Ease the Worry, Stop the Spiral, and Finally Feel More Steady Inside

Somatic Therapy for High-Functioning Anxiety in South Florida

Virtual Mind-Body Therapy in Florida and Illinois

Gentle breeze in sea oats at the beach – calming rhythm representing stress relief

You’ve been holding it together for a long time.

And now, your body is letting you know it’s too much.

Maybe anxiety feels new, or maybe it’s been building for years. Sometimes it’s quiet, sometimes it’s louder. Lately, it’s harder to ignore. Your mind spins with overthinking, your body stays tense and wired, and small things set off big reactions.

You find yourself snapping, shutting down, or spiraling even when nothing major is happening. Then the shame or second-guessing sets in.

You’re tired of riding the highs and lows. You want more steadiness, more capacity, and more confidence to meet what life brings.

Anxiety Lives in the Body, Not Just the Mind

That wired, restless feeling.

The tension in your shoulders or gut.

The sense of being on edge, even when nothing obvious is wrong.

Anxiety isn’t only a mental loop. It shows up in your body. It hijacks your focus, your mood, and your ability to feel steady and present.

That’s why mind-body therapy works differently. Instead of only talking through your experiences, we work with what your mind and body are carrying, supporting your nervous system in learning new ways to respond.

Florida High Functioning Anxiety Therapist

Amy Hagerstrom, therapist offering anxiety therapy in Florida and Illinois

Hi, I’m Amy Hagerstrom, LCSW.

I’m really glad you’re here.

I know how exhausting it feels when the pressures keep building and the stress you’ve managed starts to feel unmanageable. You’ve worked hard to hold it all together, but lately it’s taking more out of you.

The responsibilities, worry, and tension have left you stretched thin. It’s not just the exhaustion. It’s how much harder it is to think clearly, stay connected, or feel present in your own life.

You don’t have to keep pushing through alone. Together, we’ll work with what your mind and body are carrying so you can find more steadiness, clarity, and resilience.

You’ve built a life worth enjoying, and you deserve to feel stronger and more capable in it.

You’ve built a life worth enjoying, and you deserve to feel confident and in control.

Physical Symptoms

  • Persistent muscle tension in shoulders, jaw, or stomach

  • Chronic pain and headaches that seem to worsen with stress

  • Racing heart, shallow breathing, or panic attack episodes

  • Disrupted sleep or feeling wired despite exhaustion

  • Digestive issues, headaches, or chronic fatigue

Common Anxiety Symptoms I Help With

Many clients come to anxiety therapy experiencing a combination of these symptoms:

Mental and Emotional Patterns

  • Persistent worry that's hard to turn off

  • Overthinking decisions or replaying conversations

  • Feeling overwhelmed by responsibilities

  • Difficulty concentrating when feeling anxious

  • Anxious thoughts that interfere with daily life

How Anxiety Affects Your Connections

  • People-pleasing or fear of disappointing others

  • Avoidance of situations that trigger anxious feelings

  • Difficulty setting boundaries or communicating needs

  • Quick reactions—snapping or shutting down unexpectedly

  • Struggling with transitions, uncertainty, or change

Inside a Session: Mind-Body Therapy for Anxiety

No two sessions look exactly the same, because no two people are the same. Even you won’t come in the same way every time.

Some sessions are more still, focused on talking and noticing what emotions or topics feel like in your body. Other times, we might bring in gentle practices, such as pushing, squeezing your fists, a self-hug, or placing a hand on your chest. You may also find that standing, swaying, or shifting your posture helps when your body needs more movement.

We start wherever you are.

You’ll never be pushed into something you’re not ready for. We’ll go at your pace, tuning in to what your body is needing in each moment. Sometimes that means staying with sensation, which helps build capacity. Other times it means allowing a stress response to complete, so your nervous system does not stay stuck.

To keep the work manageable, we use small steps, a process called titration. You will also experience pendulation, which means gently moving between moments of discomfort and moments of safety. This helps your nervous system build resilience without becoming overwhelmed.

Even when we are talking, I am tuned into how your body is responding. We may pause to notice a reaction or shift attention to something that helps you feel more supported. Over time, these small steps create real change, not just in how you think, but in how you feel and respond.

This work is gentle, yet powerful.

My Mind-Body Approach to Anxiety Therapy

My Mind-Body Approach to Anxiety Therapy

Anxiety lives in both the mind and the body, so real support needs to include both. In our work together, I use approaches that help your nervous system shift out of survival mode and create more space for clarity and resilience. This is depth work that goes beyond coping, supporting both healing and growth.

Here are a few of the methods we may use in our work together, depending on what feels most supportive for you:

Somatic Experiencing (SE): SE helps you process the physical side of anxiety. When your body stays stuck in survival mode, you may feel wired, tense, restless, or unable to slow your thoughts. SE supports your nervous system in registering safety again. Instead of feeling overwhelmed by sensations or spiraling into worry, you’ll learn how to stay with them in a way that feels manageable. Over time, this creates more space to understand what is driving your anxiety, build resilience, and feel steadier inside.

Safe and Sound Protocol (SSP): Anxiety often keeps the body braced, scanning for what could go wrong. SSP uses filtered music to gently support your nervous system in the background, making it easier to notice safety and connection. This can help with social anxiety, difficulty relaxing around others, and the tendency to stay “on alert” even when nothing is happening. You don’t have to talk during SSP, you simply listen while I guide the process and check in with you.

Rest and Restore Protocol (RRP): Anxiety can leave you exhausted from being on edge all the time, yet unable to truly rest. RRP helps your body return to a more natural rhythm. It can be especially helpful when you feel worn out, disconnected, or caught in that wired-but-tired cycle. These sessions create space for deeper rest and make it easier to notice what your body needs day to day.

A developmental lens: Sometimes anxiety in adulthood has roots in earlier experiences. Growing up without a steady sense of safety, or with pressure to hold it all together, can set the stage for high-functioning anxiety later in life. By bringing awareness to these patterns, we can understand how they show up now and create new ways of responding.

These approaches complement one another. Somatic Experiencing is at the core of the work we do together. From there, we may bring in SSP, RRP, or other supports if they feel helpful. This is depth work. It focuses on healing and growth, not just coping, so you can move beyond managing symptoms and start living with more steadiness and capacity.

Understanding the Roots of Your Anxiety

Woman walking on beach in connecting with her mind, body, and nature

Even when life looks okay now, your nervous system may still be responding to the past.

As children, we didn’t have control over situations. If stress or connection felt unpredictable—or unsafe—your body may have learned to stay on high alert.

You might not remember everything that shaped you. But you may notice patterns like:

  • Constant worry about what others think

  • Over-explaining or apologizing

  • Feeling anxious when people are upset with you

  • Struggling to relax, even when nothing’s wrong

  • Reacting more strongly than the situation calls for

This isn’t about blaming the past. It’s about understanding how early experiences shaped your stress responses, your attachment style, and your relationships.

Together, we’ll gently explore these patterns, nurture the younger parts of you that are still holding on to fear, and support you in responding with more confidence and ease.

How Anxiety Therapy Helps: What Changes You Can Expect

As we work together, clients typically notice improvements in their mental health and daily functioning:

Physical Changes

  • Less chronic muscle tension and improved sleep

  • Deeper, easier breathing and more energy

  • Calmer response to stress, even in challenging moments

  • Fewer physical symptoms interfering with daily life

Mental Health Improvements

  • Clearer sense of what you need and how to respond

  • Reduced intensity of anxious thoughts and worry

  • Better ability to manage anxiety when it arises

  • Improved concentration and decision-making

Daily Life Impact

  • More confidence in setting boundaries

  • Less anxiety about social situations

  • Better ability to stay grounded during conflict

  • Enhanced focus and productivity at work

  • Stronger connections with people who matter

How Healing Can Feel in Your Body and Your Life

As we do this work together, you may begin to notice:

  • Less tension in your chest, jaw, or stomach

  • Fewer physical symptoms, like racing heart or shallow breathing

  • A clearer sense of what you need and how to respond to it

  • More ease and steadiness, even in stressful moments

  • A stronger connection with yourself and the people who matter

  • More energy, clarity, and capacity for the life you’ve worked hard to build

You don’t have to keep spiraling, shutting down, or pushing through.

With the right support, it becomes easier to feel calm, connected, and capable, without having to work so hard for it.

Where I Work

I work with clients online throughout Florida, including Fort Lauderdale, Boca Raton, Delray Beach, and West Palm Beach. Whether you’re navigating chronic stress, trauma, or nervous system overwhelm, we can do this work together from the comfort of your home.

I’m also licensed in Illinois and am able to see clients in Chicago and throughout the state of Illinois.

  • Anxiety is often a sign that your nervous system does not feel safe, even when you are not in real danger. It is the body’s “flight” response, meant to protect you from threats. While it is normal to feel anxious from time to time, when your system stays on high alert, the tension, spiraling thoughts, and overreactions can start to take over daily life.

    In therapy, the focus is on healing the lack of felt safety. Through somatic work, your nervous system learns to recognize when you are safe, so it does not stay stuck in survival mode. This work supports both mind and body, creating more steadiness and capacity over time.

    As your system settles, the patterns of anxiety shift. You feel more resilience, more room for connection, and more freedom to live in line with what is important to you. You also build more capacity for stress, so you are more likely to stay grounded when challenges arise.

  • Yes. Anxiety doesn’t have to take over your life. It is normal to feel anxious from time to time, and those feelings can even carry helpful information. But what you’re experiencing now does not have to be your normal.

    Somatic therapy helps your nervous system recognize the difference between real danger and everyday stress. This makes it easier to recover after anxious moments and respond in ways that feel more steady and clear.

    Over time, you build more capacity for stress. That means you’re less likely to spiral, shut down, or overreact, and more able to stay grounded when challenges arise. Healing is possible, and so is growth.

  • Weekly sessions are an important part of how I work. Meeting regularly creates the rhythm and consistency this therapy needs. It helps us build trust, gain momentum, and allow the work to deepen.

    This process makes space for what your body has been carrying, while also allowing room for emotional processing, insight, and reflection. Together, we bring both mind and body into the healing work.

    On rare occasions, someone with a very specific trigger may find that a few months of therapy is enough. But most people are working through more complex anxiety, trauma, or long-term overwhelm. For them, healing and growth usually unfold over a longer stretch of time, often one to three years, with consistent weekly support.

  • Sessions are online.

    Virtual therapy works especially well for this kind of somatic work—you’re in your own environment, which helps your system feel safe.

    Plus, you can use personal comfort items (even pets!) and skip the commute.

  • Sessions are $200 for 55 minutes.

    Payment is due at the time of each session. I accept credit or debit card, HSA, and Zelle.

    If you’re interested in adding the Safe and Sound Protocol (SSP) or Rest and Restore Protocol (RRP), these are offered as additional services with their own pricing. You can read more on the SSP page and RRP page, or we can talk together about whether either is a good fit for you.

  • I don’t accept insurance, but I can provide a monthly superbill if you’d like to submit for out-of-network reimbursement. Some clients are able to get partial reimbursement, depending on their plan.

    You’ll always know the cost up front. Under federal law (the No Surprises Act), you’re entitled to a Good Faith Estimate of the expected cost of services. If you ever receive a bill $400 or more above that estimate, you can dispute it.

Anxiety Therapy FAQs

Sitting quietly in sunlight – building capacity for calm and clarity
The beach and ocean at sunrise in Fort Lauderdale, representing the calm and clarity that can come from Somatic therapy for anxiety and overwhelm

Get help from a Florida Anxiety Therapist

Anxiety can leave you feeling stuck. Tired from the worry, second-guessing yourself, and struggling to keep up with everything on your plate. It’s draining, and no matter how much you push through, it feels like it’s never enough.

You don’t have to keep carrying this alone.

With somatic therapy, we’ll work to ease the tension, quiet the spiraling, and help your nervous system settle. The goal is not control, but more capacity so that you can face stress without being taken over by it.

This work is about finding relief and creating a way forward that keeps you connected to yourself and your life, even when challenges come up.

If you’re tired of pushing through and want space for healing and growth, I’m here to help.

Start Therapy with a Quick Consultation Call

If you’re interested in a free 10-minute consultation, please click the button below.

If you don’t see any days and times that work for you, please fill out the form on the contact page with days and times that could work for you. We’ll find something that works for each of us. Also, feel free to fill out the form with any questions you may have.

Related Blog Posts