Did He Crawl?

I don't remember the exact conversation that took place between Pam Formosa (owner/director of Brain Fit Academy) and my husband and I. However, I'm sure that it happened during our initial screening appointment with her and I know it went something like this:

Pam: "Did he ever crawl? As a baby, did he crawl?"

Me: "No- he didn't. He started walking at nine months."

Pam: "Hmm...let me explain something...."

At this point, she would have explained the STNR reflex to us. 

STNR stands for Symmetrical Tonic Neck Reflex. Also, sometimes referred to as the crawling reflex. This is the reflex that when the baby raises its head against gravity, the baby's arms extend, lifting the chest off the floor. The knees and hips bend and the baby sits on their heels. If the baby looks down while on all 4's, their arms bend and their legs straighten. 

The primary purpose of the STNR is to get the baby into the crawling position, and it is expected to emerge (show up) at around 6-9 months after birth, and integrate (finish) by around 9-11 months. But you see, the STNR plays a bigger role in the grand scheme of things because this reflex (once integrated) gives way to the emergence and development of life-long postural reflexes.

Now as a young mother, I can remember thinking (and perhaps even bragging!) about how my children must have been so ahead of development that they didn't have to crawl. 

Neither of my children crawled. They both went from pulling themselves up on the furniture, to cruising the furniture, to walking. Literally no crawling. Not even a funky, different type of crawl, or a creep. Nope- right to walking. Both right around 9-10 months of age. And, my children are 18 months apart, so let me tell you- that made for some busy times!!

You may be wondering at this point- why is it so important that babies crawl? Well, remember how I've explained in other posts that primitive reflexes are early motor patterns that babies go through? And how that early movement sets up the brain for later development? The STNR reflex (and the integration of it) also plays an important role for later development.

If the STNR reflex is unintegrated (hasn't finished it's job) some of the things you might see are:

• The inability to crawl on hands and knees
• No isolation in upper/lower body
• The tendency to slump when sitting- particularly at a desk or table
• Difficulty doing activities where one side of the body must do a movement that is opposite of the other. For example, holding a paper steady or tying shoes.

Just like the other primitive reflexes, the body needs to work through the motor patterns of the STNR in order for life-long reflexes to take over. 

The STNR is kind of like a culmination of earlier reflexes- it helps to pull them together. Without integration of earlier reflexes, the STNR has a hard job emerging and doing its job. 

So when I think about how my children didn't crawl, and with what I know now about primitive reflexes, I see the connections. Especially for my youngest son- who is the one that went through the Brain Fit program. 

When he started at Brain Fit, he couldn't sit in a chair properly. He would sit on his foot, or he would stand. Although he had learned to tie shoes, it had taken us a really long time to teach him how to do it. He had such a hard time using both hands to do different things. Same for holding a paper while writing. 

In fact, I remember when he was in maybe 2nd or 3rd grade? One of his teachers helped him to "name" his left hand. The purpose was so that he (we) could say- "Don't forget about ----. He wants to hold the paper while you write!" Kind of silly when I think about it now, but it was a compensation, and it helped at the time. However, that compensation wasn't getting to the root of the problem- that pesky unintegrated STNR!

So no, my children didn't crawl. And, their STNR reflex didn't integrate. For my youngest, that was a problem. For my oldest, not as much. His body had managed to work around it somehow and it didn't interfere with his daily life. Not all kids need Primitive Reflex Integration just because they have a few unintegrated reflexes. In fact, many of us have unintegrated reflexes- at least a few.  

The thing to remember here is that there is a link between crawling and brain development. So if you're reading this and have a baby (or maybe a grand baby) in your life, encourage them to crawl before they walk. It can't hurt, and it will help set up the brain stem for later development.

You can be sure that when I have babies in my life again I'll be encouraging them to crawl first. 

I might even end up on the floor crawling right along with them. After all, why not? My STNR probably could do with a little work too... 

Thankful

In this crazy year of 2020, amidst a pandemic that threw the world into chaos, I am thinking about tomorrow's Thanksgiving Day and all that I am thankful for in regards to Brain Fit Academy.

I am thankful for smiles. The smiles on the faces of my clients and their parents. Smiles when they are able to do something they couldn't before. Or smiles when they no longer do something that they used to.

I am thankful for tears. Healing tears that move kids/teens/adults forward in their lives and in their goals.

I am thankful for the vestibular system. That amazing balance system based in our inner ear that provides the brain with information about our relationship with gravity. 

I am thankful for the "baby brain". The most primitive part of our brain that is the first to develop and allows us to do automatic tasks such as breathing and reflexive movements.

I am thankful for the proprioceptive system. Another sensory system that gathers information from our muscles, joints and tendons and helps us to know "where we are in space".

I am thankful for the "emotional brain". The part of the brain that allows us to "swirl" with emotion and feel all that we need to feel.

I am thankful for the "Learning Loop". This visual is such a beautiful and easy way to help kids understand what is happening when emotions get the better of them.

I am thankful for Brain Gym®. The 26 movements in this program that can help kids (through adults!) in a myriad of ways.

I am thankful for the "Thinking Brain" that allows us to use our brain to "respond" instead of "react". 

I am thankful for Primitive Reflex Integration. The form of work that can help children feel more comfortable, confident, coordinated, and happy.

I am thankful for my "Big Green Ball". My trusty helper that rides in my car and assists me whenever I call on it to work with kids.

I am thankful for my clients, their parents, and families. Being able to work with them brings tremendous joy to my life.

And finally, I am thankful for Pam Formosa. Owner/Director of Brain Fit Academy and the person who brought this amazing work to me and has taught me so much.

 

Yes, it sure is a time to be thankful. 

What are you thankful for?

We Use Movement

Survival. We all need to survive. Physically, emotionally, cognitively- survive. We go through our days, sometimes only seemingly "just surviving". It happens- to all of us, right?

We have stressors in our life that can push us into that "just surviving" mode. And, when in the middle of a pandemic, those stressors seem to keep coming, don't they? At least I feel like that for me. 

It could be the stress of remote learning and how it affects everyone- not just the kids. The stress of uncertainty- in the world as a whole as well in our own little world. Or the stress of trying to play multiple roles at once. The roles of parent, spouse, secretary, employee, friend, teacher or --add your own role here--. All of those stressors can put us into survival mode. 

But that's just us- the adults. What about the kids? 

Now in "normal" times, we might talk about kids being in survival mode due to learning challenges, anxiety provoking tests, social difficulties, other challenges such as ADHD/ADD, Autism, Dyslexia, or multiple unintegrated Primitive Reflexes. But add in COVID-19? Well- take all those stressors I mentioned above and throw in even more!

Now before I go further, let's back-up a minute. I mentioned at the beginning that we all need to survive- physically, emotionally, and cognitively. What do I mean by that? Well, if we're in survival mode, here is how a child might be affected:

• Physically: Having difficulty sitting still, manipulating pencil, coordinating your eyes to focus, sleep and eating patterns are disrupted.

• Emotionally: Reactive vs responsive. Difficulty controlling frustration- there’s no joy. A pervasive sense of fear and stress and anxiety over issues that are not a real threat takes over and experienced on daily basis. 

• Cognitively: Having difficulty thinking straight, can’t remember things. There is no long term or medium term plan, it’s all about getting through the next 24 hours. No goals. Planning and organizing is challenging.

Read those again. Read how kids can be affected. 

In that state, that state of survival, do you think much learning is going to happen? Go ahead, raise your hand if you think learning can happen when someone is physically, emotionally and cognitively in survival mode. And now, please tell me that you don't have your hand up!

How on earth could we expect someone to learn when all of that is going on? 

We can't!! They are just trying to make it through the next 24 hours!

Just.trying.to.survive.

Ok, so by this time, you may be wondering- what's the point here Amy? 

I'll tell you. The point is this- there is something that can help people come out of survival mode. Can help kids come out of survival mode. And what's strange to me? Is that this "mysterious" thing kind of seems like a secret, but it really isn't at all.

Want to know what it is?

It's movement.

Yup, you heard that right- movement. Intentional movement to be more specific. 

Not some miracle drug, or new-fangled therapy- just movement. Moving our bodies in intentional ways, with purposeful movements. 

We can move from "survival mode" to "learning mode" with movement. Isn't that amazing, and awe-inspiring and oh-so-easy?!?

At Brain Fit Academy, we can teach people how to do just that. We teach kids, teens, adults, parents, teachers, professionals (anyone who wants to learn!) how to move out of survival mode and be ready and able to learn, grow and enjoy life!

And those intentional movements? What are they? Well, we have a host of them. The 26 Brain Gym® movements are a staple, but we also incorporate other movements such as those from the Rhythmic Movement Training program, additional movements that mimic Primitive Reflex motor patterns as well as from a host of other tried and true programs. 

As I said- movement, intentional, purposeful movement is what can help us get out of that survival mode and back into learning mode. Doesn't that sound good?

It's not a secret. It's not a miracle. 

It's movement. We use movement.