radical Permission: A No-Performance Sanctuary
In my practice, "Vienna" is more than just a song; it is the anthem for a No-Performance Environment. This approach is a radical departure from traditional "fix-it" models. It is built on the pillar of Radical Permission—the understanding that you do not have to "perform" wellness to be worthy of support.
In our sessions, you have permission to:
Arrive without an agenda: Whether you are in crisis or feeling peaceful, we start exactly where your nervous system is.
Prioritize presence over productivity: We move away from the "Whack-a-Mole" approach of forcing symptoms to disappear and instead focus on the art of slowing down.
Exist in silence: If your system needs a day of deep somatic stillness or simply the safety of holding a pillow while we sit in quiet, that is exactly where we go.
This is a sanctuary designed for people who are exhausted by the weight of external expectations. You don't need to be "high-functioning" or "well-adjusted" to be here; you just have to be you.
The Luxury of the "Slow Down"
Choosing a private-pay therapeutic partnership provides the luxury of this "Vienna" pace. Unlike insurance-mandated models that often demand rapid symptom management and "cookie-cutter" progress reports, our work remains entirely between us. We are not being directed by diagnosis codes or arbitrary timelines.
This model allows us to move at the speed of safety—the only pace that allows your nervous system to truly build the capacity for sustainable healing. We treat your fatigue and your "no" as vital data rather than barriers to productivity.
Ready to trade the pressure to "perform" wellness for a restorative partnership?
I provide 100% virtual, neuro-affirming somatic therapy for adults across Minnesota who are ready to move from the exhausted "crash and burn" cycle into a life of embodied, values-aligned peace.
About the Clinical Approach
Richelle Amundson, owner of Fig Tree Services, specializes in neurodivergent-affirming, somatic-informed trauma care. Her practice integrates core frameworks—including Internal Family Systems (IFS), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, and AEDP—to help clients move beyond trauma-driven adaptation toward authentic self-assertion. Her work utilizes an integrative, evidence-based toolkit to provide a safe, relational container that honors individual capacity and fosters nervous system regulation. To learn more about the therapeutic modalities used at Fig Tree Services, visit www.fig-tree-services.com.
The Sacred Geometry of the Knot
The late afternoon sun stretches across the floor, illuminating the tiny, swirling patterns in the grain of the wooden rug under my feet. If you run your hand over it, you can feel where the wood has knotted and gnarled—places where the tree had to grow around a wound or a break to survive. We don’t look at a knot in a piece of oak and call it "bad" or "defective"; we see it as a testament to the tree's resilience, a physical record of how it held itself together through a storm. Your body, and the parts of you that feel the most "difficult," are no different.
The Shift: From "Bad" to Burdened
In our sessions, we lean into a core clinical anchor: there are no bad parts. This isn't just a nice sentiment; it’s a biological and systemic reality. The parts of you that lash out in anger, the ones that freeze in the face of a simple task, or the inner critics that scream the loudest are not "glitches" in your personality. They are what Richard Schwartz calls "parentified inner children"—lively, creative parts of you that were pressed into extreme service by trauma or high-demand environments before they were ready.
They aren't "bad"; they are simply burdened. They are like soldiers who have been at their posts for decades, unaware that the war ended years ago. They continue to use your body to get your attention—through a tightened jaw, a racing heart, or chronic tension—because they don't yet know it's safe to drop the mask of "performance".
The Reframe: Healing at the Speed of Trust
Why does this reframe matter? Because when we stop trying to "fix" or exile these parts, they finally stop having to fight us for survival. This is the deep value of the luxury of the slow down. In a private-pay, personalized therapeutic space, we aren't chasing a "recovery" timeline dictated by an insurance company's cookie-cutter protocol. We have the freedom to stay with a protector for as long as it needs to feel seen.
When we treat these extreme roles with curiosity instead of contempt, the "law of inner physics" kicks in: a part's energy shifts the moment it feels safe enough to unblend. You move from the "particle" state of feeling shattered and overwhelmed into a "wave" state of connectedness and flow. You aren't becoming a "better" version of yourself; you are unburdening the sacred essence that was there all along.
Ready to trade the exhaustion of "fixing" yourself for the peace of unburdening?
I provide 100% virtual, neuro-affirming somatic therapy for adults across Minnesota who are ready to move from internal chaos into a life of embodied, values-aligned peace.
About the Clinical Approach
My work is rooted in a somatic, trauma-informed perspective that honors the body as the primary site of healing. I integrate Internal Family Systems (IFS) to facilitate self-leadership, Sensorimotor Psychotherapy for nervous system regulation, and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) to help you align with your deepest values. As a neuro-affirming therapist, I do not pathologize your lived experience; instead, I hold space for the unique, often non-linear ways your system has learned to survive. My practice is intentionally private-pay, ensuring that your care is unique, unrushed, and entirely free from the constraints of insurance labels or cookie-cutter protocols. We work together as humans—not as "expert" and "patient"—to build a sustainable path toward peace that honors your capacity, your autonomy, and your humanity.
Faith as an Anchor, Not an Obligation: Somatic-Spiritual Integration
In our high-demand world, even our most sacred spaces can start to feel like another arena for performance. For many, faith has been framed as a "responsibility"—a series of obligations, rituals, or moral checklists to maintain. If your spiritual life has begun to feel like another "to-do" on an already overflowing list, I want to offer you a different perspective: Your faith can be a sanctuary for your nervous system, not a tax on it.
Moving from Performance to Presence
Many high-achieving and neurodivergent individuals carry an internalized pressure to "do" spirituality correctly. When we approach faith through this lens of "over-performing," we often miss the very peace it is meant to provide. In our work, we gently strip away the "performance-based guilt".
We treat your spiritual identity as a valid, vital resource for regulation. Whether you find grounding in liturgy, the quiet of prayer, or a sense of Divine presence, these aren't just abstract beliefs—they are tangible anchors that can help your body feel held and safe.
Faith as a Somatic Resource
Healing happens when we integrate the body and the spirit. In our sessions, we bridge this gap by using spiritual elements as active tools for nervous system regulation:
Prayerful Visualization: We use imagery from your faith tradition to create a "visceral sense of being held".
Liturgy as Rhythm: For a system that feels chaotic or "frozen," the predictable rhythms of spiritual practice can act as a grounding anchor, signaling to your body that it is safe to slow down.
The Divine as an Available Presence: Much like the therapeutic relationship, we explore the spiritual concept of a "steady, reliable anchor" that remains present even when you don't have the energy to "perform".
Finding Meaning in the "Slow"
For those navigating chronic illness or trauma, the ability to find meaning in suffering is a primary pillar of healing. We don't use faith to bypass your pain, but to create a container large enough to hold it. This approach honors your entire self—ensuring your spiritual life supports your nervous system rather than adding to your depletion.
The Freedom of Values-Aligned Care
By choosing a private-pay partnership, we have the freedom to focus entirely on your personal goals and unique needs, allowing for a more flexible and personalized experience that isn’t constrained by external insurance requirements.
Is This Approach Right for You?
You are navigating neurodivergent burnout and need support in Minnesota that moves beyond traditional talk therapy.
You are seeking a somatic therapist for chronic illness telehealth who understands the physical toll of living with persistent pain.
You are ready to prioritize your nervous system over external productivity demands.
You want a partner for adult autistic masking trauma recovery who respects your boundaries and the need for an unhurried, collaborative space.
You don't have to "fix" your internal world or banish your doubts to find peace here. You simply need a space where your faith is respected as an anchor for your soul and a refuge for your body.
Are you ready to reclaim your faith as a source of restorative rest?
I provide 100% virtual, neuro-affirming somatic therapy for adults across Minnesota who are ready to move from survival into a life of values-aligned choice.
You can request to schedule your initial consultation here: https://www.fig-tree-services.com/specialized-therapy-services-mn.
About the Clinical Approach
My approach to therapy is rooted in the belief that true healing begins when we stop working against ourselves. At Fig Tree Services, I specialize in neurodivergent-affirming, somatic-informed trauma care. My work utilizes an integrative, evidence-based toolkit, including:
Internal Family Systems (IFS): We compassionately explore the parts of you—the exhausted, the protective, and the critic—to help you find inner harmony rather than self-judgment.
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT): We focus on building the psychological flexibility to pursue a values-aligned life, even while navigating chronic pain or trauma.
Sensorimotor Psychotherapy: We use your body’s signals as a roadmap to gently release stored stress and trauma, moving beyond just "talking about" your symptoms.
AEDP (Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy): We build a deeply relational, attuned space where you can safely feel and process emotions, knowing you are not alone in the work.
to help clients move beyond trauma-driven adaptation toward authentic self-assertion. This creates a safe, relational container that honors individual capacity and fosters nervous system regulation. To learn more about the therapeutic modalities used at Fig Tree Services, visit https://www.fig-tree-services.com/.
Looking at Clouds from Both Sides: An IFS Perspective on Internal Weather
Joni Mitchell once sang of "ice cream castles in the air" and "feather canyons everywhere." It is a beautiful, expansive way to look at the sky—until those same clouds turn to rain and snow, blocking the sun and making everything feel heavy and grey. When we look at clouds, we are often looking at the same thing from two very different sides: the side of wonder and the side of inconvenience. We see the "illusion" of the shape, then the reality of the storm, and we realize that the sky is never just one thing. It is constantly shifting, moving, and reforming.
Our internal world works much the same way. One moment, we are buoyant; the next, a heavy fog of exhaustion or a thunderstorm of anxiety rolls in. These states aren't failures of our character; they are simply the weather of our being.
Shifting the Perspective: Parts as Protectors
In Internal Family Systems (IFS), we recognize that we aren't just one monolithic "self." We are made up of many "parts," each with its own perspective and history. Often, we view our internal weather from only one side—the side that wants it to go away. We see the anxious part as the enemy of our peace, or the perfectionist part as the barrier to our rest.
But just as we might miss the true, complex shape of a cloud by viewing it only from the ground during a downpour, we miss the true intention of our parts when we only see them as "problems" to be solved. That anxious part isn't trying to ruin your day; it’s likely a protective mechanism, a sentinel standing guard against a perceived threat it learned about long ago. When we look at these parts from "both sides," we begin to see the nuance: the burden they carry and the protection they are trying to provide.
The Internal Bench: Holding the Sky
I often invite my clients to imagine an "Internal Bench." Instead of trying to "fix" the clouds or push the storm away, we practice sitting on this bench and inviting the different versions of the self to join us.
We might invite the young, scared part who feels small; the tired, overextended part who is carrying the weight of the world; and the striving part that feels it must perform to be worthy. On this bench, there is no pressure to change. We aren't here to "fix" the clouds. Instead, we are building a container—a sense of Self—that is large enough and steady enough to hold the entire sky of your experience.
This is the essence of somatic-informed work: learning to feel the texture of the weather in your body without being swept away by it. It’s about capacity, not "correction".
An Intentional Approach to Your Internal Landscape
This type of deep, relational work requires a specific kind of environment. In my practice, I’ve chosen a private-pay model specifically so we can avoid the "problem-first" protocols often demanded by insurance companies. We aren't here to check off symptoms from a list or fit your experience into a cookie-cutter diagnostic box.
Instead, we honor your specific internal landscape. We take the time to look at your clouds from every angle, moving at the pace of your nervous system rather than the pace of a protocol. This is intentional, unrushed care designed for the complexity of being human.
Ready to trade the exhaustion of "fixing" your parts for the quiet power of truly understanding them?
I provide 100% virtual, neuro-affirming somatic therapy for adults across Minnesota who are ready to move from a place of internal conflict into a life of embodied, values-aligned peace.
About the Clinical Approach
My approach to therapy is rooted in the belief that true healing begins when we stop working against ourselves. At Fig Tree Services, I specialize in neurodivergent-affirming, somatic-informed trauma care. My work utilizes an integrative, evidence-based toolkit, including:
Internal Family Systems (IFS): We compassionately explore the parts of you—the exhausted, the protective, and the critic—to help you find inner harmony rather than self-judgment.
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT): We focus on building the psychological flexibility to pursue a values-aligned life, even while navigating chronic pain or trauma.
Sensorimotor Psychotherapy: We use your body’s signals as a roadmap to gently release stored stress and trauma, moving beyond just "talking about" your symptoms.
AEDP (Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy): We build a deeply relational, attuned space where you can safely feel and process emotions, knowing you are not alone in the work.
...to help clients move beyond trauma-driven adaptation toward authentic self-assertion. This creates a safe, relational container that honors individual capacity and fosters nervous system regulation. To learn more about the therapeutic modalities used at Fig Tree Services, visit www.fig-tree-services.com
The Gentle Art of "Unblending": Finding the Spaciousness Within
The morning mist clings to the silver-green leaves of the tree outside my window, a quiet, humid blanket that makes the world feel smaller, softer, and temporarily still. There is a specific kind of peace in that stillness—not the forced quiet of a "hushed" room, but the natural pause of a system that isn't currently required to do anything. You might notice a similar sensation in your own body during those rare moments when your breath slows, your jaw unclenches, and you stop treating your life like a project that needs constant managing. This is the shift from performance to presence.
The Internal "Merge": Why We Feel Overwhelmed
In our sessions, we often talk about the clinical concept of blending. Blending happens when a protective part of your internal system—perhaps a high-achieving Manager or a harsh Inner Critic—takes over so thoroughly that you lose access to your "Self," that wise, undamaged essence at your core.
When you are blended, you become the anxiety, the shame, or the frantic need to be productive. It’s like the movie A Beautiful Mind, where the main character doesn't realize he’s seeing the world through the eyes of a paranoid part until he finally learns to separate from it. In the neurodivergent experience, blending often looks like a "pressing agenda" in the chest or a body that feels "braced" for a demand that hasn't even arrived yet.
The Reframe: The Power of the "U-Turn"
The goal of our work isn't to "fix" these parts or exile them further. Instead, we practice unblending—the somatic act of asking a part to step back just a few feet to give you some breathing room. Richard Schwartz, the creator of Internal Family Systems (IFS), notes that there is a "law of inner physics": nothing inside of you has any power over you if you are in your "Self" and not afraid of it.
When we unblend, we aren't bypassing the pain; we are creating enough spaciousness to actually be with it without being consumed by it. You might notice your body feel lighter, your vision clear, and a sense of "enoughness" return to your nervous system. This isn't a performance of "calm"; it is the natural emergence of your own internal leadership.
The Private Pay Value: Healing at the Speed of Safety
This process cannot be rushed. Your nervous system doesn't operate on an insurance billing cycle, and deep healing doesn't follow a cookie-cutter protocol. By choosing a private-pay, personalized therapy model, we honor the "luxury of the slow down." We have the freedom to spend an entire hour simply earning the trust of a protector so it feels safe enough to unblend. This unrushed space allows us to move from the "particle" state of feeling alone and separate into a "wave" state of connectedness and flow.
Ready to trade the exhaustion of "blending" for the spaciousness of Self-leadership?
I provide 100% virtual, neuro-affirming somatic therapy for adults across Minnesota who are ready to move from internal chaos into a life of embodied, values-aligned peace.
About the Clinical Approach
My work is rooted in a somatic, trauma-informed perspective that honors the body as the primary site of healing. I integrate Internal Family Systems (IFS) to facilitate self-leadership, Sensorimotor Psychotherapy for nervous system regulation, and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) to help you align with your deepest values. As a neuro-affirming therapist, I do not pathologize your lived experience; instead, I hold space for the unique, often non-linear ways your system has learned to survive. My practice is intentionally private-pay, ensuring that your care is unique, unrushed, and entirely free from the constraints of insurance labels or cookie-cutter protocols. We work together as humans—not as "expert" and "patient"—to build a sustainable path toward peace that honors your capacity, your autonomy, and your humanity.
The "Quiet" Power of the Pause: Reclaiming Agency in Conflict
In the heat of a difficult conversation or a looming deadline, our culture tells us that speed is safety. We are conditioned to believe that the faster we explain, defend, or "fix" a problem, the sooner we will be okay. But for those of us navigating neurodivergence, trauma, or chronic illness, this rush is often where we lose ourselves.
If you find yourself caught in a cycle of reactive survival—where every friction point feels like an emergency—I want to offer you a different tool: The Pause.
Conflict Doesn’t Have to Be Explosive
Many high-achieving individuals treat relationship friction like a fire that must be extinguished immediately. This "fix-it" mindset—while well-intentioned—is exhausting. It demands that you stay in a state of high-alert, overriding your own nervous system’s signals just to keep the peace.
In our sessions, we move away from this "Whack-a-Mole" approach to problems. We recognize that "quiet" is actually one of the most powerful tools in your therapeutic toolkit. The goal isn’t to have a better argument; it’s to build the capacity to sit with the discomfort of conflict without rushing to resolve it.
Somatic Anchoring: Staying in Your Body
When a conversation feels overwhelming, your brain might start working beyond its capacity, leading to "brain fog" or task-based paralysis. This is where we pivot from cognitive analysis to Somatic Anchoring.
Instead of trying to "think" your way out of the stress, we practice simple, bottom-up tools to help you stay grounded:
The Physical Pause: Taking a moment to notice the "no" in your body before it becomes a forced collapse.
Grounding Anchors: Pressing your feet into the floor or using bilateral stimulation (tapping) to signal to your nervous system that you are safe at this moment, even if the topic is painful.
Noticing the Signal: Reframing irritation or resentment not as "bad" feelings, but as vital boundary signals—your body’s way of letting you know you need space.
Reclaiming Your Agency
The power of the pause is that it gives you options. By cultivating the capacity for observation, you move from a life of reactive "survival mode" into one of values-aligned choice. You gain the power to choose how you want to show up, rather than being hijacked by old patterns of people-pleasing or over-compensating.
This isn't about "performing" wellness or being perfectly "easygoing". It’s about respecting your body’s signals as sacred boundaries.
Why Private-Pay Therapy Prioritizes Your Process
Choosing a private-pay therapeutic partnership creates a dedicated space entirely for you. Because our sessions are guided by your unique needs rather than a rigid administrative structure, we have the flexibility to follow your body's rhythm. If your system needs a day of deep somatic stillness or a session focused entirely on regulating your nervous system after a challenging week, we have the capacity to meet that need. We move at the speed of safety—the only pace that allows for deep, sustainable healing.
Is This Approach Right for You?
You are navigating neurodivergent burnout and need support in Minnesota that moves beyond traditional talk therapy.
You are seeking a somatic therapist for chronic illness telehealth who understands the physical toll of living with persistent pain.
You are ready to prioritize your nervous system over external productivity demands.
You want a partner for adult autistic masking trauma recovery who respects your boundaries and the need for an unhurried, collaborative space.
Healing happens when we stop trying to force your system into a neurotypical mold and instead build a life that honors your unique way of being. You don't have to be "high-functioning" to be worthy of support here. You just have to be you.
Ready to build a life that honors your capacity?
I provide 100% virtual, neuro-affirming somatic therapy for adults across Minnesota who are ready to move from survival into a life of values-aligned choice.
You can request to schedule your initial consultation here: https://www.fig-tree-services.com/specialized-therapy-services-mn.
About the Clinical Approach
My approach to therapy is rooted in the belief that true healing begins when we stop working against ourselves. At Fig Tree Services, I specialize in neurodivergent-affirming, somatic-informed trauma care. My work utilizes an integrative, evidence-based toolkit, including:
Internal Family Systems (IFS)
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
Sensorimotor Psychotherapy
AEDP
to help clients move beyond trauma-driven adaptation toward authentic self-assertion. This creates a safe, relational container that honors individual capacity and fosters nervous system regulation. To learn more about the therapeutic modalities used at Fig Tree Services, visit https://www.fig-tree-services.com/.
The "Fast Car" Myth: Why We Need a "Controlled Trot" Instead of an Escape
The wind pulls at your hairline, a sharp, cool contrast to the low thrum of the engine vibrating through your seat. There is a specific kind of magic in finally being in motion—the feeling of "being someone" when you are finally moving, finally going, finally leaving the stagnant reality behind.
For many of us, that longing for a "fast car"—the urge to drive until the circumstances are behind us—feels like a survival strategy. In therapy, we often call this the "Pushing Through" Myth. We treat our lives like a race, believing that if we just drive faster, push harder, and output more, we can finally arrive at safety. But in the therapy room, we see the cost of that acceleration. Overriding exhaustion and sensory overwhelm might look like high-functioning productivity on the outside, but inside, your system is running on fumes.
While the song seeks an escape, somatic work focuses on something different: the "Controlled Trot". We aren't trying to collapse the engine by pushing it to the red line. Instead, we learn to read the "dashboard lights" of the body—that tightness in the chest, the sudden brain fog, the heaviness in your limbs. These are not signs of failure; they are communication. They are your system telling you that the engine is overheating long before the car breaks down.
My practice doesn't demand high-speed "results" that leave you exhausted. We move away from the "all-or-nothing" cycle and instead practice "brick-by-brick" pacing that keeps your nervous system online. We honor the "slow down" as a radical act of self-care. Private-pay therapy allows us the space and time to respect your unique pacing, ensuring that therapy supports your life rather than becoming another task on an already overflowing to-do list.
Ready to trade the frantic "Fast Car" escape for a sustainable, controlled trot?
I provide 100% virtual, neuro-affirming somatic therapy for adults across Minnesota who are ready to move from survival into a life of embodied, values-aligned peace.
About the Clinical Approach
Richelle Amundson, owner of Fig Tree Services, specializes in neurodivergent-affirming, somatic-informed trauma care. Her practice integrates core frameworks—including Internal Family Systems (IFS), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, and AEDP—to help clients move beyond trauma-driven adaptation toward authentic self-assertion. Her work utilizes an integrative, evidence-based toolkit to provide a safe, relational container that honors individual capacity and fosters nervous system regulation. To learn more about the therapeutic modalities used at Fig Tree Services, visit https://www.fig-tree-services.com/.
Embracing your wise, compassionate essence
The cool, smooth surface of a river stone resting in your palm, its weight a steadying anchor against the rush of the world. You notice the way your breath naturally slows when you stop trying to "solve" your day and instead just sit with the physical sensation of being here. This is the shift from performance to presence—the moment you stop being a "project" and start being a person.
The Core Anchor: The 8 C’s of Self-Leadership
In our work together, we often move away from the "problem-solving" swirl and toward what Internal Family Systems (IFS) calls your Self. This isn't a part of you that needs fixing; it is your "wise, compassionate essence of goodness" that already knows how to lead with harmony. When we unblend from the loud, protective parts of our internal system—the ones that feel they must work 24/7 to keep us safe—we naturally drop into a state of Self-energy.
This state is characterized by the 8 C’s:
Curiosity: Instead of judging an emotion, you wonder about it.
Calm: A groundedness that isn't ruffled by the internal or external storm.
Confidence: Trusting your ability to handle whatever arises.
Compassion: Feeling for your parts (and others) without being overwhelmed by their pain.
Creativity: Seeing new possibilities where you once felt stuck.
Clarity: An unclouded view of what is actually happening.
Courage: The strength to face "inner caves and abysses" that once terrified you.
Connectedness: A visceral sense of being part of something larger—humanity, nature, or the divine.
Why This Matters: The Private Pay Advantage
You’ve likely spent years talking about your feelings in settings that prioritize rapid symptom management and rigid insurance checklists. At Fig Tree Services, we choose a different path. Private pay allows us the luxury of the unrushed process. Your nervous system doesn't operate on an insurance code, and healing doesn't follow a linear path.
Because I maintain a limited caseload, I have the internal capacity to be fully present with you. This means we have the freedom to spend a full hour simply establishing the safety your system needs to finally let its guard down. We aren't just managing "defects"; we are building a collaborative "internal team" where every part of you—even the ones that feel "bad" or "too much"—is invited to the table with curiosity and respect.
Ready to trade the exhaustion of "survival mode" for the peace of embodied, values-aligned living?
I provide 100% virtual, neuro-affirming somatic therapy for adults across Minnesota who are ready to move from internal chaos into a life of embodied, values-aligned peace.
About the Clinical Approach
I practice a "Phase-Based Integration" model that moves at the pace your nervous system requires. We begin with Stabilization & Resourcing (Phase 1) to establish safety, move into Deep Processing (Phase 2) to address the roots of trauma and complex patterns, and culminate in Integration & Living Forward (Phase 3), where you cultivate your own internal authority to navigate life with agency and calm.
Beyond "Adulting": When Executive Function is a Trauma Response
For many neurodivergent and chronically ill individuals, the word "adulting" isn't a playful shorthand for life's chores—it’s a source of profound shame. We are told that managing a calendar, keeping up with the laundry, or staying on top of bills is a simple matter of discipline and "showing up." But when your nervous system is already running at maximum capacity just to navigate a world not designed for it, these mundane tasks can feel like climbing a mountain with a heavy pack.
If you find yourself in a constant loop of task-based paralysis or "stuckness," I want to offer a different narrative: Your executive functioning challenges are not a deficit of character; they are often a deeply intelligent trauma response.
Reframing the "Stuck" State as Protection
In our work, we move away from pathologizing your executive dysfunction. Instead, we recognize that for a neurodivergent or traumatized system, "mundane" tasks are massive energy expenditures. When you feel unable to start a task, it is often a protective part of your system (in the IFS framework) stepping in to keep you safe from total burnout or sensory overwhelm.
This is especially true for those of us who have spent a lifetime "masking"—suppressing our natural needs and responses to fit into neurotypical standards. Masking is physiologically expensive. When you spend your "big guns" just trying to look "okay," you have very little left for the logistics of daily life.
Tools for a Low-Demand Life
In this practice, we bridge the gap between deep trauma work and the logistics of your week. We use tools designed to honor your actual capacity, not your external expectations:
The "Spiky vs. Chill" Capacity Chart: We map out your internal states so you can make sense of your energy. Instead of shaming yourself for a "low-capacity" day, we learn to adjust the demands to fit the available resources.
Collaborative Outsourcing: We move away from the idea that you have to "fix" yourself. Together, we identify where you can lower the demand on your system, treating your fatigue as essential data rather than a barrier to productivity.
Somatic Anchoring: We use "bottom-up" tools to help you stay grounded when the to-do list triggers a fight-or-flight response. By building nervous system capacity first, the tasks eventually become less threatening.
The Freedom of Private-Pay
Choosing a private-pay therapeutic partnership offers a unique kind of freedom. It allows us to prioritize what matters most—your specific needs and pace—without the constraints often found in other care structures. Because our partnership is based entirely on our shared goals, we have the space to be truly responsive to your nervous system. This model gives us the flexibility to lean into what you need in the moment, rather than adhering to predetermined timelines.
Is This Approach Right for You?
You are experiencing chronic burnout and feel like you are "performing" wellness.
You are ready to prioritize your nervous system over external productivity demands.
You want a partner who respects your boundaries, including your need for rest and stillness.
You are looking for an unhurried, collaborative space to process trauma.
Healing happens when we stop trying to force your system into a neurotypical mold and instead build a life that honors your unique way of being. You don't have to be "high-functioning" to be worthy of support here. You just have to be you.
Ready to build a life that honors your capacity?
I provide 100% virtual, neuro-affirming somatic therapy for adults across Minnesota who are ready to move from survival into a life of values-aligned choice.
You can request to schedule your initial consultation here: https://www.fig-tree-services.com/specialized-therapy-services-mn.
About the Clinical Approach
My approach to therapy is rooted in the belief that true healing begins when we stop working against ourselves. At Fig Tree Services, I specialize in neurodivergent-affirming, somatic-informed trauma care. My work utilizes an integrative, evidence-based toolkit, including:
Internal Family Systems (IFS)
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
Sensorimotor Psychotherapy
AEDP
to help clients move beyond trauma-driven adaptation toward authentic self-assertion. This creates a safe, relational container that honors individual capacity and fosters nervous system regulation. To learn more about the therapeutic modalities used at Fig Tree Services, visit https://www.fig-tree-services.com/.
The Archer: When Your Nervous System is Stuck in Combat
It starts with the thumping. That relentless, steady pulse in the background of Taylor Swift’s "The Archer." It feels less like a song and more like the sound of a nervous system on high alert. It’s the sensory equivalent of standing in the dark, muscles coiled, waiting for the other shoe to drop, waiting for the trap to spring.
For many of the high-achieving, neurodivergent, or trauma-surviving individuals I work with, that sound is incredibly familiar.
Swift sings, "I've been the archer, I've been the prey."
In our sessions, we explore how that lyric perfectly captures the exhausting oscillation between "Fighter" and "Hero" roles. When we are masking, we are the archer—constantly ready to strike, managing logistics, bracing for judgment, and keeping our guard up to keep others at bay. But beneath that projection of competence, we are simultaneously the prey—terrified that if we let our guard down for even a second, the environment will overwhelm us.
The Cost of "Ready for Combat"
This hypervigilance is what we call "masking." Let’s be clear: masking is an intelligent, highly effective protective strategy. It was likely the exact set of skills you needed to survive in a world that wasn't built for your nervous system.
But staying "ready for combat" is physiologically expensive. When you spend your "big guns" just trying to look okay or manage the emergencies of those around you, you aren't living; you’re surviving. The physical cost is what I see in the office every day—the chronic brain fog, the task paralysis, the sudden "crash" after a long week of holding it together. Your body is paying the tab for your nervous system’s war effort.
Putting the Bow Down
Therapy isn't about teaching you how to be a better archer. It isn't about optimizing your mask so you can perform better for longer.
In my practice, we prioritize a "no-performance" sanctuary where you can finally put the bow down. Because I operate on a private-pay model, we aren't chasing insurance-mandated benchmarks or trying to fit your complex humanity into a diagnostic checklist. This allows us to dismantle these defensive walls at the "speed of safety."
We don't need to rush to "fix" your protective parts. We can simply sit with them, letting them know that the battle is over, and that they don't have to carry the quiver alone anymore. You don't have to "fix" your internal world to find peace. You just need a space where you can stop working so hard to be enough and start simply being.
Ready to trade the constant, exhausting combat of masking for a restorative partnership?
I provide 100% virtual, neuro-affirming somatic therapy for adults across Minnesota who are ready to move from a state of constant, high-alert combat into a life of embodied, values-aligned peace.
You can request to schedule your initial consultation here: https://www.fig-tree-services.com/specialized-therapy-services-mn.
About the Clinical Approach
My approach to therapy is rooted in the belief that true healing begins when we stop working against ourselves. At Fig Tree Services, I specialize in neuro-affirming, somatic-informed trauma care. My work utilizes an integrative, evidence-based toolkit, including:
Internal Family Systems (IFS): We compassionately explore the parts of you—the exhausted, the protective, and the critic—to help you find inner harmony rather than self-judgment.
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT): We focus on building the psychological flexibility to pursue a values-aligned life, even while navigating chronic pain or trauma.
Sensorimotor Psychotherapy: We use your body’s signals as a roadmap to gently release stored stress and trauma, moving beyond just "talking about" your symptoms.
AEDP (Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy): We build a deeply relational, attuned space where you can safely feel and process emotions, knowing you are not alone in the work.
To learn more about the therapeutic modalities used at Fig Tree Services, visit https://www.fig-tree-services.com/.