The Safe and Sound Protocol (SSP)
The Rest and Restore Protocol (RRP)
Gently shift patterns of protection into patterns of connection, and restore your natural capacity for Calm & Resilience
Gentle, polyvagal-informed support to help your nervous system settle and reconnect.
A compassionate space to soften, settle, and reconnect.
As a certified provider of the Safe and Sound Protocol (SSP) and the Rest and Restore Protocol (RRP), I’m here to gently support you in reconnecting with a deeper sense of safety and ease. My work integrates polyvagal-informed, sound-based therapies with a warm, grounded presence—helping soften patterns of anxiety, overwhelm, shutdown, or hypervigilance. I hold a spacious, compassionate environment where your nervous system can unwind at its own pace and rediscover its natural capacity for regulation and connection. Sessions are available online worldwide and here on Maui.
Let’s explore what your nervous system needs and whether SSP or RRP may support your healing.
Safe and Sound Protocol
Safety and Connection
Designed to reduce sound sensitivities, and improve social engagement and autonomic regulation, helps to better co-regulate and connect with others.
Target autonomic regulation, ventral vagal pathway and social engagement system.
Best for clients experiencing:
Social and relational challenges
Sound reactivity other sensory differences
Emotional and behavioral regulation
Rest and restore protocol
Restoration and Recovery
Designed to support healing, restoration and homeostasis, helps to better self-regulate and recover.
Target autonomic regulation, internal rhythmic coherence, sub diaphragmatic organ functions.
Best for clients experiencing:
Chronic stress and fatigue
Sleep challenges
GI and gut related functions
Physical recovery and mental wellbeing
When your body feels overwhelmed, there is another way.
If you find yourself feeling anxious, tense, or constantly on edge…
If rest feels unreachable, no matter how much you try to slow down…
If it’s hard to feel safe in your own skin — or you move through your days feeling tired, disconnected, or emotionally overwhelmed —
know that your body is not broken.
It’s just your nervous system trying to protect you.
Your nervous system has been doing its best to keep you safe, often for far longer than you realize.
There are gentle, science-based approaches to support it — ways that don’t push or force, but invite your system to soften and return to balance.
“ The autonomic nervous system is the foundation of our lived experience.”
— Deb.Dana
Gentle, listening-based therapies for deeper regulation
The Safe & Sound Protocol (SSP) and the Rest & Restore Protocol (RRP) are sound-based, Polyvagal-informed therapies — designed to support your autonomic nervous system, deepen safety, and gently guide your system back to a place of ease and presence.
Our nervous system shapes how we experience safety, connection, and calm. When life feels overwhelming for too long, the system can become “stuck” in protective patterns — leaving us feeling anxious, shut down, disconnected, or depleted.
Developed from the work of Dr. Stephen Porges, SSP and RRP use specially filtered music, to engage the nervous system’s natural capacity to return to regulation.
When combined with movement, breath, imagery, and somatic awareness, these pathways help your body and mind come home to themselves — so you feel more grounded, resilient, connected, and aligned in daily life.
Welcome to The Mindful Mover. I’m Valerie Starbuck — a Holistic Wellness Coach, Somatic Movement Educator, Sound Therapist, and certified provider of the Safe & Sound (SSP) and Rest & Restore (RRP) Protocols.
I support people who are moving through stress, overwhelm, chronic illness, nervous system dysregulation, and tender life transitions. My approach weaves polyvagal-informed sound therapy, somatic movement, mindful lifestyle practices, and gentle neuroscience education to help your system settle, reorient, and reconnect.
If you’re longing to feel more grounded, regulated, and at ease in your body, I offer a spacious and compassionate environment where healing unfolds naturally. Together, we explore practices that nurture resilience, support emotional well-being, and gently shift old patterns through movement, sound, art, and embodied insight.
I offer private coaching sessions, classes, and healing retreats — and I would be honored to walk alongside you on this journey.
Explore ways to support your healing transformation
Choose the practice that resonates with where you are now—whether you're seeking more fluidity and ease in your body, long to find your true Nature & purpose, or need support in regulating your nervous system through the Safe & Sound Protocol.
Explore Services & Programs
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Holistic Wellness coaching
Personalized, somatic-informed wellness coaching for clients ready to invest in their well-being, offering grounding and resilience through stress, chronic illness, and life transitions.
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The Rest & Restore Protocol
A gentle, polyvagal-informed sound protocol that supports the nervous system in settling long-held patterns of stress, tension, shutdown, and overwhelm.
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Sound Treatments
Therapeutic sound treatments that support nervous system regulation, ease chronic tension, and promote emotional balance. These gentle vibrations help the body unwind stress patterns and return to a deeper sense of safety and presence.
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The Safe & Sound Protocol
A clinically grounded, sound-based intervention designed to help the nervous system shift out of protection and into connection, ease, and emotional regulation.
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Somatic Movement
Mindful, somatic-based movement to support chronic pain, postural patterns, and tension held in the body. These practices help you reconnect to ease, alignment, and a deeper sense of embodiment.
Clients shares & Experiences
“Many of my clients come to me after years of carrying the impacts of chronic stress, pain, or complex and challenging issues. Through gentle somatic practices, and The Safe & Sound and Rest & Restore protocols they learn to reconnect with their bodies, calm their nervous system, and gently release long-held patterns of tension, supporting greater ease, resilience, and a deeper sense of well-being. Here are some of the ways their lives have shifted through our work together.”
"I can't say enough about how much Valerie has helped me. For years, my body had been stuck in survival mode. Meeting Valerie was life changing. She supported me in connecting the dots in a way that made me feel at ease — her presence and genuine care are a true gift, and I’m deeply grateful to have her as a guiding force. The tools and education I received during the SSP sessions continue to help me feel grounded each day. After Rest & Restore, my body softened in ways I didn’t think were possible — and Valerie’s support and care has been nothing short of transformative."
—Kathy R. San Francisco
"I came to SSP completely burnt out from years of nonstop stress. Valerie made the process feel safe and manageable from the start. The way she guided me — calm, clear, and never rushed — helped my nervous system finally shift out of survival mode. SSP gave me clarity again, and Rest & Restore brought a level of peace I didn’t even realize I had been missing. What’s made the biggest difference is that the somatic practices and tools Valerie taught me have become part of my daily life. They continue to keep me grounded, steady, and able to meet my days with clarity and ease."
—Mark B. New-York
“I have always been anxious and highly emotional, and I honestly didn’t expect SSP to create such a powerful shift. Valerie creates a space where you feel truly seen and understood — and that meant more to me than I can explain. SSP helped my system calm in a way I hadn’t felt in years. RRP gave me moments of real peace — the kind you don’t even realize you’ve been missing until they’re there. The practices she shared have become daily tools. I feel lighter, calmer, less reactive, and more like myself. Valerie’s kindness and steady, grounded presence made all of that possible.”
—Elena M. Vancouver
Ready to begin your healing journey