With kids returning to schools around the country, things can start to feel really overwhelming. Where did the summer go? Is my child at his/her optimal performance level for this new grade? How is their condition (anxiety, ADHD, autism, etc) going to affect their interactions, their learning, their friendships, their grades? Will the concussion my son got in football practice last year affect his focus? And what about me - how will I juggle my own business while running my kids to their school events? And now, a new struggle: many caregivers are also feeling the unique pressure due to policies at their school during and following the pandemic, that they may or may not agree with. It’s a difficult time for all.

Therefore, many people are feeling stressed and anxious this time of year, which can result in depression, unhappy family dynamics, and stress for kids attending school. The good news is, that by simply calming your nervous system, and the nervous systems of your loved ones, you enter a new state of mind that allows for a deeper, more meaningful connection and approach to life. We see this all the time with the individuals and families we work with.

Many of our young friends come in to see us due to learning and behavioral issues that stem from a dysregulated nervous system. Additionally, the caregivers of these children find themselves on edge due to the overwhelming responsibilities that come with being an adult in the 21st century, on top of managing their child's needs, they are either working from home or running back and forth to an office. Older adult couples are trying to find peace and balance while managing chronic illnesses and loss. These ebbs and flows sometimes takes precedence over much-needed progression in education, intimacy in relationships and families, relaxation, and play.

Addressing the nervous system and vagal regulation through our five-step process, we see life-changing shifts in rites of passage events like returning to school, in family connections that create a whole new level of peace and love at home, and general mental and physical reactions to everyday stressors, by walking our clients through our process.

In this article, we'll discuss:

● How getting through the school day, for both child and caregiver, relies on a healthy nervous system

● Why feeling safe in body and mind is the first step in both confidence, vulnerability, and optimal performance

● Why getting enough sleep is vital to connection and understanding each other

● How Brain Harmony works with families to create a feeling of safety

Back to School and The Nervous System

To understand how your nervous system can influence rites of passage like going back to school, we must first dive into the concept of Polyvagal Theory, which was developed by Dr. Stephen Porges.

Polyvagal Theory gives us an expanding view of the autonomic nervous system, which was once thought to have only two primary states -- sympathetic activation (fight or flight) or parasympathetic activation (rest and digest). Upon studying the vagus nerve, Porges has grouped poly (many) vagal branches into 3 primary circuits that regulate the autonomic state. Understanding the circuits of the vagus nerve allows an accelerated understanding that it is when in optimal performance and in balance, the autonomic nervous system functions to heal, restore and regrowth. When under threat or perceived threat, the autonomic nervous system will respond in very predictable ways. Therefore, through neuroplasticity it could be possible to enhance neurological wiring so the individual has better control in managing their personal autonomic nervous system responses as well as use co-regulation with others to maintain your neural state.

Here is a quick breakdown of the 3 polyvagal circuits[*]:

Ventral Vagal Branch (SAFETY):

This is the safety zone where we can easily find access to our playful, intimate side. This branch can counteract a runaway Fight-Flight-Freeze-or-Fawn response, which will then enable connection and co-regulation. Sound refreshing? Then read on, as this safety branch accomplishes all of the following things:

● Inhibits the heart rate and supports calmness.

● Allows us to filter out background noise to make it easier to hear soothing human voices.

● Affects facial muscles, allowing us to make communicative facial expressions and let others know how we're feeling.

● Affects our vocal tone and vocal patterning, helping us create sounds that let others around us know we are safe to engage with.

As we find ourselves under more stress, we get farther away from the Ventral Vagus state and get pulled into the sympathetic responses.

Sympathetic Branch (DANGER):

This ignites when you come into contact with stress or threat in your environment. This could be anything from a predator in the wild (which was the original threat) to a modern-day nerve-wracking phone call you have to make to your boss, or call from your child’s school or teacher. And for people with trauma or anxiety, it can even be further triggered by unwanted thoughts or stimuli in the environment. This is your "fight or flight" mode. Your body is provoked and chemicals start flowing, recruiting resources so you can fight or flee. Our bodies’ physical and emotional response can include:

● Increased heart rate and respiration

● Increased cortisol levels

● High polarizing energy

● Face loses its expression, more of a flat affect

● Voice loses its melodic quality

● Filtered-out human voices and a search for predator sounds

● Aggression and confrontation

● Avoidance

● Worry

● Anxiety

Dorsal Vagal Branch (LIFE THREAT):

This is the Freeze or Fawn stage, your “evolutionary defense system” intended to help you survive. It mainly influences the organs below the diaphragm, which includes the bowel and bladder elimination organs. Being stuck in this mode will drain all your energy and resiliency, the body can actually shut down and pass out, or feel like you are living in this state chronically. Our bodies physical and emotional response can include:

● Drop in metabolic rate

● Immobilization (Freeze)

● Shutdown (Fold)

● Numbness

● Collapse

● Dissociation

By looking at the nervous system through this lens, things become a bit more nuanced when it comes to understanding how we relax and connect. In fact, vagal regulation is known to deepen our understanding of our physical body responses and our ability to move in/out of states with more maturity and resiliency.

How Brain Harmony Helps

At Brain Harmony, we use interventions and protocols that strengthen our ventral vagal control over the state of the autonomic nervous system. We can accelerate this process with specific tools that nudge and train your nervous system into a state of calm and safety. One of our favorite tools was created by Dr. Porges, and revolves around how to train the autonomic nervous system using sound. This tool is called the Safe and Sound Protocol (SSP), which is a listening program specifically designed to bring clients into a state of social engagement by enhancing the tone of the vagus nerve and activating the ventral vagal branch.

Often within days of beginning the SSP, we start to see shifts in our friends’ ability to communicate and connect. As we continue through our program, that connection gets stronger as individuals start to feel more confident and grounded.

While the SSP can be a fantastic option for a short 5-10 hour listening experience, not all clients are candidates for the program. Also, the SSP is an awakening program, not intended to be the end journey to neurological organization. Many require rewiring using a listening program over several months’ time frame with the legendary iLs Focus Learning System, which relies on sound, bone conduction and movement to change the brain and autonomic nervous system responses.

Another neuroplastic tool we use to enhance feelings of safety and calm in the body is with the Alpha-Stim. The Alpha-Stim device is light cranial electrical stimulation through the use of ear clips that attach to your earlobes. The Alpha Stim generates a patented alpha waveform (which is why we choose this one over other vagal stimulators) that works by enhancing alpha waves in your brain. Alpha waves create a sense of calm as they relieve anxiety, depression, and insomnia -- giving your nervous system a much-needed break from the hectic input of a traumatized brain. It can truly change your quality of life.

Through neurological reorganization, we assist our clients in creating new pathways in their brains that favor more positive ways of thinking and optimal learning styles. A fortunate side effect of all this work is that many people experience better sleep, less anxiety, and a general sense of well-being.

Families often go through the Brain Harmony protocol together, and that's where the real magic happens. It's one thing to have your child or partner open up and be more communicative, but as a caregiver or spouse, if you can get your own nervous system in balance, the sense of safety and connection within the family becomes incredibly strong, building confidence in all parts of your life and daily structure.

Success Stories

We treat over 40 conditions. Here are some success stories below, click here to see many more!

Academic Struggles, Anxiety, Sleep, Sensory Integration

Cassie and her husband were at their wits end after trying everything to help manage their son Emery’s stress, insomnia, and trouble learning at school. When Cassie heard about Brain Harmony on a Wellness Mama podcast, she knew she had to give it a shot. After an incredible free consultation, she decided to have the whole family begin the therapy. Within a short amount of time Emery began sleeping, his stress levels went down tremendously, he started excelling in school, and for the first time in his life he was playing sports with his siblings. His two brothers also saw incredible improvements in stress levels, creativity, and learning. His youngest brother in kindergarten is even reading at a 1st grade level!

“We were kind of at our wit’s end and just didn’t really have a lot of options, so I thought - what do I have to lose? We had been two years on multiple different doctors appointments and not getting anywhere. So I reached out to you for the free consult, and after speaking with you it was like you knew things that no other doctor had ever put the pieces together, and I just thought okay this is a definite for Emery. Really this is the only things that’s worked for us… you pick him up from school and he had a smile on his face… his quality of life has just really increased tremendously.”

ADHD (Video)

Jennifer, and FDN and health coach, was trying a variety of things to help her son with his ADHD. Reese, and smart young boy, was hyperactive, had trouble processing his emotions, and would frequently get into trouble. After starting the Safe and Sound protocol, Jennifer saw immense improvements in Reese.

“Right after we did safe and sound I noticed huge changes. I guess I didn’t realize how big the sensory issue part was. I knew he had some sensory issues because he had been in OT, I just thought ADHD was more the thing, but after doing that and seeing the calmness that I never seen him have, was really eye opening for me.”

Overwhelming Neurological Sensitivity

Jen, a mother of 2 kids with a concussion incurred by slipping on the ice a few years ago, couldn't even talk on the phone because the sound of voices coming through the receiver was so overwhelming, neurologically. She also had stopped leaving her house and felt terrible that she wasn't able to take her kids to practices after school, or out for fun. Once she started working with our Brain Harmony therapist team and the listening protocols they designed specifically for her, she wrote to us the other day to say "My neurologist is amazed!" Not only can she now drive her kids to the playground, but last week she re-framed a doorway in her home, requiring bending over, reaching, planning, and balance!

Takeaway

At Brain Harmony, we've worked with thousands of individuals and hundreds of families, guiding them through our unique 5-step protocol. One of the predictable outcomes that we started to see early on was the enhanced bond between caregivers and their children as well as an enhanced maturity in emotional regulation regardless of age.

As individuals' nervous systems begin to calm, the doors for communication and connection open up. While our young friends were going through our program, their parents tell us excitedly about the progress they are making, not only scholastically but socially as well.

Take our quiz to being to understand your nervous system on a deeper level and schedule a free consult to discuss it with a therapist.

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Calming the Nervous System: Returning to School Empowered