Stephen Porges (Dr.)

Faculty

About

Stephen W. Porges, Ph.D. is 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.

Courses by Stephen Porges (Dr.)

Applied Polyvagal Theory in Therapeutic Yoga for Trauma Recovery Certificate

Explore the vagus nerve as a bridge between body and mind — a 30-hour certificate in Therapeutic Yoga and Applied Polyvagal Theory with Dr. Arielle Schwartz, Dr. Stephen Porges, and Deb Dana.

Applied Polyvagal Theory: Science of Safety

A course with Dr. Stephen Porges and guests on the neurobiology of safety. Explore how nervous system states shape perception, behavior, and our capacity for connection, healing, and higher functioning.

Expert Strategies to Unlock Post-Traumatic Growth

Healing Across Generations: Tools for Transforming Transgenerational Trauma

A course on healing transgenerational trauma. Family Constellations, somatic ancestral genograms, and ancestral psychotherapy as tools to disentangle inherited burdens and heal across past, present, and future generations.

Polyvagal Trauma Therapy Certificate

Neuroception determines whether your intervention lands or gets blocked. This teaches you to work with it. Most practitioners know about polyvagal theory. This program teaches you how to use it — session after session, with confidence and precision.

Reclaiming the Inner Child: Techniques for Emotional Repair

A course on somatic inner child work. Recognize wounded child parts, understand their protective roles, and apply body-based interventions to heal childhood wounds held in the nervous system.

Summit: Somatic Trauma Healing

A two-day on-demand summit on somatic trauma healing with 17 world-leading experts. Explore body-based tools for working with triggers, preverbal trauma, attachment wounds, nervous system regulation, healthy aggression, parts work, and collective trauma — plus bonus sessions with Peter Levine, Stephen Porges, Richard Schwartz, Arielle Schwartz, and Thomas Hübl.

Transforming Emotional Triggers: A Somatic Approach

A course on the somatic approach to emotional triggers. Body-based tools to understand trigger mechanisms, recognize conditioned patterns, and support nervous system integration.

Working with Pain: A Somatic Approach

A course on the mind-body connection in chronic pain. Somatic tools to understand how trauma and emotional distress manifest physically — and body-based techniques for relief and healing.