With many thanks to Marian Goldberg |
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by Marian Goldberg
How Habits Affect Our Functioning
How do habits develop? We can see how habits develop
by observing the movements of a child. Babies are usually
born with an overall fundamental pattern of coordination
"programmed" into their nervous systems. This
primary pattern works efficiently and easily with the
human structure. An example of this natural efficiency
of the human mechanism can be seen with a baby who spontaneously
sits up by himself. Generally, a baby of 12 months sits
very upright naturally. In fact, it is far easier and
more natural for a baby to sit upright than for the
typical adult who slouches into a supposedly "relaxed"
movement/postural pattern. As a child grows, he usually
starts to imitate the mannerisms of those around him,
such as parents, peers, and teachers. These "imitations"
often become permanent and the child will probably lose
any conscious awareness that he is doing them.The child
may also experience injuries or other uncomfortable
experiences which lead to fixed, inefficient habits.
These habits can become a constant interference with
his natural fundamental coordination. This on-going
interference can affect how his muscles develop, how
he moves, how he breathes, and how his alignment and
posture develop. Most importantly, the child's (and
adult's) senses of movement (kinesthetic sense) and
balance can become skewed by relying on long-term, fixed
habits. These senses are then unable to function as
reliable guides for efficient coordination. Though the
child or adult may eventually sense that something is
wrong with his movement, posture, or other aspects of
his functioning, his senses involved in coordination
(proprioception) have become so altered by his habits
that he finds he can't rely on these senses when he
tries to make changes and improvements. The on-going
interference of his habits may be causing him excessive
and constant stress but the child or adult finds it
difficult to "stop" his habits because they
feel familiar and "right" to him.
Maladaptive habits alter our general sensory feedback.They
alter our perceptions of what feels "right":
These altered perceptions and concomitant feelings affect
everything we do which involves our coordination. And
all activities, whether "physical" or "mental,"
involve coordination, or the way we use ourselves.
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