Safe & Sound Protocol Therapy in Ontario
Difficult roads lead to beautiful destinations.
The Safe and Sound Protocol (SSP) is a therapy using a specially filtered music program that helps us reach the parts of the brain that need regulating for improved function and behaviour.
Take the first step and schedule an online SSP Therapy consultation with a practitioner at Healing Journey.
About Online Safe and Sound Protocol Therapy (SSP) at Healing Journey
Aden Cosgrove, RSW is offering SSP to people in Canada and USA. Safe and Sound Protocol is one of the most amazing modalities that we have come across & can be very effective for trauma, especially in collaboration with other therapy modalities.
What is Safe and Sound Protocol Therapy?
The Safe and Sound Protocol (SSP) is a passive modality using a specially filtered music program that helps us reach the parts of the brain that need regulating for improved function and behavior. The SSP music is designed to shift the nervous system into a calmer state, by the influence to the Vagus Nerve, which is the longest Cranial nerve in our bodies.
Improving Vagal tone allows us to feel safe and regulated, which allows for greater social engagement, flexible thinking and improves ability to listen to learn and try new things, instead of having an automatic defensive or fearful response.
Improving auditory and language processing also comes from the SSP, due to presentation of specific frequencies of sounds to the auditory pathways and volume changes in the music that influence the middle ear muscles to be able to filter out background noise, to better hear the person speaking. Physiological state strongly influences the expression of behavioral, mental, and physical problems.
Many people’s Autonomic Nervous Systems are heightened; they spend more time in that Sympathetic (fight/flight) response or shut down (freeze/Dorsal Vagal) response; all which influences overall harmony and happiness in life. The SSP helps to strengthen our parasympathetic functioning; to allow our bodies to improve rest and digestion for health and growth of the body and brain. The SSP is a neural exercise; it’s an “opener” so other therapeutic activities that follow are more effective and impactful.
Online Safe and Sound Protocol Therapy at Healing Journey comes in three formats:
Safe and Sound Protocol comes in three formats: Connect, Core, and Balance.
Connect does not have filtration and can be listened to as much as you want.
Core is the main program and can only be listened to up to a total of the 5 hours. The usual prescription is 30 minutes for 10 days.
Balance is a program that can be done after the Core program for 5 hours and this can be done for 30 minutes for 10 days and does not need to be in order. Additionally, Balance can be played for a total of one hour a day.
However, please note that your autonomic nervous system may not be able to handle the regular prescription and that is okay. There is the kids and adult version and your worker may give you both as some songs on adult version can be triggering for some people.
For the protocol to be released, your worker will ask you to pay for the regular price of a session (this is the price that you have negotiated with worker for your sessions). This protocol will be released for 30 days from the time of the 25th each month until the 24th of the next month for you to complete SSP Core and if you have time, Balance.
Connect is something you can listen to any time for relaxation. Monitoring is included in this price so note that your worker will be watching your progress through the Unyte-iLs database.
Your worker reserves the right to suspend your account if you are using the account in a way that was not prescribed. Harm can be done to persons who are not monitored by a practitioner and transparency on your end is key!
Your worker may also give you extra free months if they still have a spot available for you. Please note that this will not always happen but it is something that is beneficial to give when possible.
Common Safe and Sound Protocol side effects:
- Hearing changes in terms of sensitivity, comprehending speech, and reactivity to noises
- Increased sensation in face and head
- Agitation/Irritability
- Intense dreams
- Anxiety
- Grief due to lack of connection
- Emotions come up during protocol
- Vision changes (changes in brightness)
- Feeling pulse in ear
Less frequent SSP side effects reported:
- Facial flushing
- Clenched jaw
- Migraines
- Sinus issues
- Trauma recall
Pricing
Existing Clients
I have speciality pricing for clients who are regular clients of mine that are yearly subscriptions or are monthly ones.
New Clients in Canada and the USA
I am offering Safe and Sound Protocol for $300 for the first month which includes a psychoeducational session with me to go over how the SSP will function.
We will map your autonomic nervous system (ANS) using Polyvagal theory and how SSP might change things for you.
This price includes me monitoring your progress through the Unyte-iLs database and checking in on you as well as having access to SSP Core, Connect, and Balance for one month. Most people are able to finish SSP Core within one month but if you are not, you are able to pay for an additional month or we can negotiate if it is a matter of you needing more time to do SSP due to dysregulation.
I like to include all SSP programs for the person to be able to experience full healing through the programs. Some people are able to experience all the programs within one month and others are not able to and this is due to what ANS can handle.
$300 CAD for one month in/$220 USD
$50 CAD per month after this first month in/$37 USD
Unyte iLs Safe & Sound Protocol
What to expect from Safe & Sound Protocol
Aden’s Personal Experience with SSP
I always try every therapeutic modality myself before recommending it to a client, and I had an excellent experience with SSP. I tried SSP while doing EMDR and talk therapy and it changed my life.
As a SSP practitioner, I have access to the content so I plan to do the SSP every 6-8 weeks to see what my results are and to share with you.
I did the SSP 10 days in a row for half hour each day and I listened mindfully so I had excellent results. The experience doing SSP was enjoyable but the beneficial changes were life changing! I have been counting down the days until I can do it again because since then, I had some crises and I am dysregulated again!
I had noticed that there are some benefits that are short and some that are more long term. I think it is different for everybody. What I have been really loving as a benefit is this self-awareness within my own body. My ADHD symptoms are more obvious to me now and that makes it easier to manage them. I still do not have any car sickness and the test of this was a real one that would usually have gotten me nauseous. Lots of good things to report!
Here are my notes from my experience:
Safe and Sound Protocol is such a new modality but the results that I gained were so incredible that I am really excited about sharing this with folx!
My experience was very good and I felt really good in my mind and body during the experience. I noticed that my jaw would clench here and there during the listening experience. I could sometimes feel a slight pulse in my ear. I became emotional at the same song in hour 3 and 5. My autonomic nervous system was really clear with me why this was, it wanted me to have more adequate social support around me.
Changes in me during and after the SSP experience:
⁃ Increased ability to control vagal break and notice it.
⁃ Increase in comfortability with transitions between survival and safety states.
⁃ Waking up earlier, easier to wake up, sometimes not needing an alarm clock to wake up (incredibly rare for me).
⁃ Diversity in what foods I would eat and it became easier to feed myself (I struggle with this due to my stomach issues/trauma).
⁃ Feeling more of a rhythm/attunement with myself and more being in safety more than ever before.
⁃ Wanting to connect with others and feeling a drive to do this.
⁃ Focus is much better than it was. I am able to think about things in a different way that never existed before. I’m figuring out things easier and able to accommodate myself with my ADHD more. ⁃ I am even more open and flexible than I was before in my thinking about things. I allow more compassion in for myself now.
⁃ Motion sickness that I used to get in cars and other moving vehicles seems to have disappeared. ⁃ Less task paralysis, easier to get into a rhythm of doing things that are normally extremely hard for me.
– Less triggers around things that would normally trigger me. I’m getting angry less, frustrated less, and in safety generally a lot more.
– I have a fear of picking up the phone and making a call
– this has always been the case no matter how many times I did it. This fear has somehow disappeared!!!
Next time:
I will do SSP in another 6-8 weeks and will do balance right after. I did not do balance directly after and I think it would have helped! SSP is such an amazing passive modality that has done wonders for me. I really want more people to know about it.
Online Safe & Sound Protocol for Professionals
If you are in the counselling field or a healthcare professional, you may already have a good command of the autonomic nervous system but what do you do after a big burnout or crisis? After we are dysregulated, it can be hard to get back to our normal. However, SSP has been helpful to me as a professional, with or without therapy, in regulating my ANS. Especially after I have been dysregulated for a peirod of time, I have a hard time hearing safety cues, and I deeply miss doing SSP! SSP is something that can be done every three months to keep the ANS regulated. However, it is not necessary to do this every three months. I plan on doing it every three months as I do experience a lot of crises.
Please reach out and I can tell you more about how SSP can work for your particular situation.
Pricing
New clients located in the United States: please message for current conversion rates and accurate charges to proceed.
Program costs below are not inclusive of access to the 3 formats (Connect, Core, and Balance) for current Healing Journey clients and inclusive of the 3 formats plus a psychoeducational session that includes mapping of your autonomic nervous system (ANS) and instructions for use for new Healing Journey clients.
Delivery
The is a remote-access virtual-based program that is intermittently observed but not synchronously monitored by your helper. Your helper is interactive in this process via regular check-ins, and communication by you is necessary while progressing through this program.
Safe and Sound Protocol Pricing
Current Healing Journey Clients:
Aden is pleased to offer specialty pricing for current Healing Journey clients. Please contact them directly to discuss access and costs.
New Healing Journey Clients:
Teens and Adults:
- Introductory 1-month access: $300
- Ongoing 1-month access: $50
Aged 12 and under
- Introductory 1-month access: $180
- Ongoing 1-month access: $30
* Additional family members who are teens or adults are $165 for the introductory month and ongoing monthly access is $28 *
* Additional family members aged 12 and under are $100 for introductory month and ongoing monthly access is $17 *
Please Note
You can pay in monthly payments or in lump sum depending on what works best for you financially.
Applicable fees incurred for clients aged 13+ cover an added online session (not necessary for those 12 years and under).
Many healthcare plans will provide partial to full coverage for many of these services as they are provided by a registered social worker. Check with your personal plan administrator to see what you may qualify for.
Ready to begin your journey?
Book a consultation with a trained online counsellor now and take the first step on your Healing Journey.
