How the Brain Follows the Beat — and Why That’s Healing

(Part 2 of the “How Sound Helped Me Heal My Nervous System” Series)

I’ve Always Wanted to Know How Things Work

I’ve always been the person who loves understanding how things fit together — whether it was business strategy during my corporate career or, later in life, Internal Family Systems (IFS) and the inner workings of the human psyche.

There’s something incredibly grounding about seeing systems clearly. Patterns. Structures. Pathways.

So when I first learned about the Safe and Sound Protocol (SSP) and the Rest and Restore Protocol (RRP), one question rose to the top:

“How can music possibly be this powerful?”

How could something so familiar — sound — create nervous system changes that other approaches hadn’t? What exactly was happening inside the brain that made this different?

The answer is both elegant and deeply scientific.

Your Brain Has Its Own Internal Rhythm Keeper

Inside the brainstem — the part of the brain responsible for survival-level organization — there exists a remarkable ability called the Frequency Following Response (FFR).

The FFR is your brain’s natural way of syncing itself to external sound. Think of it as your brain’s built-in metronome.

When you hear a tone, beat, or melody with a steady pattern, the neurons in your brainstem begin firing in that same pattern. They literally follow the frequency of the sound automatically, with astonishing precision.

But rhythmic synchrony does more than help us enjoy music. It supports focus, emotional steadiness, safety, and presence.

Why This Matters: Rhythm Regulates

When the nervous system is overloaded, stressed, or depleted, its internal rhythms can become chaotic. You might feel:

• scattered or unfocused

• easily overwhelmed

• overstimulated by sound or activity

• emotionally unpredictable

• “tired but wired”

• unable to fully settle

But when the brainsyncs to a predictable, steady rhythm — especially one designed to support calm — something powerful happens:

the entire nervous system begins to reorganize itself.

Rhythmic entrainment through the FFR helps the body:

• regulate timing

• quiet internal noise

• improve sensory processing

• downshift from fight-or-flight

• reconnect with states of safety and flow

This is one reason cultures across the world have used rhythm for thousands of years as a pathway to restoration.

And This Is Where RRP Becomes More Than “Rhythmic Music”

This is important: The Rest and Restore Protocol isn’t simply soothing or rhythmic music. It is music that has been scientifically engineered to work with the nervous system — not around it.

The RRP is built on a combination of:

• advanced audio engineering,

• precise modulation and entrainment techniques, and

• peer-reviewed neuroscience

to create a listening experience that gently tones the specific branches of the nervous system responsible for:

• relaxation

• recovery

• improved sleep

• emotional balance

• and deeper resilience

In other words: It’s not just music — it’s a therapeutic tool designed to shift physiology.

Every layer of the soundscape (beat structure, frequency modulation, spatial design, and timing) is constructed to activate the pathways that regulate calm, growth, and restoration.

This is also why people with mild hearing loss — myself included — respond so well. These protocols work through neural rhythm and patterned stimulation, not through “perfect hearing.”

RRP gives the brain exactly the kind of patterned input it needs to reset its internal timing and settle into steadier states.

What This Looked Like in My Own Healing

When I first began these sound-based therapies, I didn’t yet have the science words. I didn’t know anything about the FFR or neural entrainment. I just knew something inside me was shifting.

As I listened to the structured, intentionally engineered sound:

• my breath softened

• my thoughts slowed

• the tension in my body eased

• my reactivity quieted

• and my system stopped bracing against life

It felt like my nervous system was learning to trust again — and finding its rhythm in the world.

Over time, that rhythm stayed with me. I wasn’t as jumpy. I wasn’t as overwhelmed. I could stay present during conversations and family moments without feeling like I needed to escape the noise.

Sound was no longer something I had to manage. It became something I could enjoy again.

Music as a Map Back to Ourselves

I’ve come to understand that our nervous systems are always trying to move toward coherence — toward steadiness, rhythm, flow. The Frequency Following Response is one of the ways the brain helps us get there.

When sound is safe, steady, and scientifically designed to support regulation, our systems respond. The body wants to heal. The brain wants to sync. Safety is a state we can learn — or relearn — through the right kind of sensory input.

This is the magic and science behind the RRP.

Coming Up Next

In Part 3, we’ll bring these two systems together — the ear’s protective reflex (Part 1) and the brain’s rhythmic response (today’s post) —to explore how they work in harmony and why healing both is essential for lasting nervous system change.

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✍️ About the Author

Andrea Goodwin is a Somatic Coach and the founder of Retune Health, a science-backed, heart-centered wellness practice that helps high achievers and wellness seekers regulate their nervous systems, release subconscious stress patterns, and restore balance in body, mind, and spirit.

With over 20 years of experience as a healthcare executive, Andrea brings a unique blend of real-world leadership, clinical insight, and holistic care to her work. Because burnout and overwhelm show up in our bodies, minds, and energy, she offers deeply personalized, mind-body-spirit support to help clients feel more grounded, clear, and alive — often in ways they never thought possible.

Through 1:1 sessions, group programs, and integrative experiences, Andrea guides clients toward a more intuitive, connected, and joyful way of being.

🌿 Explore sessions or subscribe to the newsletter at www.retunehealth.com

📍 Based in the northwest suburbs of Chicago | Virtual sessions available worldwide