Safe and Sound Protocol

“I am a long hauler from March 2020. Pretty soon in the illness process I was aware of the mind body relationship. After a year in, the Poly Vagal theory came my way. Only now through the understanding and knowledge of Sally, her fantastic team and the Save and sound protocol I can relax again. Theoretically I knew about the state of being in “ventral” but I couldn’t get to it. It still takes a lot of attention but in my mind I feel the holding during the session and little by little I get a little more flexibility in my response. I am still not fully recovered and especially placing is my medication. But I am not alone and there are people who understand how hard this is. As a result, I can now pace much better in “Ventrale”. Thank you so much Sally and the team. This live changing for ever.”

Natasja, The Netherlands. Group SSP client.

I came across SSP through a recommendation by my primary care physician. And it completely changed my life with Long COVID.

What SSP does is provide a passive way for us to improve vagal tone and vagal flexibility so that we can spend more time in rest-and-digest to allow our bodies to do their natural healing thing!

But wait can’t I do this through yoga or meditation?

Yes absolutely, you can! And many are seeing great results from these methods.

However, one thing that most of us Long Haulers have in common is that we are perfectionist types. And one of the things that can get in the way of our healing is constantly judging ourselves for not improving fast enough, or for not being able to do things the “right” way.

We are always trying to do more, be more. And we can be our own worst enemy.

All these critical thoughts will stop these interventions from working optimally.

This is where SSP comes in. It is a passive vagal nerve intervention so there is no “doing it right”, it just does its work automatically.

Through Polyvagal coaching we can determine if this passive vagal nerve intervention would be right for you in your healing journey.

“I am a Long-hauler from March 2020 and it took me over a year before I came across the idea of a mind-body approach and an understanding of the Autonomic Nervous System. The SSP course has massively increased my knowledge of how this works, and in a way relevant to me, as well as teaching me lots of new ways to self-regulate my nervous system. 

As a musician, I was particularly interested in the SSP and it’s been absolutely fascinating (and enjoyable) to see the effects of it. 

Long Covid is such an isolating condition, so I really enjoyed the group sessions which allowed for interaction with others on a similar journey and the sharing of ideas and experiences which is so powerful.

Although I am not yet fully recovered, I have seen improvement in my ability to hear frequencies (& an awareness of when I’m not hearing certain ones) as well as more willingness to make social connections. I also feel like I can handle some stress better as a result. 

I’ve gained so much from this experience and I think the benefits will keep coming as I continue to put into practise what I’ve learned.”

Jackie Baxter, Group SSP client and host of the Long Covid Podcast.

Stephen Porges, Ph.D., is a behavioral neuroscientist who has been studying the body’s fight, flight or freeze, and rest and digest systems since the 1960s. His research into the vagal nerve system and how it works led to the groundbreaking Polyvagal theory which has revolutionized the treatment of trauma in the US.

Polyvagal theory states that there are three elements to the autonomic nervous system. It is not just fight-or-flight. There is a third element—freeze, or immobilization. And this element is very relevant to those of us with Long COVID.

His research has also shown that in all mammals, the autonomic state is integrated with the neural regulation of muscles in the middle ear, larynx, and pharynx.

This means that heart rate, as well as the many other functions of the autonomic nervous system (such as body temperature, gastro-intestinal issues, etc.) can be moderated by the use of these muscles.

You can learn more about Polyvagal Theory from Dr. Porges’ son Seth Porges here.

“I initially contracted Covid in May 2022 and was housebound with Long Covid, unable to work or take care of myself, in September 2022 when I started Sally Rigg’s Safe and Sound Protocol. My main symptoms were PEM, chest tightness and shortness of breath, as well as heightened sensitivity to sound. 

After the first SSP session I immediately felt my chest symptoms and fatigue increase (for about a day), which is a normal response and alerted me to the fact that the therapy was working on my nervous system. I had some heightened symptoms for the first few sessions of hour 1 and hour 3, but other than that my system adjusted to the therapy and did not bother me; it was overall a pleasant experience that I looked forward to. 

The facilitators, Amy and Robbin, were very warm and attentive. They were very available to answer my questions and were clearly cognizant of the sensitivities of a compromised nervous system. I especially appreciated that they both had had their own personal experiences with chronic illness and SSP. While I didn’t notice drastic changes that catapulted me back to my previous abilities, by the end of the protocol in December 2022 my extreme sensitivity to sound had significantly decreased and my chest symptoms and PEM had noticeably lessened as well. 

Since the benefits of SSP are supposed to continue to increase after the therapy, I hope to continue to notice positive changes in my health as time goes on.”  

Mallory Powers, Group SSP Client

How Polyvagal Theory is relevant to Long Covid

The Vagus nerve is a very important nerve that connects all major trunk organs, and it originates in our gut. If there is inflammation in the gut due to COVID (which research is showing to be likely), it conveys a proinflammatory signal all the way to the brainstem at the back of the brain (where it ends). And as well as hitting all the major organs along the way and kicking off symptoms there, what’s crucial about the brain stem is that it controls the feelings of being sick, malaise, flu like symptoms, autonomic symptoms, nausea, ability to go from sitting to standing, all of which we recognize as classic symptoms of Long COVID. So a tiny impact on the vagal system from our gut causes a whole lot of symptoms.

It is also possible that there is viral persistence in the vagus nerve or the brain stem itself, which would exacerbate the system even further and cause even more of the symptoms above.

But wait you say, what does this have to do with the Safe and Sound Protocol??

Well sadly we don’t have good treatments yet to get the virus fully out of our body or eliminate inflammation. But the SSP will work in the other direction to restore Vagal tone and function so that these symptoms will subside on their own. The signal that is being sent to the brain stem is a false one!! And we can interrupt that! And then we can spend more time in rest and digest, which in turn allows the body’s natural immune system to fight off any remaining virus and truly heal.

“I do not feel like the same person who started the SSP a few months ago. My symptoms have lessened, I have more energy, my relapses are shorter and less severe, and, most importantly, my mood is much brighter, and my ability to cope with my symptoms and life stressors has vastly improved. I am no longer as tense or frightened of new symptoms and changes as I was before, which is incredibly important in recovering.

What I can tolerate in terms of triggers and challenges has vastly improved these last few months, and I’m hopeful that the long-term benefits of the SSP will continue to help me recover from Long COVID. I have even been able to start working remotely a few hours a week again.

I highly recommend the SSP to anyone with Long COVID, and even others who may be suffering from a dysregulated nervous system. I think this program is especially good for those who are incredibly sensitive (like I was) as the approach is catered to what your body can handle. I’m incredibly grateful to Robin for patiently guiding me through the process, teaching me about the nervous system, and genuinely caring about my well-being and how I was getting on. Having her, someone who understands and believes what I was going through, as a resource to talk to every few days has been invaluable.

Robin has been absolutely wonderful, and I’m very grateful to her and Sally for this program. I’m certain I wouldn’t feel as well as I do now if I hadn’t gone through the SSP with them. Thank you to you both.”  

Ade, SSP Individual Client

SSP works optimally when done in conjunction with what we call co-regulation. This simply means warm and responsive interactions from a practitioner or coach.

It’s delivered through a convenient app-based digital platform (available on Android and iOS) and over-the-ear headphones and it’s important to do at least some of the listening in-session (via Zoom) so that this co-regulation can be provided.

My team and I can provide SSP on an individual Polyvagal or in a group format. In individual SSP administration, we can tailor the speed of listening so it’s optimal to your nervous system’s response to the intervention.

In a group format, we will take a standard approach with sessions every two days.