"Since its inception in 2020, Polyvagal Institute has been sharing and teaching the foundations of Polyvagal Theory and its application in both personal and professional environments, and has brought my work and research to learners and practitioners around the globe. Unlike any other course available, this comprehensive study of Polyvagal Theory explores key principles through interactive lectures, embodiment practices, and multidisciplinary discussions. We look forward to welcoming you to our community of learners."
-- Stephen Porges, PhD
Course Timing
Cohort 9 begins September 15, 2025 and meets live-online Mondays, 12pm-2:00pm ET
You will meet with your cohort on the following dates:
Sept 15, 2025
Sept 29, 2025
Oct 6, 2025
Oct 20, 2025
Oct 27, 2025
Nov 17, 2025
Dec 1, 2025
Dec 8, 2025
Jan 5, 2026
Jan 26, 2026
Feb 9, 2026
An optional Welcome Session for this cohort is schedule for September 8, 2025 from 12pm-1pm ET. Attendance is not required at this session and it will be recorded for later viewing if you are unable to attend.
This course will also be offered in 2025 by some of our International Partners in languages other than English. Please view their websites for details.
Course Description
The purpose of this course is to provide a comprehensive and interactive Polyvagal Theory learning experience for a broad audience of those looking to apply polyvagal principles to their personal and/or professional lives. You'll finish this course having earned your Polyvagal-Informed Certificate™, and equipped with practices, concepts, and a community to embody and refine your application of polyvagal principles with yourself, with your family, friends, clients, or colleagues.
In this course, you'll dive deeper into your understanding of the human nervous system and the role the vagus nerve plays in responding to perceived threat and stressors. From self-regulation to co-regulation, you'll learn the science behind community and connection, and how feelings of safety and trust impact our social interactions and sense of resilience so that we can grow and thrive.
Please learn more on our course landing page, here.
Payment Information
This course cost $2,100. You may pay in full, or in three-month or seven-month installments. Students will have access to the course for 365 days from the date of the first live session.
Course Requirements
There are no pre-requisites for this course.
*If you're pursuing optional continuing education credits (CEs) to support the maintenance of a professional license (usually only applicable to students located in the U.S.), please see the Course Outcomes section for attendance requirements.
Course Format
Course Framework
This course includes 9 live-online classes (2 hours each) and 2 live discussions (1 hour each).
Additionally, your small Practice Pod will gather for 90 minutes each month.
Module 1 - Our Autonomic Nervous System
Module 2 - Hierarchy - Our Neurophysiological States
Module 3 - Neuroception - Surveilling Safety and Detecting Threat
Live Discussion with a Special Guest Expert (one hour)
Module 4 - Interoception: Listening to Your Body
Module 5 - Co-regulation and Safety in Connection: Biological, Cultural and Societal Implications
Module 6 - Polyvagal Theory, Movement, and Regulation: An Embodied Approach to Trauma Recovery
Module 7 - Community as Medicine
Module 8 - Polyvagal Theory and Human Relationships
Live Discussion with Dr. Porges (one hour)*
Module 9 - Engaging with the Art of Inquiry and Practice
Module order, schedule, instructors, and Guest Expert may vary by cohort.
*NEW! When you join an upcoming cohort, you’ll participate in a live Q&A session with Dr. Porges, AND receive an ongoing invitation to sit in on his Q&A sessions with all future cohorts. This ensures you have continuous access to evolving insights, fresh discussions, and the latest advancements in the field.
An optional Course Welcome Session is held one week prior to your first live session to introduce you to our learning platform, online community, and course expectations. Please see the Course Timing section for the date of the optional Welcome Session.
Recommended Audience
Course Outcomes
Learning Objectives:
Describe the organization and function of the autonomic nervous system
Describe the hierarchy of the autonomic nervous system
Explain three reasons why the vagus nerve is key to health, growth and restoration of our nervous systems
Compare the difference between top-down processing and bottom-up processing
Demonstrate 3 interventions to activate safety physiological states
Analyze how the ANS supports our health, growth, restoration and sociality ONLY when not recruited for defense
Assess various physical, emotional, psychological, social & behavioral attributes of our various autonomic states
Recite the three primary neurophysiological platforms (i.e. ventral vagal, sympathetic, dorsal vagal), and the blended/adaptive states of play, intimacy, appeasement, and freeze
Demonstrate visual stories of how this all plays out in real life, in real time, and how this influences how we experience the world
Discuss the concepts of safety and threat in the context of neuroception and explain how this dimension relates to the activation/deactivation continuum
Analyze and discuss the influence of neuroception on our daily lives, especially related to decision-making, coping, relating with others, and overall well-being
Compare examples from your own life (personal or professional) todemonstrate understanding of a) how disruptions in neuroception can lead to poor adaptation and result in suffering and b) how neuroception supports resilience, mental health, and social connectedness
Recite the six steps of Focusing
Explain the two embodied skills that are central to the Felt Sense Polyvagal Model
Discuss the six neurophysiological states in the Felt Sense Polyvagal Model
Prepare the body for Focusing Practice
Apply the Felt Sense Polyvagal Grounding Practice
Describe the individual elements of the Social Engagement System
Create personal continuums to assess level of social engagement and readiness for connection
Apply understanding of the autonomic nervous system to guide co-regulating actions
Explain the impact of exclusion and social isolation on health and well-being
Discuss research on the healing power of community and belonging
Describe the vagus nerve and the co-regulating effects of “radical welcome”
Discuss the importance of group rituals as neural exercises
Create a plan for designing a healing community based on radical welcome and inclusion
Discuss the neuroscience of trauma from a Polyvagal perspective
Apply interventions for psychobiological regulation
Explain therapeutic yoga for trauma recovery
You'll receive a Polyvagal-Informed Certificate upon completion of the course.
The option to earn CEs/Continuing Education Credits is provided by course co-sponsor Spiritual Competency Academy (SCA). CEs are available for purchase at the end of your course for $85 .
If you're a psychologist, LCSW, LPCC, LEP, LMFT, or nurse pursuing optional continuing education credits (CEs) to support the maintenance of a professional license (usually only applicable to those based in the U.S.A.), we have two options available for you.
Option One- Earn 35 CEs
Attend all live sessions of the course: 100% live attendance is required at all sessions in their entirety. Per the rules of our CE-issuing body, we are unable to offer makeup sessions.
Option Two- Earn 20 CEs
This option has a more flexible attendance policy. You may choose to attend a combination of: the live course sessions (2 hrs each), live practice pods (1.5 hrs each), and live discussions (1 hr each). For any of the live course sessions and/or live discussions that you might miss, viewing the recording is required. You must attend a minimum of 11 hours of live course time. Please note that live practice pods are not recorded, but your attendance is encouraged for the best learning experience.
*Please note: Earning the Polyvagal-Informed™ Certificate does not offer licensure or "certification" of any kind. There is no program available through any organization to become a "certified polyvagal clinician." However, the Polyvagal Institute affirms that this certificate-level training results in a Polyvagal-Informed™ level of knowledge and application
INSTRUCTOR(S)
Stephen Porges, PhD
Stephen W. Porges, Ph.D. is a Distinguished University Scientist at Indiana University where he is the founding director of the Traumatic Stress Research Consortium in the Kinsey Institute. He is Professor of Psychiatry at the University of North Carolina, and Professor Emeritus at both the University of Illinois at Chicago and the University of Maryland. He served as president of the Society for Psychophysiological Research and the Federation of Associations in Behavioral & Brain Sciences and is a former recipient of a National Institute of Mental Health Research Scientist Development Award. He is the originator of the Polyvagal Theory, a theory that emphasizes the importance of physiological state in the expression of behavioral, mental, and health problems related to traumatic experiences. He is the creator of a music-based intervention, the Safe and Sound Protocol ™ , which currently is used by approximately 4,000 therapists to improve spontaneous social engagement, to reduce hearing sensitivities, and to improve language processing, state regulation, and spontaneous social engagement. Dr. Porges is a founder of the Polyvagal Institute.
Stephen Porges, PhD
9 Polyvagal Experts
9 Polyvagal Experts
This course is led by a team of expert instructors, including Dr. Stephen Porges, developer of the Polyvagal Theory and co-founder of Polyvagal Institute. Our online classrooms are trauma-informed spaces of safety and belonging, and our instructors each bring their own unique perspective, experience, and expertise to the course content. Please note: exact instructor line up may vary by cohort.
