There's Not Much Left

I did some Brain Gym® movement activities before I sat down to write this post today. I needed to. I was (what we call at Brain Fit) "out of the loop" and I wasn't able to access my thoughts in order to write. 

I will write more about the "Learning Loop" in another post, but for now what you need to know is that I am in the middle of a very stressful time in my life. My son transitions to high school starting tomorrow. 

Now, this would be a stressful time for anyone- especially since we are in the middle of a pandemic. But it's especially stressful for me because my son has special needs and is on an IEP (Individualized Education Plan). This means he receives extra support to help him succeed in school. However, due to the pandemic and pretty much everything changing, we don't even know what that support is going to look like for him yet. And that- is very stressful.

But this blog post isn't about me. It's about stress. You see, I acknowledge that I am in a stressful time in my life. However, there are many kids, teens and yes- adults! that feel this kind of stress and anxiety- All. The. Time.

The stress response (AKA the fight/flight/freeze response) is a natural, autonomic nervous system response that your body has in response to a threat- real or perceived. When your body is under stress, multiple things happen. These include:

• Increased heart rate
• Release of adrenaline and cortisol into the system 
• Tightening of the muscles in the back of the body 
• Breathing that becomes fast and shallow
• Dilation of pupils
• Slowed digestion

And what becomes harder when you're under stress? Thinking rationally, for one. How many times have you said something to another person (while under stress) that you later regretted? I know it's happened to me many-a-time. And not only thinking rationally, but thinking in general. Ever have the experience of getting sick or injured and not being able to do much of anything besides "veg out" on the couch? When I get sick, I can't even read. It takes too much brain power. Brain power that isn't there because my system is under stress and trying to fight off what ever sickness I have. 

So what if a child is constantly in that fight/flight/freeze state and is in school? Can we really expect them to learn anything effectively? Their brain and body could be working so hard trying to deal with that stress response that there's not much brain power left for learning. For some, learning is pretty much off the table. 

Sometimes, it may be that a child is not necessarily in that extreme fight/flight/freeze reaction, but is still pulling more brain power than should be necessary to do everyday things- such as write or even to sit in a chair easily. Unintegrated (dormant or not "finished") primitive reflexes can also pull brain power. You see, if those early motor patterns didn't finish the job they were there to do, then the brain and body is constantly working against those reflexes. 

Since the brain and body are constantly working against the reflexes, people build up what we call "compensations". Compensations are just basically "work arounds". Ways to get around the reflex activity to help you get by in life, but they aren't ideal. For example, a child that has sensory issues may choose to avoid things that make him/her uncomfortable. That might be as simple as choosing a different type of shirt or socks because they don't like the "feel". Or they just avoid the things that make them uncomfortable. 

These types of compensations take brain power. It might not seem like much, but it adds up. Day after day, hour after hour, compensation after compensation. What if that brain power was going to other- more important things like learning, or creativity?

At Brain Fit, we work to help our clients come out of the fight/flight/freeze response by integrating the primitive reflexes. We also integrate reflexes that contribute to the need for compensations in other areas. We finish off the motor patterns that the body is working so hard to fight. And, we empower our clients with tools (such as Brain Gym®) that can help them deal with the regular, everyday stresses that we all have now and again.

Integrating the primitive reflexes helps "free up" that brain power I keep talking about. 

Brain power that can go towards learning. 

Brain power that can go towards creativity. 

Brain power that can go towards the child feeling happier, more settled and less anxious. 

I'm using my Brain Fit tools more these days during this stressful time, and that's ok. In fact, that's what we want for our clients. There's always going to be times in life when there's "not much (brain power) left". 

However, thanks to Brain Fit and reflex integration that lack of brain power can happen a lot less than it used to. And, using the movement tools can help us get to the brain power that before- just couldn't even be accessed.

And once we access that brain power? Who knows where it will take us!

My Why

I want to help kids and families be happier. 

I'm going to say that again. I want to help kids and families be happier.

It's really that simple. That's my "why". In the post "People Often Ask Me", I talk about why I wanted to become a coach for Brain Fit Academy. And in the one called "The Passion for the Work Led me Here", I touch upon my passion for the work. 

Ultimately though? Being a coach, and the passion for my work are because I want to help kids and families be happier.  I want to help them find their smiles. I want them to enjoy the time they spend together as a family. I want the kids to feel happier in their skin and I want the parents to feel less stressed.

It's my why. This is what is getting me out of bed in the morning. This is what is driving me- even when I might be having my own stressful day or am just plain tired. My why keeps me going.

If you've been following my blog, then you've already got a pretty good idea about what we do at Brain Fit Academy. And, if you haven't read my other posts- you might want to check them out - *hint, hint*. 

Either way, what you need to know is that when we work with kids and families at Brain Fit, we can see some pretty amazing changes. Changes and growth in all sorts of areas:

It might be changes in behavior. Or, changes in school performance. Maybe the changes come in the form of balance/coordination. Or, it could even be less fear-based or sensory reactions. 

Like I said- all sorts of things.

And when changes happen in the child (and/or the parents!) you know what else happens? 

People are happier. 

The child is happier, the family is happier. 

This is my "why" remember? I want to help kids and families be happier!

So what do I do? 

I get up in the morning, I see my clients, work with them to the best of my ability and I enjoy every minute of it. 

My why keeps me going. My why gives me a sense of fulfillment in life. My why helps others. 

I don't think it could get much better than that.

Trust the Process

"Trust the Process" is one of the Guiding Principles for us at Brain Fit Academy. Sometimes it's easy to get caught up in the cognitive part of our job that it becomes difficult to remember that.  Even the best of us coaches have it happen sometimes.

It happened to me recently and it made me pause and think about what I was doing and the approach I was taking with a particular client. I kind of forgot about trusting the process! So, I took a step back and reevaluated and as a result, shifted our trajectory. 

And- here's the thing, in order to help us "trust the process" we use a technique called muscle checking.  I touched upon muscle checking in this blog post, but didn't do it justice. 

Did you know that our subconscious mind is 90% of our intelligence? It remembers everything we do, feel, see, eat, etc. By tapping into that intelligence we are able to get information about the harmony or stress in the brain/body system. 

Now, you may be thinking- come on now Amy- really? But- I'm telling you, it works. Muscle checking (AKA muscle testing) is a simple bio-feedback tool that can help us gain information from the client in order to help us trust the process. The body knows  and can help us figure it out. Not only can we find out what reflex we need to work on, we can also find out other information such as a good goal for that day, or if there are other things we need to focus on such as addressing the Six Human Needs.

The subconscious mind knows what to work on and even in what order.

Ok, I hear you at this point. You're saying that you want to know more about this amazing tool and the science behind it. 

I got your back. Let me explain.

First, let me start with the "sway" test. All living organisms have an instinctual urge to move towards positive and away from negative. Makes sense, right? By pure instinct, you're not going to walk into a burning hot fire in front of you- and you'll pull back if you get close- instinctually. 

But, what if it isn't a burning hot fire that you're faced with, but instead, a stressful thought or event. Guess what? Your body will want to pull back away from that too.

You can tune into that response- just by standing still, arms relaxed and by your side (eyes closed if you need to) and by paying attention to subtle movements. It may take a little practice at first, but you will see- your body will sway backward. Keep that negative thought or event in your mind and your body will pull back. It might be very slight, or it may be more pronounced, but it will move backward-away from that stressful thought or event. Muscle checking is such an amazing bio-feedback tool and can even be taught to kids!!

We have another way of muscle checking too- using the deltoid muscle. In general, our muscles have three states of being: 1/3 is contracted and ready for action, 1/3 is relaxed and surveying the situation and 1/3 is fluctuating between the two. By tapping into those muscle states, we can use the deltoid muscle to check for a "positive" or "negative" response. 

So, let's say that I wanted to use the deltoid muscle to confirm someone's name. What I would do is this: I would ask them to stretch out their arm in front on them, and I would apply slight pressure just above the wrist and push down as they (simultaneously) say something like "My name is __". If this is a "positive" response, in other words, a correct statement, the deltoid muscle "locks-in" and I will not be able to push the arm down. If the statement in incorrect, the muscle releases and the arm gives way. It's as if the person's brain was like "wait a minute.... that's not right!" and the muscle (in response) gives way.

It's actually very fun to see someone experience this for the first time. The look of shock on their face when they realize that (even if they are really trying) they just can't keep their arm up against that slight pressure. We tap into that subconscious intelligence and the body tells us the response through the muscles. 

Seriously, how cool is that?!?

So going back to trusting the process. With muscle checking, it helps us with that trust. We don't need to use our cognitive thinking brain to figure out what to do all the time because we can ask the body! 

Certainly, cognitive thoughts can help guide us in some respects and we certainly need to "think" during our sessions, but using muscle checking gives us an invaluable tool to tap into the part of the mind we can't easily access. The 90% that knows what that client needs on that particular day, for that particular goal, and even in what order to address it.

All we need to do is trust the body, and trust the process. 

It hasn't failed me yet...