Tonic Labyrinthine Reflex

Baby cradled in gentle adult hands.The Tonic Labyrinthine Reflex (TLR) is vital for addressing issues with core strength, balance, vestibular sensitivity, gravitational insecurity, visual challenges, posture, and stamina. This reflex is activated by movement of the head, and provides the baby with a means of learning about gravity and mastering head control outside the womb. TLR has two positions: flexion (forward) and extension (backward).

Flexion: As the head bends forward, the whole body—arms, legs, and torso—curl inward in the characteristic fetal position. This position emerges at 12 weeks in utero, and should be integrated by 4 months after birth.

Extension: As the head is bent backward, the whole body—arms, legs, and torso—straighten and extend. This position is present at birth, and is meant to fully integrate by approximately age 3.

The TLR reflex gives the baby opportunities to practice balance, increase muscle tone, and develop the proprioceptive and vestibular senses. Eventually the Tonic Labyrinthine Reflex interacts with other reflexes and bodily processes to help the child develop coordination, posture, and correct head alignment. It is critical for this reflex to integrate because correct alignment of the head with the rest of the body is necessary for balance, visual tracking, auditory processing, and organized muscle tone—all of which are vital to the ability to focus and pay attention.

If normal development is disrupted and the TLR remains active (unintegrated), or if it re-emerges later in life due to trauma or injury, then a variety of physical, sensory, and learning challenges may result.

Possible Long-Term Effects of an Unintegrated Tonic Labyrinthine Reflex:

  • Balance and coordination problems
  • Shrunken posture
  • Fatigues easily
  • Muscle tone usually weak or too tight
  • Difficulty judging distance, depth, space, and speed
  • Fear of heights
  • “W” leg position when floor sitting
  • Motion sickness
  • Visual, speech, or auditory difficulties
  • Tendency to be cross-eyed
  • Stiff jerky movement
  • Toe walking
  • Difficulty walking up and down stairs
  • Difficulty following directional or movement instructions

Get Your Comprehensive Chart with a Checklist for Each Primitive and Postural Reflex

Chart of possible long-term effects for primitive and postural reflexes in the Brain and Sensory Foundations program


 

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