VIDEO
See Monica in round table discussion
about Digital SSP and new Pathways
As a certified SSP provider, Monica has been helping children, adolescents, and adults since 2018, working both locally and remotely with families around the world.
What Is SSP?
The Safe and Sound Protocol (SSP) is a 5-hour intervention designed to reduce stress and auditory sensitivity while enhancing social engagement and resilience. By calming the physiological and emotional state, the door is opened for improved communication and more successful therapy. Emotional and physiological state are critical to how we approach the task at hand. So when a person has better state control, not only can they be more socially engaged, they are more open to therapy. Better state regulation improves therapeutic outcomes.
This non-invasive intervention involves listening to music that has been processed specifically to retune the nervous system (regulating state) to introduce a sense of safety and the ability to socially engage. This allows the person to better interpret not only human speech, but, importantly, the emotional meaning of language. Once interpersonal interactions improve, spontaneous social behaviors and an enhanced ability to learn, self-regulate and engage are often seen.
How Does SSP Work?
Monica can facilitate a 5-hour sound therapy intervention for children and adults with autism, ADHD, anxiety, auditory processing disorder, sensory processing disorders, dyslexia, & motor output challenges. This intervention is designed to reduce stress and auditory sensitivity while enhancing social engagement and resilience.
SSP calms the physiological and emotional state by activating the muscles in the middle ear. By activating the muscles in the middle ear, it enables the person to hear the sounds of safety, so it helps the nervous system regulate. When our nervous system is regulated, a person can hear the sounds of safety and be able to engage with us and the world.
Life Changing
Working with Monica has been life changing for our family. We had our first session shortly after my ten year old son was diagnosed with autism, ADHD, anxiety and dyspraxia. At that time, we were experiencing daily shutdowns, where he would run away, hide, curl up into a ball on the floor, and lose speech for extended periods of time. I remember telling Monica that he felt so far away from me, even when we were in the same room, and she reassured me that there was hope. We started with SSP and worked on regaining our connection and relationship. I appreciated that she was with us every step of the way — sometimes sitting with us on Zoom while we completed the SSP session at home and sometimes reviewing video recordings I sent to her. After completing SSP, we moved on to the ILS Focus program, again with her guidance and support.
A year after we started working with Monica, I took my son to a sensory clinic and they couldn’t believe the improvements he had made. After reading his original neuropsych report, they all commented that this was not the same child they had just met. He still has an occasional shutdown, maybe once every few months, but it lasts minutes instead of hours and we are able to repair the situation and move on easily thanks to the connection and regulation that Monica has helped us build. I can’t thank her enough for her kindness and insight, for supporting us during our lowest lows and celebrating our successes right along with us. – Angie B., United States
For More Information
For more information, please see the Unyte | Integrated Listening Systems website.
