How do Mirror Neurons affect us?

Have you ever found yourself holding your breath and realize it’s because the person you are with is holding theirs? You may have noticed that when you’re having a bad day, your child is having more difficulty themselves. Or how quickly does your mood and behavior change when your partner or child is having a difficult day? A large contributing factor to these reactions are mirror neurons.

We actually rely a lot on these neurons being active in our developing children. Mirror neurons cause a person to unconsciously imitate gestures and moods around them. Neurons affect us physically, emotionally and cognitively. We smile, the baby smiles. However, mirror neurons are active with everyone throughout our lives. So in helping our children cope and heal, how we are wired plays an important role.

Mirror neurons contribute to our likelihood of acting similar to another. However, we are not at their mercy. We can maintain awareness and choose our response. We can also decide to try to be the stronger neuron. For example, when I am working on someone I’ll occasionally notice I am not breathing. This brings my attention to the fact that the person is holding their breath. I then decide to try to be the stronger neuron. Focusing on deepening my breath and connecting with that person, I hope to trigger their mirror neurons and hence guide their bodies to more relaxed breathing.

By taking care of ourselves, being in a more calm balanced state, we can have a stronger impact on assisting our children through their healing. If I am trying to do exercises with my child to calm them, but I am stressed, the impact of my actions is dampened. Their neurons are responding to what they are picking up from us. This can relate to our nervous system wiring also.

For those who have had their children’s primary reflexes checked, how many of those unintegrated reflexes did you relate to yourself? Yes, there may be a genetic component involved, but by integrating ourselves, we can potentially speed the rate in which they integrate their reflexes. Their systems will want to match ours. We can be the mirror.

Modalities of Healing

There are many ways to consider healing yourself or boosting the strength of the nervous system. I provide Caregiver Sessions. In these sessions not only do I work on integrating reflexes, but also on releasing the chronic stress patterns from the body. This helps to detoxify the stored adrenaline and cortisol in the body along with change our body’s typical reaction to stressors. When the patterns have been released we build up the resiliency of the nervous system so that stress is less likely to detrimentally affect us. With our nervous system calmer and stronger, our children’s systems will respond more quickly to the work we’re doing to build theirs.

Another way to consider is utilizing Energy Work. My work is based upon the physical. However, we have an energetic body also known as the human energy field. We are beginning to understand that our energy field can also be out of balance and affect us physically, emotionally and mentally. There are many different forms of energy healing such as Reiki, Chakra Balancing, Healing Touch, Pranic Healing, just to name a few. Consider trying different modalities to see what feels right for you. Here are a couple of options offered right in Optimal You office space and may be able to scheduled the same time I am working with your child.

Our thought process is another aspect that leads us in our feelings and actions. Learning to recognize our triggers and release them go a long way in reducing family and personal stress. It gives us the strength to be the stronger neuron, to rewire our response to situations and be the mirror we want to be. Shawn McStravick offers Reiki, chakra balancing, illuminations, small groups, one-on-one intuitive guidance as well as powerful tools to help you release what is not working in your life, bring in more balance, peace and joy.

Amber Schiessle is now offering The Emotion Code, a great way to delve deeper into the sub-conscious mind and body to better understand ourselves and discover underlying contributions to illness, discomfort, and behavioral issues. It’s not easy to do important inner work alone. Emotion Code is a non-invasive, simple and easy way to seek support from another being who wants you to heal just as much as you do. With Emotion Code, you can get answers and find solutions to long-standing problems and struggles in your life, you mind, and your physical body.

I know most of our time and resources goes to our children. However, taking a little bit for yourself can go a long way to assisting the entire family. Be the mirror you want to be and watch how things reflect back to you.