Integrated Listening System
Build and optimize your skills through brain and body integration.
Brain and body harmonized.
Your potential amplified.
The Integrated Listening System (ILS) is a powerful listening therapy designed to stimulate key areas of the brain, helping to build and optimize your skills in communication, memory, attention, balance and coordination.
Learning and development start with effective brain and body integration.
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Your brain relies on the coordination of sensory and motor systems in your body, like vision, hearing and body awareness, to support focus, regulation and cognition. But if you have a harder time processing sensory input due to how you take in information, daily life and learning can become challenging.​​​
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​​Here’s the good news: your brain has the incredible capacity to adapt and grow when it receives the right support. This is where the ILS comes in.
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How does the ILS work?
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​Through modified music, the ILS provides gentle, targeted and repeated stimulation to key areas of the brain, helping it grow and rewire itself through neuroplasticity, your brain’s natural ability to strengthen and improve in response to input.​
Why Brain and Body Organization Matters
Improved learning and
cognitive function
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Improved integration with the body allows the brain to prioritize higher-level functions, such as problem-solving, emotional regulation and overall performance, allowing for more effective learning and skill development.
Better physical balance and coordination
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When foundational support is lacking, the brain prioritizes stability over learning and development. Strengthening coordination allows the brain to shift focus from maintaining balance toward other functions for growth.
More confidence as you navigate through life
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Improved skills can make all the difference in our daily lives, enabling us to acquire new — or enhance existing — abilities to learn, connect and thrive.
Tunes that retune.
The power of the ILS lies within the modified music. Each track has been carefully filtered to stimulate specific areas of the brain using low, mid and high sound frequencies to help develop and strengthen targeted neural networks.
Sensory Integration Bandwidth, or Body Zone
This is an example of the full-spectrum sound frequencies in an unfiltered clip of classical music.
Low frequencies stimulate the somatosensory areas of the brain, which helps calm the nervous system and improve input from the body’s sensory and motor receptors.
The low frequencies of the ILS music organize the brain and body, and support sensory and motor skills, such as:
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Motor Coordination
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Balance
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Rhythm​​
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Body Awareness
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Muscle Tone
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Emotional Regulation
​The ILS music is split into six programs, each one focusing on a specific area of development.
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By working on these areas together, the listening therapy engages and stimulates different parts of the brain as you listen, helping to make it stronger and more responsive.
Works alongside you, wherever you are on your healing journey.
Supports many symptoms and conditions
The ILS helps improve brain-body skills for individuals across the lifespan with a variety of challenges, including:
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Dynamic balance, proprioception
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Auditory processing
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Reading and visual processing
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Gross and fine motor coordination
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Memory, attention and concentration
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Emotional regulation
Works with other therapies
It can also be combined with and is supportive of other therapies, including:
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Occupational, physical and speech therapy; play therapy; and sensory integration therapy
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Educators and learning specialists
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Mental health and trauma therapies, such as Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), Somatic Experiencing (SE), and Internal Family Systems (IFS)
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Talk therapy (CBT, DBT, MCBT, etc.)
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Body work, yoga and other somatic approaches
Home delivery provides flexibility
The ILS can be delivered as a home program under the guidance of a certified provider. Your provider will collaborate with you on a plan that meets your needs.
Safe and effective for all ages and families
The ILS is used by providers worldwide with adolescents and adults in more than 50 countries. Uniquely, many families experience the ILS together and in support of one another.
What to expect from your experience
Your Role
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During each session, you'll listen to the ILS program(s) selected by your provider. They may also have you engage in exercises and activities designed to support the integration of the brain and body through movement.​​
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Each session typically lasts between 30 minutes to an hour. It's often recommended to participate in a few sessions a week to sustain progress.
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Your provider will tailor these sessions to help you meet your specific goals, aiming to make them both enjoyable and effective. You are encouraged to let your provider know if you don't feel fully engaged with your sessions.
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Your Provider's Role
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Your certified provider will be your guide along your ILS journey. They are trained to make sure that you are ready even before you start, and will recommend an individualized listening plan for you. They will provide education, answer all your questions and prepare you for your experience.​​​​
​​​During sessions, they will monitor your progress. They will support and work with you to find the right pace and conditions for the optimal experience for you.
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For children, a parent or caregiver may be their primary listening partner. Follow your provider’s instructions for what activities to do and how to guide the listener through the ILS.
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What does the music sound like?The ILS uses classical music that has universal appeal to listeners as well as a wide array of frequencies. Each aspect of music — melody, harmony, timbre, rhythm and intonation — is interpreted by the auditory cortex and communicated to different regions of the brain. This music is filtered to stimulate specific areas of the brain to bring about growth through neuroplasticity.
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Can I do the ILS by myself without a provider?The ILS is a powerful therapeutic intervention and is not available for use without the supervision of a trained professional (e.g. therapist, licensed social worker, mental health practitioner, clinician, educator, etc.). Your provider may, however, suggest some independent listening as part of your ILS experience. All ILS providers are required to complete an extensive training and certification course prior to delivering the ILS to ensure safe and effective delivery.
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What does a listening session look like?A listening session consists of listening to music through bone-conduction headphones while engaging in certain activities. The music and activities will be personalized for you based on the intake and assessment process. We recommend speaking with your provider about more specifics of ILS delivery.
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Can I use my own headphones or speakers?The ILS is delivered using Unyte air- and bone-conduction headphones. Air- and bone-conduction headphones help augment the lower frequencies of the ILS music in specific parts of the programs. These frequencies stimulate the vestibular system and partially support the frequency bandwidth that encompasses human speech.
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What if I’m unable to (or my child is unable to) wear headphones?Your ILS provider will support you or your child in using the headphones in a way that feels comfortable and safe. To build tolerance, they may suggest starting with short listening sessions, followed by breaks, and gradually increasing the listening time. This approach, among others, helps make the process easier and more manageable.
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How many sessions will there be, and how often will they occur?ILS sessions may take place between three and five times per week, depending on the listening plan determined by you and your provider. Speak to your ILS provider to learn more, as they will work with you to establish a schedule that works for you.
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Can I go back and forth between ILS programs?The six ILS programs can be combined under professional guidance. Speak to your ILS provider to learn more.
Discover the science behind the Integrated Listening System
The Integrated Listening System (ILS) is based on the science of neuroplasticity.
To understand how the ILS works, it can help to first understand how the brain and body are connected.
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Frontal lobes
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Occipital lobes
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Parietal lobes
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Hippocampus
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Temporal lobes
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Limbic region
Illustration for demonstrative purposes only.
The Brain: Our Control Center
An essential part of the nervous system, our brain is the control center of the body, managing everything from basic functions, like breathing and heart rate, to higher-level processes, such as thinking, learning and emotional regulation.​
The cerebellum (from the Latin for "little brain") helps coordinate movement, balance, and motor skills. It integrates information from the senses, like sight, sound and body position, to ensure smooth and efficient movement.
The brainstem acts as the gateway between the brain and body. It processes sensory information and manages foundational functions, such as heart rate, breathing and alertness.
The brain works in harmony with several sensory and motor systems to help us learn, grow and move through the world.
Auditory System
The auditory system helps us process sounds, recognize speech and focus on important information.
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At the heart of this system is the auditory cortex, located in the brain’s temporal lobe. The auditory cortex does more than simply perceive sound. It plays a critical role in multiple brain functions, including language acquisition and expression, reading and academic learning, sensory and motor skills, memory, attention and executive functioning.
This makes the auditory system the perfect way to provide gentle but effective input to select areas of the brain.
Vestibular System
The vestibular system plays an important role in our balance, posture and spatial awareness.
The organs of the vestibular system located in the inner ear are deeply connected to the cerebellum, ensuring coordination between sensory input and our movement.
Visual System
The visual system works with the cerebellum to interpret what we are seeing, so that our brain can process and coordinate what's in front of us with our movements.
This system is key in our attention and perception.
Motor System
The motor system manages our body movements, muscle memory and coordination.
All of these functions depend on the cerebellum’s ability to organize sensory information.
When these systems work together seamlessly, the brain can prioritize higher-level learning and cognitive tasks.
​But what if one or more of these systems are not working together?
Neuroplasticity: Our brain's natural superpower
Your brain has the incredible ability to change and adapt throughout your lifetime — a process called neuroplasticity. For example, this happens every time you take in new memories and experiences, or as a response to injury. Think of your brain as malleable, like clay.
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With the right input and stimuli, the brain can grow stronger and reorganize to function better. ​Much like exercising a muscle, targeted and repetitive stimulation can help build new, more efficient neural pathways in the brain. This change is lasting: once the brain integrates the newer and stronger pathways, it no longer needs to rely on the old ones.
"Neurons that fire together wire together."
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— Donald Hebb (1949)
You may often see this phrase in connection to neuroplasticity.
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Coined by neuropsychologist Donald Hebb, it explains how repeated activation of two brain cells (neurons) strengthens their connection, making future communication faster and more efficient. This process is fundamental to learning, memory, and skill development, shaping how the brain adapts over time.​​
When our brain and body are integrated
When your sensory systems and brain-body connection are well-organized, you're better able to learn new skills, regulate your emotions, and confidently navigate through life.
Your movement is coordinated, your balance is stable, and your brain is able to prioritize its resources toward building new skills, problem-solving, and connecting with others.
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With a strong foundation, your brain is able to optimize its capacity for growth, creativity and development.
When we need help with brain and body integration
When the connection between your sensory systems and brain-body connection is weak, the brain struggles to process sensory input.
This can look like:​
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Difficulties with balance, coordination or motor skills
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Trouble focusing, paying attention, learning or processing information
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Emotional overwhelm, dysregulation or frustration with tasks, preventing you from fully engaging
Pyramid of Learning
According to the pyramid of learning, foundational skills — such as our senses, balance and coordination — form the base for higher-level abilities, such as communication, social-emotional skills and academic learning.
Just like you can’t build a pyramid from the top down, the brain needs a strong foundation to support higher-level functioning and development. If the foundational skills are weak, the brain spends its energy just getting through the day, taking up resources that could’ve been focused on growth, academic learning and attention.
Pyramid of Learning (Williams & Shellenberger, 1994)
What impact does this have long-term?
Without addressing sensory and brain-body disorganization, these challenges can compound over time and limit your potential to thrive in daily life, work and relationships, leading to:
Learning Delays
Struggling to keep up academically due to difficulties processing information or focusing.
Memory and Attention Challenges
Difficulty retaining information, focusing, or switching between tasks efficiently.
Social Struggles
Trouble maintaining relationships due to communication challenges or emotional overwhelm.
Physical Challenges
Poor coordination, posture, or motor skills affecting physical confidence and well-being.
Brain Fog and Fatigue
The brain puts energy toward basic tasks, inhibiting development and depleting energy.
This is where the Integrated Listening System comes in.
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The ILS music engages multiple sensory systems, including the auditory, vestibular, visual and motor systems, to encourage neurological improvements in speech and language, sensory regulation and motor abilities, auditory processing, learning, and attention.
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As you listen to this neural exercise, the integration between the brain and body improves. This helps the brain learn to better prioritize its resources toward building higher-level skills and overall performance.​
Speak to your healthcare provider about the Integrated Listening System.
We recommend consulting a licensed and certified professional to see whether the ILS may be an option for you in your healing journey.
The Integrated Listening System (ILS) stimulates key areas of the brain to improve function and performance in all areas.
Trusted Worldwide
Used in 70+ countries, those who've gone through the ILS report improvement and support with sensory processing, learning differences, and more.
In-Person or Virtual Listening
The option for delivery in-person, remote or a hybrid mix offers flexibility to make the ILS work around you.
Long-Term Changes
The brain requires about two to three months to make sustainable neurological changes. To make these changes, the brain requires repeated, specific, unique and engaging stimulation. Over time, “neurons that fire together wire together.”
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Once new or better neuronal pathways are developed, the brain prioritizes these more efficient, effective networks to transmit information and strengthens them over time.
Safe and Effective for All Ages
Suitable for children, adults and families.