F O R P R O V I D E R S · F R E Q U E N T L Y A S K E D Q U E S T I O N S
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The TENDing Method: Provider FAQ
Everything you need to feel confident referring a patient — what the program is, where our scope ends, and how it works alongside the care you provide.
The TENDing Method is a clinician-led group education and support program for adults living with complex chronic illness. It The TENDing Method is a clinician-led approach to group education and support for adults living with complex chronic illness. It runs in two programs — The TENDing Method for complex chronic illness broadly, and the Migraine Resilience Academy for patients whose primary presentation is migraine. Both are designed to extend your care between appointments — never to diagnose, treat, or replace it. Below are the questions providers ask us most. designed to extend your care between appointments — never to diagnose, treat, or replace it. Below are the questions providers ask us most.
The program
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Q. What actually happens in a cohort?
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Each week, a small group meets live and online with a facilitator. Sessions blend short teaching on the nervous system, symptoms, and self-regulation with guided practice, reflection, and peer discussion. Between sessions, participants try small, structured experiments and track what they notice — then bring those observations back to the group.
Q. How is it structured?
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Both programs follow the same two-part arc:
Foundations — weeks 1–6. The core course: understanding, noticing rhythms, and building daily practices.
Expansion — weeks 7–10. An optional continuation for those who want to go deeper, integrating practices into lasting routines and care plans.
Cohorts are capped at 12 participants and meet in weekly live virtual sessions.
Q. What's the difference between the two programs?
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Q. Is it evidence-informed?
Same method, same arc, same mechanisms — the curriculum is tailored to who is in the room. The TENDing Method serves adults navigating complex or overlapping chronic conditions: persistent pain, fatigue, autoimmune illness. The Migraine Resilience Academy applies the same approach to migraine specifically, attuned to triggers, thresholds, prodrome, and the particular rhythms of living with migraine. Pricing and format are identical across both
Q. Who facilitates it?
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Sessions are led by licensed clinicians, including Dr. Michele Renee (DC, MAc, LMT), Dr. Brenna Erickson (DC), and Dr. Karen Lawson (MD, DABIHM, NBC-HWC). Facilitators bring both clinical training and lived experience with complex chronic illness. Migraine Resilience Academy cohorts are led by Dr. Brenna Erickson, whose practice centers on migraine care.
Yes. The curriculum draws on established mechanisms of behavior change and healing — patient education, self-efficacy, co-regulation, reflective practice, and community support. We frame these openly as the mechanisms through which both programs work, rather than promising cures.
The TENDing Method is a clinician-led approach to group education and support for adults living with complex chronic illness. It runs in two programs — The TENDing Method for complex chronic illness broadly, and the Migraine Resilience Academy for patients whose primary presentation is migraine. Both are designed to extend your care between appointments — never to diagnose, treat, or replace it. Below are the questions providers ask us most.
Fit & referrals
Q. Which of my patients is this right for?
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Adults with complex or overlapping chronic conditions — persistent pain, migraine, fatigue, autoimmune illness — who understand your recommendations but struggle to implement them, or who feel isolated and stuck between visits. It is not a fit for patients in acute crisis, those needing urgent individual treatment, or those seeking diagnosis or a treatment plan.
Q. Which program should I send a patient to?
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If migraine is their primary presentation, the Migraine Resilience Academy. Otherwise, The TENDing Method. For patients with migraine alongside other significant chronic conditions, either can work — send them our way and we'll help sort it out during the fit conversation. You don't have to make the call yourself.
Q. How do I refer someone?
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Three simple paths: hand them the referral slip or point them to the program site — tendingmethod.com or migrainewhisperer.com; send a brief introduction to hello@tendingmethod.com; or use the referral form on our For Providers page, which includes a "not sure" option if you'd like us to advise. We follow up with every prospective participant directly.
Q. Do you screen patients before they enroll?
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Yes. Every prospective participant has a short fit conversation with a facilitator before enrolling, so the cohort is appropriate for them and expectations are clear from the start. If someone isn't a good fit, we tell them — and, where we can, suggest a more suitable next step.
Pricing is the same for both programs: Current introductory pricing for Foundations (weeks 1–6) is $797 per participant, and Expansion (weeks 7–10) is $517 for those who continue. Both are self-pay and not billed through insurance, which keeps them independent of diagnosis and coding.
Q. What does it cost?
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Scope & your patient’s care
Q. Which of my patients is this right for?
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Adults with complex or overlapping chronic conditions — persistent pain, migraine, fatigue, autoimmune illness — who understand your recommendations but struggle to implement them, or who feel isolated and stuck between visits. It is not a fit for patients in acute crisis, those needing urgent individual treatment, or those seeking diagnosis or a treatment plan.
Q. Which program should I send a patient to?
2
If migraine is their primary presentation, the Migraine Resilience Academy. Otherwise, The TENDing Method. For patients with migraine alongside other significant chronic conditions, either can work — send them our way and we'll help sort it out during the fit conversation. You don't have to make the call yourself.
Q. How do I refer someone?
3
Three simple paths: hand them the referral slip or point them to the program site — tendingmethod.com or migrainewhisperer.com; send a brief introduction to hello@tendingmethod.com; or use the referral form on our For Providers page, which includes a "not sure" option if you'd like us to advise. We follow up with every prospective participant directly.
Q. Do you screen patients before they enroll?
4
Yes. Every prospective participant has a short fit conversation with a facilitator before enrolling, so the cohort is appropriate for them and expectations are clear from the start. If someone isn't a good fit, we tell them — and, where we can, suggest a more suitable next step.
Pricing is the same for both programs: Current introductory pricing for Foundations (weeks 1–6) is $797 per participant, and Expansion (weeks 7–10) is $517 for those who continue. Both are self-pay and not billed through insurance, which keeps them independent of diagnosis and coding.
Q. What does it cost?
4
The take home message
Education reinforces clinical care — it never replaces it. Whichever program your patient joins, they stay at the center of their own care team — with you — throughout.
Still have questions?
We're happy to talk through which program fits a specific patient, or answer anything not covered here.
Email us at hello@tendingmethod.com
tendingmethod.com · migrainewhisperer.com
Dr. Michele Renee, DC, MAc, LMT · Dr. Brenna Erickson, DC · Dr. Karen Lawson, MD, DABIHM, NBC-HWC
