Start with Safety: The Science Behind Unyte Programs

THINK BETTER
Access higher
learning and cognition
Learn and retain important facts and concepts that enable greater confidence and societal contribution.

CONNECT BETTER
Build positive
social relationships
Develop relationships and truly
connect with others.

Developed by world-renowned researcher and Unyte Health’s Chief Scientific Advisor, Dr. Stephen Porges, Polyvagal Theory focuses on what is happening in the body and the nervous system, and explains how our sense of safety, danger or life threat can impact our behavior.

Polyvagal Theory gives us a scientific framework that supports the integration of physiological (“bottom-up”) therapies with cognitive (“top-down”) approaches to help change and improve how we feel, think and connect with others.

Polyvagal Theory is transdisciplinary and can be combined with many modalities to better inform your clinical practice or trauma-related work.

The Vagus Nerve

The mind and body are connected through the vagus nerve, the longest nerve in the autonomic nervous system, stretching from the brainstem to the colon. It is our internal control center, allowing the brain to monitor and receive information about many of our bodily functions.

The vagus nerve helps to regulate critical aspects of human physiology, including the heart rate, blood pressure, temperature, digestion and even speaking. As the body takes in information automatically through neuroception, the vagus nerve communicates this information to the brain, which processes the signals and cues from the world around us and in turn determines how we react through three physiological states: Parasympathetic/ventral vagal state, sympathetic state, or dorsal vagal state.

The autonomic ladder, as envisioned by Deb Dana (2018), is one way to visually represent these physiological states.

• Parasympathetic/ventral vagal state: Our centered, “true self” state, where all social interaction, connection and creativity occurs.
• Sympathetic state: Feeling of threat or danger, and feeling the need to either “fight” or “flee” from a situation to seek safety.
• Dorsal vagal state: Our “freeze” state, when we feel our lives are so immediately threatened that we become immobilized.

At Unyte Health, our mission is to empower every person to guide their nervous system to be more aware, regulated and resilient so they can feel safe, happy and healthy and more effectively respond to life’s challenges.

We partner with healthcare and therapeutic professionals to deliver these multisensory products in person or remotely to both children and adults. Our programs include music, movement and breathing that nourish the nervous system to enable meaningful and lasting changes in physiological state and quality of life.