Make an enquiry

SSP (safe & sound protocol) Polyvagal informed listening therapy

Improving nervous system responses for better emotional and physical well being

Struggling with depression or anxiety? Get in touch to find out how we can help.

Thank you. Your enquiry has been received.
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.

Innovative therapy to improve emotional regulation 

Polyvagal Informed Listening Therapy, is new evidence based approach, utilising sound to directly soothe your nervous system to  improve emotional regulation and better help manage stress and trauma responses. 

How does this therapy help?

Polyvagal treatment is focused on reprogramming the way the nervous system responds to trauma, stress and perceived threats. Our ingrained nerval responses to these situations means we can often become incapacitated or fail to respond in the way which we might rationally expect. Polyvagal therapy is a unique sound based approach which is specifically designed to help reorder our nervous responses to these situations. 

Improving nervous responses

Polyvagal therapy focuses on the key role of the autonomic nervous system (ANS) and the vagus nerve. The ANS is constantly working in the background, scanning your environment for cues of safety or danger. When this system becomes unbalanced—whether due to trauma, stress, or prolonged threats — you might experience a range of physical and emotional challenges, such as chronic tension, digestive issues, or worsening mental health symptoms.

Polyvagal Therapy aims to retune this system using carefully designed music filtered through specific algorithms which have frequencies similar to the human voice, sending safety signals to your nervous system. Over time, repeated sessions help build and strengthen neural pathways that regulate your responses to sensory information, enabling better emotional control and resilience. Research shows that 80% of participants experience significant improvements in emotional regulation and coping.

What can clients expect?

  • Experience relief from conditions such as trauma, PTSD, depression, and anxiety.
  • Enhanced listening skills and overall social communication.
  • Whether you struggle with auditory, visual, or tactile sensitivities, this therapy can help improve selective eating, digestion, and physical movement.
  • Improvements in heart rate variability leading to a positive shift in your emotional regulation and control.

Our certified polyvagal therapists tailor each session to each client's individual needs and goals. Through this therapeutic process, participants gain the tools to actively engage and re-tune their nervous system, allowing them to handle life’s challenges with more resilience and confidence.

How it works

01.
Initial consultation
Speak to a member of our team, in confidence, so we can better understand your needs, how we might be able to help and discuss next steps.
01.
Assessment
Depending on what services we recommend the next step is a formal assessment either with a clinical psychologist or a member of the therapy team.
01.
Define a path to greater wellness
You’ll meet the team working with you and chart a plan to help tackle the problems you are facing. The length of time you work with us will be driven by you and your needs – we will support you every step of the way.
01.
Ongoing care
The path to better mental health and wellness is a life-long process. Our aim is that you will get to a point where you no longer need us. However, our team will always be available to provide ongoing support, advice or additional help should you need it.

A long history in behavioural health

Our bespoke support model allows us to help clients no matter what their current stage of recovery.
Supporting clients since

2016

Years of combined experience

150+

Clients supported each year

400+

Hours of coaching per year

26000+

Portobello Behavioural Health can incorporate some of the latest techniques and tools to support our clients' journey to better well-being.

Improving lives through innovation

An expert team

We are proud to have an experienced team of practitioners, many of whom are published and leading experts in their field. Our specialists are committed to delivering the best care to each person who receives support with us, and pride themselves on placing service users at the heart of their treatment and rehabilitation journey.

Practitioners engage in continuous professional development in order to guarantee that their practice is guided by the latest research and adheres to robust National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines, and other relevant standards.
Meet our team

Can you refer me to a treatment centre/psychiatrist/psychologist?

We work with a variety of providers and professionals in the addiction and mental health field. We often work alongside these professionals to provide wrap-around care. If PBH is not the right service for you, or we feel we are not the right fit for you we will happily make a recommendation to another provider that may be able to help.

Do you do therapy online?

Yes. We have a number of therapists who specialise in working with clients online. Get in touch and we can match you up with the most suitable member of the team.

Do you provide confidential support?

Discretion and confidentiality are our bywords. We protect our clients confidentiality rigorously and have processes in place to ensure that information is safeguarded. We pride ourselves on our discretion. Our flexible approach to support means that we can often work with clients in a way which suits their needs for privacy.

Does PBH follow a particular treatment approach or modality?

The way we support clients is flexible as we recognise that different people are at different stages in their road to wellness. We do not advocate or prescribe a particular modality but do recognise that clients who are engaged in self-destructive behaviours often need to be supported to stop or minimise the behaviour in order for their recovery to progress. However, we also acknowledge that this is not a linear process and as such lapses are frequent and we are adept at dealing with them.

How can you support someone with depression?

Encourage the person to seek professional help. A diagnosis by a medical professional is the first step to understanding what solutions are going to work for the individual. This may include medical interventions, therapy or a combination of both. Approach the person empathetically, encourage open communication and offer practical support where possible. Patience is required, depression can take a long time to overcome and recovery can be complicated and slow.

How can you support someone with ASD?

Each person with ASD is unique so what works with some people may not work for others. In general approach the person with empathy and educate yourself about the condition as much as possible. Try to adopt clear and open communication in a way that is best understood by the person you are communicating with. Recognise and accommodate sensory sensitivities to help with or prevent overload by adopting strategies that can help such as using noise cancelling headphones or having a sensory break.

How can you support someone with ADHD?

Approach the situation with as much empathy as possible and make sure you educate yourself about the condition. Encourage open communication, support the development of structure and routine and try to be flexible and non-judgemental. Doing all this alone can be difficult so try to seek out local support or engage a professional service which can both support you and the person with ADHD.