STNR Reflex: What It Is, Signs of Retention & How to Support Integration

It’s all because of a retained reflex called the STNR - symmetrical tonic neck reflex. It’s a reflex that splits the body in half from top and bottom, and it helps to allow babies to learn to crawl forward. When it doesn’t integrate, or mature, that leaves the person’s body movements at the mercy of what their head, neck, and eyes are doing. It’s extremely exhausting! It can be 10 times harder for people with this reflex retained to copy from the board, sit properly in a chair, ride a bike, etc.

Two very important reflexes to integrate are the STNR & ATNR. Generally they integrate between 6 and 12 months old. When they don’t integrate, we can see a variety of functional challenges, including things like learning disabilities, handwriting difficulty, poor posture, ocular motor deficits, left / right confusion, and even misdiagnosed for ADHD! You can see them clearly when they aren’t integrated when doing activities like these! While these integration activities aren’t the most functional