With the school holidays fast approaching, I thought that it would be the perfect time to explain what Retained Neonatal Reflexes are, and how they can impact your child’s (or your) health and wellbeing. From learning and behaviour, to sports and music, retained neonatal reflexes can significantly impact your child’s ability to reach their full potential in life.

What are neonatal reflexes?

Neonatal reflexes are a set of pre-programmed responses and behaviours designed to help us survive in the early stages of life. These reflexes appear in utero and help us develop our muscular tone, balance, hand-eye coordination and basic movement patterns.

What happens if neonatal reflexes don’t integrate correctly?

Within 12-18 months, neonatal reflexes normally integrate into higher brain centres and we develop our postural reflexes that remain with us for the rest of our lives. If these reflexes don’t integrate correctly, they may interfere with behaviour, learning, balance, normal body movement, vision, hormonal function, fine motor control and more.

How are neonatal reflexes retained?

Retained neonatal reflexes may result from physical, chemical and/or emotional trauma from conception to the early months of life. Caesarean section or intervention during the birth process appears to be amongst the most common causes for these reflexes not integrating correctly.

How are retained neonatal reflexes corrected?

The Retained Neonatal Reflexes technique uses a number of very precise structural corrections, including cranio-sacral therapy, to assist with the integration of retained neonatal reflexes. The technique is primarily used on children, particularly those with learning or behavioural difficulties or delays. The improvements that I have seen in children throughout my career using this technique have been simply mind-blowing.

What else can affect neonatal reflexes?

Food allergens such as gluten and dairy seem to be heavily involved with the retention of neonatal reflexes. Reducing or eliminating these foods can often have a huge impact on improving your child’s health and wellbeing, and assisting with the integration of retained neonatal reflexes.

Vitamins and minerals also play a huge role in the biochemical pathways associated with different reflexes. Vitamin and/or mineral deficiencies can contribute to reflexes not integrating properly, so it is important to assess for various deficiencies and supplement accordingly to help the retained reflexes integrate correctly.

Can adults have retained neonatal reflexes?

It is less common that with children, but adults can also have retained neonatal reflexes that can impact normal neurological function. Reflexes may be present after integrating initially, especially following traumatic events such as accidents, divorces, abuse or any other severe stress on the body.

Get your child checked today.

Helping children is one of the most rewarding things I could ever do. As I explain to parents, imagine driving your car with the handbrake on. You can still drive your car, but there is resistance and it makes it harder to drive.

Retained neonatal reflexes is like driving with the handbrake on for children. It creates resistance when it comes to learning, behaviour, emotional regulation, sports and many other aspects of your child’s development.

If you think your child, and anyone else you know, may have symptoms of retained neonatal reflexes, please book an appointment with me to see how I can help.

My sole focus is to help children be as happy and healthy as possible, so that they can reach their full potential in life.