If you did not have neuro-sensory-motor reflexes, you would not be alive.
There are many genetically programmed reflex circuits running between our bodies and brains which are needed for protection, survival, growth, and development. There are about 21 of these circuits called Primitive (or Primary) Reflexes, some start developing and working in utero or before you are born, as early as 11-13 weeks. They set the stage for survival such as breathing, eating and moving our bodies to stay safe or get our needs met after we are born.
Reflexes rely on efficient processing of the sensory information (touch, taste, hearing, olfactory, sight, balance, stomach, heart, etc.) coming from inside and outside of the body, and are involved in developing muscle control for movement and task performance, social skills, and learning new things. Early reflexes lay the foundation for the mature later reflexes which continue to work throughout your life to support everything you do as you move through your daily routines.
In children reflexes may not develop due to pre-birth or birth traumas, or after birth due to health issues or other reasons. Parents will see delays in development or difficulties with learning and behavior challenges. When reflexes are not working well in children the symptoms can include poor oral motor skills needed for eating or speaking, delayed or poor motor coordination needed for learning to crawl, walk or later, play on the playground. There can also be poor fine motor skills needed for artwork and handwriting, difficulty with emotions, difficulty with social interactions, difficulty filtering sensations around them and staying calm when under stress, health issues such as difficulty with eating, sleeping or asthma, and labels such as learning disabilities and ADHD.
After birth, and anytime in life, mature sensory-motor reflex circuits can become so stressed that they break and lose communication between the body and brain. This may occur in connection to chronic illness, injury from an accident, and extreme emotional stress (PTSD). In adults symptoms often include chronic pain in muscles and joints, poor motor coordination, health and emotional issues. Diet and medical procedures such as surgeries can also decrease the efficiency of reflex circuits.
Personally, even though I wasn’t the best at sports, I always thought I had a body that could do what I asked of it. However, with this work, I have found that many of my reflex circuits are not working at their maximum potential and therefore, it makes some things that I try to do much harder. Now I know why I didn’t play sports as well as I could have. As I work to improve my reflexes, things come much easier.
When a circuit or combination of circuits are working together and efficiently, you grow, move and learn with ease. Therapy using reflex integration supports improving how your body works by increasing the efficiency of circuits that have not fully developed or have been stressed beyond their tolerance. For someone who blew out their knee playing football and has pain years later, improving the circuits around the knee can decrease pain. For those who want to improve their skills in a sport, improving the efficiency of reflexes can be the key to improving coordination of muscles, and all areas related to them, to enhance skills (i.e. hitting the baseball, running faster or improving a golf swing). Those with learning challenges see changes in how their brain takes in information and uses it. And those with behavior and social challenges are able to calm and get along better with others.
Reflex integration is the foundation that needs to be in place for all areas of development and wellness.
Most healthcare practitioners are unaware of the importance and part reflexes play in how our bodies and minds function. This is largely left untreated by most rehabilitation therapists. Until I started learning the Masgutova Neurosensorimotor Reflex Integration Method, I was one of them. Now I know that reflexes are the “Missing Link” to many challenging issues that are not effectively treated in other ways, and that treating reflexes can actually reverse many conditions, naturally, working with the body’s built-in circuits.
Go to the masgutovamethod.com website to learn more about reflexes and the Masgutova Neurosensorimotor Reflex Integration Method, or call me to learn more about how I can help you or someone in your family to improve their health and wellness.