Palmar Grasp Reflex
What is the Palmar Grasp Reflex?
The Palmar Grasp Reflex is one of Baby’s earliest and most recognizable reflexes. You may have noticed how Baby’s tiny hand wraps tightly around your finger — that’s the Palmar Grasp Reflex in action.
This reflex is triggered when you place gentle pressure in Baby’s palm, causing them to close their fingers and grip. The connection between Baby’s hand and mouth means this reflex also appears while feeding — as Baby sucks, their hands may reflexively clench and relax.
The Palmar Grasp Reflex supports important early skills such as:
Suckling and feeding coordination
Speech and fine motor development
Hand-eye coordination
Visual focus and depth perception
Signs of a Retained Palmar Grasp Reflex
If the Palmar Grasp Reflex does not fully integrate, older children or adults may experience:
Poor fine motor skills
Difficulty with handwriting or drawing
Mouth or tongue movements when writing or concentrating
Difficulty turning thoughts into written language
Retained Primitive Reflexes affect EVERYTHING
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Retained Primitive Reflexes affect EVERYTHING 〰️
How Chiropractic Care Can Help
At Blessingways Family Wellness in Airdrie and North Calgary, our chiropractors—Dr. Melanie Beingessner, Dr. Laurence Dion, and Dr. Leah Robinson—help families support healthy brain and body development through gentle, movement-based chiropractic care.
When retained primitive reflexes are suspected, we:
Perform a thorough chiropractic and neurological examination.
Review a detailed intake form to identify which reflexes may be active.
Create a personalized care plan that includes gentle chiropractic adjustments and home-based movement activities.
Recommend daily exercises to help the nervous system learn new, more coordinated patterns.
Re-evaluate progress regularly to monitor changes and refine care.
Every nervous system is unique. While many people respond well to chiropractic adjustments and home movement activities, progress depends on each individual’s ability to adapt and integrate new information.
📞 Call Blessingways Family Wellness at (403) 945-2422
to book your appointment or learn more about our family chiropractic services in Airdrie
Best Beginnings: Infant Massage and Movement Program
Ready to nurture your baby’s growth from the very beginning?
Our Best Beginnings Program teaches parents hands-on ways to support healthy growth and brain development, calm Baby’s nervous system, and encourage reflex integration through touch and play.
You’ll receive:
● Over 20 hours of guided video tutorials
●Simple, science-based activities you can do at home
● Practical home organization tips
● Exclusive downloadable guides and printable resources
● Unlimited lifetime access
Exercises to Help Integrate the Palmar Grasp Reflex
Every morning for 30 days
20 repetitions of the Sequential Finger Touching Exercise
20 repetitions of at least one fun movement activity from the video links below
Every afternoon or evening for 30 days
20 repetitions of the Sequential Finger Touching Exercise
20 repetitions of at least one fun exercise from the links below
(You can do as many of the fun exercises as you like!)
Sequential Finger Touching Exercise Demonstration
Here are more fun Tonic Labyrinthine Reflex Integration Exercises to choose from
Click Here to see 5 videos of Additional FUN Exercises - click on the Palmar Grasp Functional Activities folder
Click Here for additional FUN integration exercises that we’ve found on YouTube
Click Here to print a 30 days exercise Tracking Calendar
Dr. Melanie, Dr. Laurence and Dr. Leah have taken many courses about retained primitive reflexes. One course, offered by Harkla, called Assessment and Integration of Primitive Reflexes Master Level was created by Rachel Harrington and Jessica Hill, both occupational therapists
We have been given permission by them to post their very thorough information on our website and to give their handouts to our patients.
