Deep Brain Reorienting (DBR): A gentle approach to trauma healing

Many people discover Deep Brain Reorienting after finding that insight alone hasn’t shifted long-standing automatic patterns. Deep Brain Reorienting (DBR) is a specialist trauma therapy that works well online, allowing me to work with clients in London, across the UK, and internationally. Because DBR remains a specialist approach, many people choose to access it online even where local provision is limited. Sessions take place securely via Zoom and follow the same careful therapeutic process as face-to-face work.

Deep Brain Reorienting (DBR) is a gentle, non-invasive, body-oriented therapy that is helpful for the healing of trauma, attachment and developmental wounds. It aims to access the core of a traumatic experience by tracking the original physiological sequence in the brainstem — the part of the brain that rapidly comes online in situations of threat or danger. For example, during a charged argument with a partner, the brainstem may reactivate earlier attachment-based fears before conscious thought has time to intervene.

I am an Approved DBR Practitioner and was part of the initial international cohort of therapists to complete the formal approval process. I chose to train in DBR after experiencing its depth and precision firsthand. I found it both healing and clarifying, deepening my understanding of how and why we feel, act and think as we do. DBR was developed by Dr Frank Corrigan and is grounded in a brainstem model of shock and attachment injury.

Why Deep Brain Reorienting (DBR) helps with trauma, attachment and developmental issues

As children, we need help understanding and regulating our emotions. When we face traumatic experiences like neglect, abuse, or other forms of mistreatment without the protection or loving contact of caring others, we can feel an intense core pain of aloneness. This profound isolation can drive overwhelming emotions such as fear, rage, grief, and shame. Without a safe outlet for these feelings, it becomes difficult to regulate distressing emotions, often leading to unhealthy coping strategies.

In an attempt to survive and move on, a young person’s brain might compartmentalise these distressing feelings. These compartments, formed in the upper levels of the brain, can become parts of the self that act independently when they take control. These parts may become so shut off from day-to-day awareness that they don’t keep up with the passage of time in the outside world, behaving as if they are still in the traumatic situation. Sometimes, they lose contact with the lower levels of the brain, resulting in a limited range of emotional responses. At other times, they disconnect from the part of the self that knows where it is in the present moment/time/space, and they act in ways that are out of sync with their age and life circumstances.

Some therapeutic approaches work primarily with these isolated parts of the self, getting to know them and increasing their communication and cooperation, as well as helping them orient to the present. While these methods can be effective, they don’t always address the underlying pain of aloneness and abandonment. In Deep Brain Reorienting (DBR), the focus shifts from the upper-level parts of the self to the core emotional pain and the intense emotions of rage, fear, grief, and shame that arise from deep wounding.

How Deep Brain Reorienting (DBR) works: A step by step overview

In general, working in therapy at a deeper level is challenging because the brain has previously turned away from intense pain to protect itself. However, now that we are older and in a different situation, we may have the capacity to explore this pain in a way that facilitates healing at the core of our trauma and abuse history. As our brains have continued to develop around this core pain, it might now be possible to approach it from a new angle. The upper-level parts of the self, which have worked hard to shield us from this pain, might feel alarmed by this approach. However, these parts are also suffering, and their coping mechanisms may not align with our current lives.

In Deep Brain Reorienting, we ask these parts to allow us to work at this deeper level, with the goal of helping all parts of the self. The pain is common to many, if not all, parts of the self, so deep-level healing can benefit our whole self. Inevitably, this process involves more contact with emotional distress, therefore we approach slowly and safely, using an anchor to provide protection against dropping too deeply or quickly.

By working in this way we can protect against overwhelm during sessions and thus gain a new perspective for working with the upper-level parts of the self.

Deep Brain Reorienting should be experienced as a slow and careful journey, leading to an increased sense of care and compassion towards the parts of ourselves holding trauma memories and the defences around them. Through this process, a sense of compassion and understanding can emerge, fostering healing and integration.

You can see more of the science laid out in these short, wonderfully-illustrated videos.

What can Deep Brain Reorienting (DBR) help with?

Deep Brain Reorienting compared with other trauma therapies

Some people come across Deep Brain Reorienting while researching other trauma therapies such as EMDR, somatic approaches, or parts-based work. While all trauma-informed therapies aim to support healing, they may focus on different levels of experience.

Deep Brain Reorienting works specifically with the very early orienting and shock responses held within the nervous system and brainstem. For some people, this focus on the earliest physiological response to threat can feel particularly relevant, especially where reactions feel automatic, persistent, or difficult to shift through insight alone. My decision to specialise in DBR reflects my view that working at the level of early orienting responses can be particularly effective where insight alone has not shifted entrenched patterns.

In practice, the choice of therapeutic approach depends on the individual, and this is something we can discuss together if you are unsure what might suit you.

Online Deep Brain Reorienting therapy

Many people searching for Deep Brain Reorienting are seeking a therapist in London, elsewhere in the UK, or internationally. Because the method is still relatively specialised, it is common for people to work online where no local practitioner is available. If you are looking for a Deep Brain Reorienting therapist online, sessions can be arranged securely via Zoom regardless of location. Because the method is still developing, it is common for people not to have a local DBR practitioner available. Online psychotherapy allows this work to take place regardless of physical location, provided sessions can be scheduled across time zones.

I have worked as an Online Psychotherapist for many years. Even in the days when I was working face-to-face, many of my clients were travelling in Europe, internationally, or permanently located abroad. I’ve found that, like any therapy, the most important factor in achieving success is collaboration and communication. Of course, there are limitations working online. I won’t always be able to pick up on all body language at all times, such as feet and hands – but I’ll encourage you to let me know when you notice things moving and shifting! Creative solutions can and do grow from limitations (and it can be fun too!). In addition to the limitations, there are also advantages. For example clients can find some things easier to say from behind a screen. As a result, working online can actually deepen connections and lead to exciting explorations of both relationship, and self. Furthermore, if you are working from home, having an online therapy session means you might not have to rush out onto the streets post-session. This can allow you time to process and assimilate the work that has been done during the session. To find out more about having a great online psychotherapy experience, check out these video tips.

Visual learning resources: Explore the science behind Deep Brain Reorienting (DBR) in these short videos

The first video in this series, ‘Deep Brain Reorienting: A Brainstem Model’, introduces a neuroanatomical model of immediate responses to trauma, the theory underpinning Deep Brain Reorienting, a psychotherapy developed by Dr Frank Corrigan. Walking us through the sequence of brain activation, Dr Hannah Young describes the deeper brainstem structures involved in orienting and autonomic changes in the body.

In this second video in the series, ‘Deep Brain Reorienting: Freeze Responses’, Dr Hannah Young revisits the three main brainstem structures underpinning Deep Brain Reorienting, a psychotherapy developed by Dr Frank Corrigan. She explores their association with various types of freeze responses.

In the third video of this series, ‘Deep Brain Reorienting: Dissociation’, Dr Hannah Young revisits the three main brainstem structures underpinning Deep Brain Reorienting to examine their hypothesised involvement in dissociative symptoms, a neurobiological theory of dissociation.

Understanding whether Deep Brain Reorienting fits you

Some people contact me after noticing that despite understanding their patterns well, something still feels internally stuck. If that sounds familiar, you may find these articles useful:

• Why high-functioning people can still feel internally stuck
• Why insight alone doesn’t always change automatic emotional reactions

I’m interested in having DBR Therapy. How often do online Deep Brain Reorienting sessions take place?

I work exclusively online with clients in London, across the UK, Europe and internationally. Deep Brain Reorienting is offered within structured 50-minute sessions. Some people come specifically to work with DBR, while for others it becomes part of a broader therapeutic process. If you would like to understand more about how I work more broadly, you can read about my approach here.

Booking & Fees

My fees for online DBR psychotherapy can be found here.