• Home to Yourself:

    The Art of Nervous System Navigation

    Slow, steady, embodied change—

    for your own wellbeing, your relationships, your work and the world.

  • A deep exploration of your nervous system through polyvagal theory and practice

    For your own wellbeing, your relationships

    and your work in the world.

    Learn to befriend your nervous system as a wise ally. Navigate your internal landscape with more clarity, compassion, and choice. This is an invitation to return to your body as home—and to listen deeply, like a Nervous System Whisperer.

    To become a nervous system whisperer is to listen with attunement and respond with respect. It’s a dance of sensing and engaging, where your nervous system becomes both your guide and your companion on the path home to yourself and out into the world.

  • When we learn to read the signals of the nervous system, we gain a reliable internal compass for navigating life, relationships, and change.

  • At a glance: the need to know summary

    ...because we all know how frustrating it is if you have to go scrolling all the way down to find the info you want

    What

    Home to Yourself: The Art of Nervous System Navigation: A 9-month experiential journey to understand, befriend and tend to your nervous system through the lens of Polyvagal Theory so that you can navigate your inner and outer worlds with more ease, clarity and choice.

    By application- book a call to meet human to human and see if this is a good fit for you.

    How

    Nine live online sessions

    One 1:1 orientation before the course

    One 1:1 mid-way reflection

    One 1:1 integration session at the end

    Optional additional 1:1 support sessions*

    Peer dyads

    Practices, prompts and reflections between modules

    Rooted in trauma-informed, embodied learning.

    No prior experience needed.

    *(at additional cost)

    When

    Starts 16 September 2025

    9 x monthly sessions (2 hours each) + 1 individual orientation session before the start

    Cohort 1: 8–10am UK / 9–11pm CET / 9–11am SA / 5–7pm AEST / 7–9pm NZT

    Cohort 2: 6–8pm SA / 6–8pm CET / 5–7pm UK / 12–2pm EDT / 9–11am PDT

    Times anchored to SA time zone; session times will shift by an hour for those in regions with daylight saving between late October and late March.

    Cost

    US$1,800 / £1,350 / €1360 /

    ZAR 16,300

    Early bird if booked by 16th August: US$1,620 / £1,215 / €1,224 / ZAR 14670

    Flexible payment plans and some concessions available on application.

  • “Polyvagal Theory is the science of feeling safe enough to fall in love with life and take the risks of living”

    (Deb Dana)

  • Learn the foundations of Polyvagal Theory

    Map your own Autonomic Nervous System

    Move beyond theoretical understanding with experiential processes and somatic practices

    Gather a toolkit of accessible practices that you can apply immediately in your day to day

    Learn the power of shifting your nervous system state to change your story and create new possibilities

    Nourish your nervous system and grow resilience through shared practice and safe connection in an online learning community

  • Why this course?

    In a world that often asks us to override our bodies and our boundaries, understanding and working with your own nervous system is a radical act of care. This 9-month journey offers a gentle, consistent, and embodied pathway into:

    • Understanding your stress responses
    • Building a personal felt sense of safety
    • Learning how to come back to yourself in moments of dysregulation
    • Cultivating presence and resilience

  • Key Benefits and Takeaways

    A felt, embodied understanding of Polyvagal Theory

    This is not an academic course but an exploration of what an understanding of our nervous system means in practical terms for our day to day living. The nervous system makes itself known via our bodies. And, as a saying goes 'Knowledge is only a rumour until it's in the muscles and bones.' So we will use embodied practices to learn and embed our understanding through our felt experience rather than just mind-based ideas.

    Greater emotional regulation, clarity, and self-compassion

    Greater emotional regulation means being able to feel and respond to emotions without becoming overwhelmed or reactive. Clarity and self-compassion arise from this steadiness, allowing you to see situations more clearly and treat yourself with kindness rather than criticism.

    A foundation of inner safety and capacity for grounded presence

    Working with our nervous system builds a foundation of inner safety by helping us recognize and regulate stress responses. This creates the capacity for grounded presence, allowing us to stay centered and connected even in moments of discomfort or challenge.

    Tools and practices to regulate your nervous system, create wellbeing and begin to heal old patterns

    The emphasis of this course is on experience and practical application of our knowledge. So you will gather a collection of tools and practices that you can put to immediate use in your day to day - with instant benefits to your sense of wellbeing. Over time, these practices can help you heal old patterns that stand in the way of your aliveness, self-expression and relationships.

    Increased ability to stay with yourself (and others) in difficulty

    Understanding our own nervous system increases our capacity for emotional regulation and compassionate presence with others. We grow our capacity to be with rather than fix or avoid our own pain and that of others. Staying grounded in the body, distress becomes information, not threat. This shifts our internal narrative from "something’s wrong with me or them" to seeing what is happening as an adaptive protective response to perceived threat. This perspective reduces shame and promotes curiosity over reactivity, allowing more room for authentic connection during hard moments.

    A community of others on a similar path

    Learning in community makes this journey more potent and enjoyable. It taps into our innate social nature, amplifies motivation, deepens understanding, and provides essential emotional and relational support. Our nervous system is wired for connection, so we are practicing what we are learning and nourishing our nervous system at the same time. And sharing with and listening to each other, we learn so much more than when we study by ourselves. We encounter different perspectives, interpretations, and lived experiences. This diversity broadens our understanding beyond what we might access alone. Often, someone else will articulate something we've felt but couldn’t name—or will model a possibility we hadn’t imagined.

    Releasing shame, opening the door to change

    When we understand our patterns as survival strategies, we can release the shame that comes with mistaking adaptive behaviours for who we are. When we share struggles, insights, or vulnerability in community, and are met with compassion or resonance, it disrupts internal narratives of isolation or inadequacy. This process of being seen and heard without judgment is profoundly healing. It reminds us we’re not alone in our fears or flaws—and that transformation is possible, together.

  • Who is this for?

    This course is for:

    Anyone seeking a deeper, kinder relationship with their nervous system

    Anyone feeling overwhelmed, stuck, or longing for more ease

    Coaches, therapists, bodyworkers, space-holders, and facilitators wanting to deepen their presence, attunement, and resilience

    Please note:

    This is not a professional training in Polyvagal Theory application, but rather a foundational personal journey. Your understanding and capacity for regulation will nevertheless have profound impacts on your work, such as steadier presence, greater attunement, deeper listening, increased capacity for co-regulation, deeper listening, and clearer boundaries.

    This is not for you if:

    You are looking for a fast-track method, peak experiences, or protocol-based healing

    You need intensive 1:1 therapeutic support (check out my nervous-system based Somatic Therapy work which might be a better fit)

    You are primarily interested in academic or theoretical learning

    You are unable to commit to consistent practice, reflection, and personal engagement

  • "If you want to improve the world, start by making people feel safer."

    (Stephen Porges)

  • Why do this in a group?

    Doing nervous system work in community is not just powerful—it’s perfectly aligned with the essence of the work itself. Our systems are wired for connection; co-regulation is one of the most fundamental ways we find safety, ease, and resilience. When we come together to explore, reflect, and practice, we’re not just learning concepts—we're experiencing them in real time. Each person brings their own nervous system intelligence, and together we create a living, breathing web of support. Being in community offers momentum when motivation wanes, fresh perspectives when we feel stuck, and the profound reminder that we’re not alone in this. The container becomes part of the medicine: a place where we can be full spectrum humans together, reweaving threads of trust, connection, and collective strength.

  • Ready to explore if this journey is right for you?

    Book a free 30-minute call to connect. This is a gentle, no-pressure space to ask questions, share a bit about where you are, and get a feel for whether the Nervous System Navigator programme feels like a good fit for your next steps. I look forward to meeting you..

  • How we learn:

    trauma-informed, experiential, practice-led

    This course is grounded in trauma-informed pedagogy. That means:

    1

    We honour pacing and choice

    2

    We go at the pace of our nervous system, and our bodies, not our minds

    3

    We center felt experience, not just mental insight

    4

    We build safety, connection and capacity over time

    5

    We learn and explore in a supportive small group setting

  • This is not about dramatic breakthroughs. It’s about understanding, befriending and tending to your nervous system in a way that is kind and sustainable and makes real change possible.

  • Course Structure

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    3 x individual sessions

    One at the start to clarify intentions, one mid-way to reflect on what's happening for you, and one at the end to support integration.

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    9 monthly online live sessions

    between September 2025 and May 2026. Each session is 2 hours long.

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    Peer dyads between modules

    to practice, integrate learning and build a supportive learning community

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    Practices, prompts and reflections

    to deepen the learning and bring it alive in your day to day

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    Cohort Whatsapp group

    for questions, connection and momentum between sessions (optional)

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    Optional additional 1:1 support sessions

    available throughout for deeper personal support (at additional cost)

  • The practicalities

    What

    • 9 x 2 hr group sessions via zoom sessions
    • 3x 1:1 sessions for individual support
    • Peer dyads to support the learning journey
    • Whatsapp group for emerging questions and additional resources (optional)
    • Optional additional 1-2-1 sessions to work on emergent issues and support integration for the duration of the programme

    When

    9 Tuesdays starting 16th September 2025

    16 Sept, 14 Oct, 11 Nov, 9 Dec 2025 and 13 Jan, 10 Feb, 10 Mar, 14 Apr, 5 May 2026

    Cohort 1: 9-11am South Africa and Central Europe / 8-10am UK / 5-7pm AUS / 7-9pm NZ

    or

    Cohort 2: 6-8pm SA/EU / 5-7pm UK /9-11am US-PST / 12-2pm US-EST

    find your local time here

    Please note that times are anchored in South African time. When clocks change in your timezone, session times may shift by an hour for you.

    Cost

    US$1,800 / £1,350 / €1,360 /

    ZAR 16,300

    Early bird if booked by 16th August 2025: US$1,620 / £1,215 / €1,224 / ZAR 14,670

    Flexible payment plans and some concessions available on application.

  • Facilitated by

    Petra Bongartz is the founder of Being of the Earth, a body of work that integrates trauma-informed therapeutic approaches with somatic practice, movement, earth-based nature connection, and community-weaving—all centred around the wisdom of the body and nervous system in service of embodied pathways to personal healing and collective change.

    Petra has worked with the body’s intelligence for over 20 years. She is trained in a range of somatic approaches including Movement Medicine, Somatic Experiencing, Polyvagal Theory and Practice, Process Work, Positive Neuroplasticity. She is passionate about movement, the web of life, and our deep connection to the more-than-human world. Community is a core value—she believes healing is not only personal but collective.

    Her journey includes a background as a facilitator in the international development sector, working with NGOs, governments, and community organisations on collective behaviour change. This seeded a long-standing fascination with how change really happens. Over the years, she has gathered many pieces of that puzzle, and Polyvagal-informed nervous system work has emerged as a central, transformative key.

    Petra is known for holding warm, professional, inclusive spaces that are distinguished by her gentleness, groundedness, unshaming presence, and deep compassion. Her work is rooted in the belief that our personal healing and empowerment directly support our capacity to show up in the world for the change we wish to see.

  • "When we can anchor ourselves in a regulated nervous system, we become the regulated nervous system that others can lean into.”

    (Deb Dana)

  • Ready to join one of the next cohorts in September 2025?

    Let's talk. Sometimes the best way to know if something is right for you is to have a real conversation. This call is a chance to connect human-to-human and see if this work feels aligned. No pressure, no commitment—just a space to explore.

    This work is deep, sometimes vulnerable, and rooted in connection—and it matters to me that the right group of people come together for it. The alchemy of the space depends not only on the practices, but also on the quality of presence each person brings. That’s why this call isn’t just for you to see if it’s a good fit—it’s also a chance for me to ensure that I can truly support you, and that the group as a whole can become a safe, generative space for growth. Your experience matters, and so does the experience we co-create.

  • FAQs

    Can't find the info you are looking for?

    Check below or email petra@beingoftheearth.com

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