Polyvagal Theory in Psychotherapeutic Practice

A continuing education course for psychologists and psychotherapists

Polyvagal theory, formulated by Stephen Porges in 1994, has fundamentally transformed our understanding of the autonomic nervous system, of trauma, and of the therapeutic encounter. This course offers you a complete pathway, structured in eight modules, to integrate this theoretical and clinical revolution into your daily practice.

What you will learn

This course will guide you from Porges's hierarchical three-level model to concrete clinical interventions, by way of polyvagal assessment, the reading of trauma, therapeutic coregulation, and the regulation of the therapist. You will learn to:

• recognise the three autonomic states — ventral vagal, sympathetic, dorsal vagal — in your patients in session
• conduct a polyvagal assessment through four observational markers and four key questions for the clinical interview
• renew the clinical reading of trauma with the concept of the frozen autonomic response
• articulate the polyvagal reading with attachment theory (Bowlby, Ainsworth, Main) and Jeffrey Young’s schema therapy
• mobilise your prosody, your facial expression and your bodily rhythm as therapeutic tools of coregulation
• recognise your own autonomic state and identify the phenomena of countertransference contagion
• apply targeted interventions for each of the three states: remobilising the dorsal state, modulating the sympathetic state, broadening access to the ventral vagal state
• anticipate iatrogenic pitfalls such as deep relaxation with the dorsal patient or cognitive confrontation with the sympathetic patient
• handle ruptures of the therapeutic alliance polyvagally and prepare the end of therapy as a gradual exit from coregulation

An integrative pedagogy

This course positions polyvagal theory not as an additional therapeutic school, but as a transversal framework that enriches cognitive behavioural therapy, schema therapy, mentalisation-based treatment, and the psychodynamic approach. Each module combines theoretical rigour and clinical applicability, with numerous bridges to the nosographic tools of the DSM and ICD.

Two detailed clinical vignettes

The closing module illustrates the application of polyvagal theory concretely, through two contrasting therapeutic trajectories: a patient with complex trauma and dorsal dominance, and a patient with panic disorder and sympathetic dominance. You will see in detail how the polyvagal reading orients the choice and the sequencing of therapeutic interventions.

Who this course is for

This course is intended for psychologists, psychotherapists, and psychiatrists in practice who wish to enrich their clinical reading with a neurophysiological layer. No prior knowledge of polyvagal theory is required: the course begins with the theoretical foundations and leads you progressively to the most advanced clinical applications.

Asynchronous online format

The course is structured in eight self-contained modules, available at your own pace. Each module combines a video-presented verbatim, illustrated slides, and a final assessment to validate your grasp of the essential concepts.