The research of Stephen Porges has made the conventional wisdom about the ANS (“fight/flight” vs. “rest/rebuild”) somewhat obsolete, and replaced it with a new concept, the “Polyvagal Theory”.

Porges’ new understanding about the Autonomic Nervous System has been thoroughly tested and proven and has profound implications across all forms of healthcare.

THE MAIN LEARNING POINTS:

1. The autonomic nervous system is the foundation of health and wellness, regulating neurochemistry, the immune system and most behaviour. Some say that “80% or more of all medical conditions are ANS events.” (Dr James Jealous, leading US osteopath and teacher).
2. The traditional modal of the ANS usually taught has two branches, the ANS has three branches and the branches are sequential instead of purely reciprocal.
3. The newly discovered third branch is the Social Nervous System, which regulates the evolutionarily older Sympathetic (properly called “Orthosympathetic”) and oldest Parasympathetic branches. The Social branch meets the technical criteria for inclusion in the ANS.
4. Understanding the ANS fully is a true revolution in health care, with enormous implications for medicine, psychology, birthing practices, early childhood care and education of all ages. In addition, the Polyvagal Theory provides important anatomical and physiological information for much more effective treatment of trauma.

The above text has been taken in edited form from the Colorado School of Energy Studies, who are forerunners in the promotion of Polyvagal Theory. They offer a number of resources on their website (www.energyschool.com), such as the following:

ARTICLES

Triune_Autonomic_Nervous_System_Article-Chitty  (2-page summary of Polyvagal Theory)

Dancing-with-Yin-Yang-chap6-ANS-LR   (Chapter 6 from the book “Dancing with Yin and Yang” by John Chitty)

POSTER

John Chitty, founder of the Colorado School of Energy Studies, has produced a colour poster that combines the 7 most significant diagrams from the Chapter 6 article quoted above, in one view. The poster format may be easier to assimilate over time, compared to a one-pass reading or viewing experience.

The ANS poster is available direct from the Colorado School of Energy Studies, or for anyone resident in the UK, Brighton Therapy Partnership are sole distributors of the poster in the UK.

To poster is available to purchase for the price of £26.30. Please email info@brightontherapypartnership.org.uk to arrange to purchase.

Email info@brightontherapypartnership.org.uk to arrange your discounted poster purchase.

Other Resources:

“Autonomic Nervous System: Precision Regulation” – A4 laminated card by Babette Rothschild, from The Body Remembers Volume 2: Revolutionizing Trauma Treatment (Norton, 2017), available as a free download here https://usabp.org/resources/Documents/ANS%20English%20HANDOUT%20TBRv2.pdf or as a laminated card here https://www.amazon.co.uk/Autonomic-Nervous-System-Table-Laminated/dp/039371280X

The post Polyvagal Theory Resources first appeared on Therapy Education Online.

Email info@brightontherapypartnership.org.uk to arrange your discounted poster purchase.

In this session, Nicole delves into the eight senses, exploring both hyper- and hypo-sensitivities in each sense and how these may play out for different clients.

She looks at how sensory profiling can aid us in better understanding and supporting our clients; and our clients in better understanding and supporting themselves.

Sensory processing difficulties are also touched upon in this session, as well as a range of methods for sensory soothing.

This recorded workshop can be watched as a standalone, or alongside Dr Schnackenberg’s recorded workshop on Nervous System Regulation and Polyvagal Theory in the Therapeutic Space, also available via Brighton Therapy Partnership and Therapy Education Online.

Trainer Testimonials

“Nicole is superb – so compassionate, curious and warm. Her knowledge is fantastic but it’s her human touch and warm approach, and clear passion for her work that really make this magical.”

“The level of detail covered during the event and the follow up materials exceeded my expectations.”

“Nicole was incredibly informed, prepared, and knowledgeable on this subject and that shone through in how she delivered the training.”

“The event was engaging, informative, interesting, and packed with information and skills to take away for the therapist.”

“This was one of the best online workshops I have attended in a while. I left the day absolutely buzzing with enthusiasm and interest.”

“I think Nicole is exceptionally knowledgeable, her presence is calming and she manages the day with absolute precision.”

The post Considering the Sensory System in the Therapy Room first appeared on Therapy Education Online.

SPECIAL OFFER: If you purchase “Nervous System Regulation and Polyvagal Theory” at full price you may additionally purchase a copy of the “Triune Autonomic Nervous System” poster at a 30% discount of £18.41 (reduced from the normal price of £26.30).

Email info@brightontherapypartnership.org.uk to arrange your discounted poster purchase.

Trainer Testimonials

The post Nervous System Regulation and Polyvagal Theory first appeared on Therapy Education Online.

Email info@brightontherapypartnership.org.uk to arrange your discounted poster purchase.

The field of stress and trauma is where neurobiology and psychotherapy are really meeting and informing each other these days, where psychotherapy provides new challenges and directions for neurobiological research and also neurobiology provides new impulses and narratives for psychotherapy.

This presentation addresses some of the processes involved in the formation and resolution of post-traumatic stress states as well as ordinary, non-traumatic, stress, where trauma is conceptualised as a form of extreme and transmarginal stress. It presents ways of helping clients to live better with traumatic memories and also clinical considerations helpful in the processing of trauma memories.

The presentation combines theory and clinical case material. It focuses on how we can make use of neuroscience to work therapeutically with our clients.

Viewers will:

• Learn about the structure and function of the autonomic nervous system;
• Learn the basics of polyvagal theory;
• Learn something about pathways in the brain involved in basic self-regulatory processes;
• Learn some principles of how self-regulation is affected in states of stress, both short-term and chronic;
• Learn something about the parts of the brain involved in memory formation, both ordinary memories and traumatic memories;
• Learn ways of helping dys-regulated clients to self regulate better and become less vulnerable to flashbacks and intrusive traumatic memories;
• Learn about treatment options for processing traumatic memories.

Testimonials

“The training was rich, rewarding and very enlightening.”

“Kathrin has a great manner. She is respectful, affirming and empathic – thank you.”

“This training was excellent. So accessible and interesting. Kathrin had a breadth of experience and brought it back to actual practice.”

Please note  that any mention in the videos about “handouts” or “printouts” by trainers, are in reference to printouts of the PowerPoint slides, which were made available to delegates who attended the LIVE workshop. These slides are included within the videos and are the property of the trainers. They are not available for download or redistribution with any video rental purchase.

The post Neurobiology, stress and trauma first appeared on Therapy Education Online.

Email info@brightontherapypartnership.org.uk to arrange your discounted poster purchase.

Polyvagal Theory is one of the most exciting therapeutic discoveries of the last 20 years and has the potential to change the the way that therapists practice.

This is a training workshop designed especially for counsellors and therapists who would like to deepen their understanding and application of Polyvagal Theory within the therapeutic relationship. In relation to the autonomic nervous system, Polyvagal Theory outlines 3 hierarchical subsystems, which evolved to respond adaptively to environmental (including relational) features of safety, danger and life threat (Porges, 2011). Viewers will learn about peripersonal neurons (Graziano, 2018) monitoring the space around us, and how both client and therapist react non-consciously to a variety of implicit relational cues which can stimulate behavioural responses through neuroception.

The workshop will invite exploration of concepts such as self /interactive regulation, attunement and therapeutic presence. Viewers can engage with a range of interactive exercises which closely examine the social engagement system but also interactive barriers which contribute to enactments and other ruptures within the relational field.

The overall emphasis is on repair and the implicit establishment of greater levels of safety within the therapeutic relationship. Therapists will learn a range of practical skills for enhancing relationships with clients in the service of therapeutic goals.

Testimonials:

“My previous attempts with Polyvagal Theory had left me more confused but now I ‘get it’.”

“I felt Tony’s presentation was very informative and engaging in gaining an understanding and connecting interacting/relationally with the theory.”

“I knew a little about Polyvagal Theory before this event but was confused about some aspects of it. Today has left me feeling a lot clearer. Tony Buckley offers very clear explanations along with illustrations and examples that bring theory to life.”

Please note  that any mention in the videos about “handouts” or “printouts” by trainers, are in reference to printouts of the PowerPoint slides, which were made available to delegates who attended the LIVE workshop. These slides are included within the videos and are the property of the trainers. They are not available for download or redistribution with any video rental purchase.

The post Polyvagal Theory first appeared on Therapy Education Online.