Nicole Duenow, M.A.
Somatic psychotherapist
Nicole’s work as a somatic psychotherapist and certified Safe and Sound Protocol provider is grounded in practices of care that are Polyvagalinformed, analytically-oriented, spiritually-integrated, and cross-culturally
focused. Her Jüngian-flavored style incorporates methods and modalities that cut across multiple disciplines and fields of study, including neuroscience and behavioral physiology, comparative religions, the literary expressive arts, and the epigenetic impact of relational, historical, and intergenerational trauma. As a Polyvagal-informed, analytically-oriented somatic psychotherapist, Nicole conceptualizes wellness beyond the relief of symptoms to include the development of deeper insight and affect regulation, a greater sense of agency, and an identity of one’s entire personhood that it is as cohesive as it is strong.
The process of Polyvagal-informed psychoanalytic/dynamic psychotherapy involves a slow, gentle untangling of various strands and threads of life experiences that entangle us and impede our capacity to thrive. Over time, patterns that once seemed both intractable and elusive begin to work themselves out; and what was once a source of suffering shape-shifts into mastery and meaning. Ultimately, Polyvagal-informed, analytically-oriented somatic psychotherapy is both an evidence-based practice and a healing art. Together, they celebrate human messiness as the antidote to suffering and—when done well—enhance our overall sense of well-being by gently increasing our capacity to work, to love, and to play.
A certified interfaith spiritual director since 2011, Nicole holds Master’s degrees in Counseling and Psychological Services (St. Mary’s University, 2017) and in Theology with a concentration in Spirituality (St. Catherine University, 2012). In 2020, Nicole completed a 2-year post-graduate clinical fellowship with the Minnesota Psychoanalytic Society & Institute. She left that experience with an even deeper appreciation of psychoanalytic/psychodynamic psychotherapy for its power, accessibility, and unique capacity to cultivate wellness by honoring the complexities of the human person. “After all,’ she says, “being human is often quite messy and most of us find ourselves--at least once in our lives--getting all snarled up in the tangles of this messiness!” Since then, she has continued exploring practices that support wholeness and well-being from the inside-out, including certification as a Safe and Sound Protocol provider in 2022. In addition to being an Intermediate-level student of Somatic Experiencing®, she is a member of Deb Dana’s 2023 Foundations of Polyvagal-Informed Clinical Care cohort, after which she will begin the final leg of her journey toward certification as a Registered Poetry Therapist.
Nicole’s practice is geared primarily toward adults (individuals and couples), though she will provide Safe and Sound Protocol to adults, adolescents, and children. She has two therapy dogs who eagerly support the healing journeys of every human they come into contact with!
