Rewiring the Brain for Healing and Transformation
NIGHT SCHOOL: Rewiring the Brain for Healing and Transformation
After the events of 9/11 in NYC, the urgent need to support victims, families, and first responders became undeniable. Project Rebirth was created to answer that call, offering programs to help individuals recover from trauma and reclaim a sense of purpose, presence, and possibility.
In late 2015, I was brought on as an advisor for Project Cohort, a branch focused on veterans. Cohort uses nature, mindfulness, and embodied practices to help veterans release the weight of combat and trauma, integrating themselves back into civilian life while reconnecting with the magic and wonder of life. I was tasked by the Felician College Cohort in Northern New Jersey to create a program for our veterans to help manage the effects of PTSD, CPTSD, TBI and the lingering anxiety and mental health struggles many of our service men and women suffer from after retirement.
The Challenge
As a nonverbal communication and somatic intelligence specialist, my goal was ambitious: how could I help veterans retrain their brains and nervous systems without hands-on treatment? Research shows that brains affected by severe PTSD require careful sensorimotor integration for real change. Modalities like craniosacral therapy, acupuncture, yoga, and body - based psychotherapy are essential - but I knew there were additional techniques that could help veterans take control of their own nervous system.
Enter Night School
The result is Night School: a mind control and dynamic meditation program designed to train the brain to navigate different brainwave states, especially the alpha state. Alpha waves are slower and more restorative than the alert, stress-driven rhythms our brains often default to. For brains on high alert, this can feel challenging - like trying to meditate and falling asleep - but it’s precisely where calm, regeneration, and insight begin.
Through Night School, veterans learned dynamic meditation and shamanic journeying techniques that gave them a sense of control and presence. These tools became a resource they could turn to anytime they felt triggered. Over time, the world starts to feel more connected: synchronicities appear, creativity awakens, and a deep sense of awe and possibility emerges - what I like to call “magic.”
Why Alpha Matters
Brains affected by trauma often struggle with deep REM sleep, which can trigger emotional outbursts. Night School teaches veterans to enter and master the alpha state, giving the body a chance to heal and regenerate even when sleep is difficult. Think of Einstein’s brief naps throughout the day: small, intentional periods of rest that supported his intuition and creativity. Night School gives veterans a similar tool for clarity, creativity, and resilience.
And alpha is just the beginning, a bridge between alert, detail oriented consciousness and deeper levels of the brain such as theta. Continuously mastering this brain wave level is essential for mastering the lower levels and more advanced forms of mind control and meditation. Alpha, is where we anchor the power of this training into mundane reality and daily living.
The Foundations
Night School draws on the pioneering work of Patrick Collard and the Silva Mind Control Method, and decades of shamanic apprenticeship, offering an accessible, embodied approach to rewiring the brain. In this program, participants explore the neuroscience behind the work and experience practical, guided techniques to reconnect with their brains - and their lives - in ways that feel empowering, restorative, and even a bit magical.
For more information about Project Rebirth and its programs, please visit wwwProjectRebirth.org
For more information on the Felician Cohort, please visit www.felician.edu
Megan Gouldner © 2016