If you’ve lived through trauma or neglect, you might recognise this feeling: your body doesn’t quite feel like home anymore. Or it may never felt like that. Perhaps your gut is constantly unsettled, sleep feels like something that happens to other people, or you’ve noticed that you’re somehow… disconnected. Like your brain and body are speaking different languages.
This isn’t your fault, and you’re not broken. This is what trauma does—it disrupts the conversation between our brain and body, interrupting the essential feedback loops that help us feel safe, rested, and regulated.
I’m excited to share that I’m now offering Rest and Restore Protocol (RRP) at Brave Therapy™—a powerful addition to our work together that addresses this very disconnection.
What is the Rest and Restore Protocol?
RRP is a listening therapy developed by Dr. Stephen Porges (the neuroscientist behind Polyvagal Theory and the Safe and Sound Protocol) and audio innovator Anthony Gorry. It uses specially designed sound technology to help your nervous system remember its natural rhythms of safety and restoration.
Think of it as “stealth meditation”—you simply listen through headphones while your body does the work of reconnecting with itself.
How RRP Works: Reconnecting Brain and Body
When we experience stress or trauma, our body’s natural rhythms can become disrupted. Heart rate variability decreases, digestive rhythms falter, sleep patterns fragment. These aren’t separate problems—they’re all signs that the feedback loop between our brain and our internal organs has been interrupted.
RRP uses something called Sonocea® Enhanced technology to provide rhythms slower than we can consciously hear (infrasounds) that gently encourage your brainstem to recover these natural patterns. Through a process called entrainment, your body begins to realign with homeostatic rhythms—the rhythms of rest, digestion, and restoration.
As Dr. Porges explains, RRP is “targeted at optimising our internal state and feelings to reconnect another type of co-regulation: the brain with the body.”
RRP and SSP: What’s the Difference?
You might be familiar with the Safe and Sound Protocol (SSP), which I also offer. While both are sound-based interventions developed by Dr. Porges, they work in different ways:
- SSP supports co-regulation and connection with others, helping the nervous system feel safer in social engagement
- RRP supports self-regulation and connection with yourself, helping your body remember its own rhythms of safety
Both are powerful tools, and I’ll work with you to determine which (or both) might be most supportive for your particular needs.
What Does the Research Show?
In pilot studies with 110 participants, the results were remarkable:
- 76% reported improvements in sleep, with 44% experiencing clinically significant decreases in sleep issues
- 93% reported reduced anxiety, with 67% moving from clinical to non-clinical levels
- 88% reported improvement in trauma symptoms, with 72% moving from clinical to non-clinical levels
- 82% experienced reduced depression symptoms, with 68% moving from clinical to non-clinical levels
Participants also consistently reported improvements in gut health and digestive function—something that makes sense when we understand how trauma affects our entire system.
How RRP Fits Into Our Work Together
RRP isn’t a standalone solution—it’s an adjunctive tool that works beautifully alongside the somatic, attachment, and trauma-focused work we’re already doing. Whether we’re working with Somatic Experiencing, Brainspotting, co-regulating touch, or attachment repair, RRP provides additional support for your nervous system to find its way back to regulation.
I see it as another way of respecting the intelligence of your protective patterns while gently inviting your system to remember what safety feels like from the inside out.
What to Expect
If we decide RRP is right for you, I’ll provide you with access to the protocol through the Unyte platform for a designated period. You’ll listen at your own pace, in your own space, while we continue our therapeutic work together. Some people notice shifts quickly; for others, the changes are more subtle and gradual. Your experience will be uniquely yours, and we’ll track what you’re noticing as we go.
As with all the work we do together, your comfort, safety, and autonomy are paramount. You can pause, adjust, or discontinue at any time.
Is RRP Right for You?
RRP may be particularly helpful if you’re experiencing:
- Persistent sleep disturbances
- Chronic anxiety or hypervigilance
- Gut issues or digestive problems
- A sense of disconnection from your body
- Difficulty settling or finding rest
- Trauma symptoms that feel “stuck” in your system
If you’re curious about whether RRP might support your healing journey, let’s talk about it in our next session. I’m here to help you find the combination of approaches that best serves your unique needs and nervous system.
Love
Andi
