Mirroring Neurons and How They Work During Functional Symmetry - by Triya Smith.

A lot of people ask me what Functional Symmetry is and if it will help with their symptom or issue. The answer to the former is not short although I try to convey it concisely. I say, "It is a system of healing that addresses why symptoms manifest and how to help the system return to balance so that the symptoms are no longer necessary." I save the, "How does it work?" aspect for the minority, geeky population. The answer to the latter: It depends how complex the issue is.

Question: How do I learn what's going on within your system so that I can help it restore itself to balance? Semi-Answer: In part by using a dynamic series of kinesiological testing and via the mirror neurons.

Human beings and because we have nervous systems, are constantly conveying information to our environment (and other people) about what's going on inside them. We literally cannot keep a secret from Life. We're an open book, although most humans aren't paying that close attention. Our nervous systems are incredible! They are in a constant state of relaying and processing every unit of information your senses can perceive as well as your reaction to everything going on in and around you. Every memory, thought, all your chemistry in a given moment, digesting your food, your response to people's facial expressions, the outside temperature and on and on are all being processed via your nervous system. There is an ongoing feedback between Life and your body, mind, memories, emotions and the meaning you make out of it all. All this feedback and response systems create a neuro-network and is what I like to call your 'Response Matrix.' This response matrix not only conveys information in the form of complex physiological, emotional and mental patterns to your own system but also to your environment, all the time. One aspect of this conveying is called 'Mirror Neurons' and is the remaining basis of this article.

A geeky anecdote: A monkey in a research lab at the University of Parma, Italy had neurological feedback equipment on his head so that every time he reached for a banana, the light would turn on. When a lab assistant reached for a banana, the monkey’s light turned on.

Mirror neurons are a class of neurons that respond both when one is performing a specific activity and when they observe the same or similar act performed by another. The same mirror neurons in you are responding whether you're doing the activity or you're observing someone else doing the activity. This is a mammal thing. It's how an entire herd of gazelles knows to run at the exact same time because the information was conveyed from one nervous system to the next and next SUPER fast, seemingly instantaneous. When you observe someone performing an activity such as playing tennis, your brain, neurons and muscle fibers respond, on some levels, as if you were the one playing tennis. It's like you feel like them for a moment. This scientifically discovered phenomenon, that our nervous system mirrors what others are doing, is a huge contributing factor in rapport, safety with others, healing and conveying and receiving vital information between two or more.

Woah.

Accurate knowledge and application of the mirror neuron function is the basis of how I use muscle testing during treatments. When I apply muscle testing with a client, I'm “registering” (via a muscle test) what their system is “conveying” and thus have information needed to move forward in the session. It's my job as a practitioner to learn what is being conveyed by my client. Humans are always conveying more information about themselves than they may be conscious of. With the information revealed through muscle testing, I can then help their system return to balance. When the work in a session is focused on a particular issue, the client's system has an amazing ability to retrieve the exact information needed to reveal and fix the underlying contributing factors of the issue at hand. Your system knows how to fix itself! It's my job to help reveal the complex map, the Response Matrix, so it can be updated making room for new outcomes for their body, emotions, mental and other states.

As a final cool thought, what would it be like if we could learn and change ourselves simply by being around someone with whom we want to model ourselves after? When two people (i.e. their systems) "resonate with each other" and are in proximity, such as an enjoyable conversation, your mirroring neuron system reflects the other person's inner process and ongoing changes your system in turn may apply those changes to yourself. You, the observer, the one on the receiving/listening end of the exchange, is tracking the moment to moment state of the other person who is conveying. This application of change to oneself by proximity and observation of another is happening both consciously and unconsciously. This is amazing because we can be deliberate about who we spend time with while intending to learn the best from them just by proximity and mirroring their mirror neurons. A fun example: If you want to be better at math, spend time with someone good at math and while you're observing them do it, you can intentionally tell your brain, "Mirror them. Do it this way," and let nature do its thing. Of course you have to be paying attention... We humans do this learn-by-example-thing all the time, for better or worse. My advice? Choose wisely who you spend time with. We don't just learn cognitively. We learn by conveying and receiving on many levels.

Remember: Their mirroring neurons and yours, when in proximity or
viewing, are ALWAYS in communication, on some level. It's a
mammal survival thing. The key with muscle testing is utilizing this
consciously so that as a practitioner, I can be lead through your
system to the answers that lie within.