The Safe and Sound Protocol (SSP)
Bodymind Counselling is proud to offer the Safe and Sound Protocol in Victoria BC, and online throughout BC.
What is the Safe and Sound Protocol?
The Safe & Sound Protocol (SSP) is a type of “listening therapy”, offered at Bodymind Counselling as an adjunct to other types of therapy and healing. The purpose of the Safe & Sound Protocol (SSP) is to initiate and access a physiological state conducive to well-being, positive engagement with others, and growth in learning and therapy. The SSP was developed by Dr Stephen Porges, a well-known writer and researcher in the field of trauma science, and the person who popularized what is known as "Polyvagal Theory”.
Dr. Porges created the SSP to help people learn to attain a grounded state where they feel safe, connected, calm and social. It consists of five hours of specially filtered vocal music, designed to work directly on the Autonomic Nervous System (ANS) by way of the middle ear muscles. It is designed to help people shift out of chronic states of fight/flight/freeze/fawn, and into the experience of relaxed social engagement.
In practical terms, the SSP is quite simple -- it's simply 5 hours of music that is listened to consecutively, in a quiet and relaxed environment, using over the ear headphones.
Your trained SSP provider gives you access to the playlist via an app that you download to your phone or tablet. Listening can be done in session (either in person or virtual) or at home outside of session, or usually, a combination of both. The pace of listening will be tailored to your individual needs and nervous system. Some people experience very little while listening, and some people are more sensitive and can experience a lot (sensation, activation, etc). Together you and your therapist track your progress, to ensure that you are getting the optimal “dose” for you.
Will the SSP help me? Who is it good for?
Generally speaking, most people will benefit from it! It's pretty hard to have a nervous system that isn't a little jacked up in the world we live in. So many physical and psychological symptoms come back to the autonomic nervous system.
According to the developers of the program, those with the following symptoms or experiences often benefit from using the SSP:
Social and emotional difficulties
Auditory sensitivities
Anxiety and trauma-related challenges
Hypervigilance
Inattention
Stressors that impact social engagement
Difficulties in regulating physiological and emotional state
What can I expect from the SSP?
Some experience dramatic improvements in their day to day functioning. Many experience more subtle improvements. Some parents find they are able to be with their children with less reactivity, and more ease. Some people experience improvements in sleep, auditory sensitivity, focus, social anxiety, and other issues.
Results are individual and can vary quite a lot. It can be hard to predict in advance what an individual will experience, or how they will benefit. But, during an SSP intake session we talk about what your current experience is, and what sorts of shifts you might expect.
Often individuals benefit from a second round of SSP, done several months after completing the first.
You can learn more about the SSP here: https://www.whatisthessp.com/
Is there anyone who shouldn't do the SSP?
All prospective listeners complete a screening questionnaire and interview where we consider your particular nervous system and history, and we talk a lot about how to appropriately pace the listening. Some people need to go quite slowly (but that's not a problem). You can expect completion of the SSP to take anywhere from 2 weeks, to a year, depending on your level of sensitivity and how you respond.
If your symptoms of nervous system dysregulation are quite intense, you stand to benefit a lot, but will also likely need to proceed carefully and in close collaboration with your therapist. What can happen for people who have lived with chronic states of fight/flight/freeze for many years is that the shift into a different state actually registers inside as threatening or frightening, and there can be some internal backlash if you proceed too quickly through the listening. This is why it is important to work with a trained and experienced provider.
If you have a recent head injury or concussion, you should wait until your symptoms have improved before doing it, and again should only work with an experienced provider.
Please note that the SSP is not intended to be a stand-alone therapy. It should be used in conjunction with other forms of psychotherapy, and/or other modalities that work directly with the nervous system, such as acupuncture or craniosacral therapy.
How much does it cost?
We charge an access fee for access to the SSP, and we also require a certain amount of direct session time with your SSP provider to ensure that you have a positive and beneficial experience with the protocol.
The access fee is $175 plus tax. This includes your access to the program for as long as it takes you to complete it. It also includes email contact with your therapist as much as needed to check in and to ensure that you are doing the optimal amount of listening on your own between sessions.
Your SSP intake session and subsequent check-ins are billed at $150/hour plus tax. One 25-minute check-in is required a week after beginning the protocol and at least one other 25-minute check-in is required near the end of your listening time. We strongly recommend check-ins at least every 2 weeks while you proceed through the playlist. We also recommend a full session for integration and exploration of your experience after completion of the protocol.
Subsequent rounds of SSP, or access to the follow-up playlist, will be billed separately.
Total cost: From $475 and up, depending on how much additional support is needed or desired.
Which therapists at Bodymind Counselling offer the SSP?
Currently Sarah Pullman and Robyn Vardy offer the SSP at Bodymind Counselling.
Christine Hegedus will be available for it in spring 2024.
If you are a client of a different therapist at Bodymind Counselling, you can still do the SSP — let your therapist know if you’re interested.
