Cellular Memory

Basic Evolutionary Process

Cellular memory is a much debated and little understood topic by most. Yet it is surprisingly simple to relate to and understand if we look at it in context with the evolutionary process that drives all living systems.

This process uses DNA to encode and pass on information to future generations. Although the replication and transfer process is well understood scientists are still unravelling the processes by which these genes can have such a profound influence on not only a species physical structures, but also on its desires and patterns of behaviour.

‘Cellular memory’ is merely the passing on of patterns of behaviour or  ‘instincts’ from one generation to another. 

Many species never meet their parents, who might eat them if they did, let alone get training or guidance from them. Yet they are born perfectly adapted to their environment and instinctively perform complex patterns of behaviour. Without this genetic pre-programming, life forms could not reproduce and survive without extended parental guidance and tuition.

More 'Primitive' Species

On an evolutionary scale the less developed the brain and central nervous system of the species the more heavily they tend to rely on this genetic memory that is contained in every cell. They have no real period of ‘infancy’ where they are nurtured and instructed. They are effectively born as fully fledged adults, often as exact physical replicas of their parents, of course initially though they are often much smaller versions .

Insects, for example, do not need to be trained or guided as to what to do. Immediately after birth they know how to survive in their environment, can perform complex tasks and often instinctively create intricate symbiotic relationships with other species.

As the clip below from David Attenborough’s ‘Life in the Undergrowth’ shows: 

 

Likewise when a baby turtle hatches from its egg, it does not stop and look around for its mother, discuss options of what to do with its siblings, or explore its environment by seeing what its like inland before deciding to risk the turbulent ocean. No! Straight out of the blocks it knows to rush to the ocean and it even knows how to swim. The turtle instinctively knew how to respond to its environmental cues.

Another more striking example is, that when a brood of freshly hatched chicks sees a hawk fly over their coop, they run for shelter. Yet if a pigeon fly’s over they do not. Where did they learn the difference? Who or what, shall we say, is deciding when such determinations are made? Experimenters have fashioned imitation hawks of wood and have drawn these across such coops on a wire. The chicks all scurry to shelter; but if the same models are drawn backward, they do not.

Innate Releasing Mechanisms (IRM's)

‘Both the readiness to respond to specific triggering stimuli and the ensuing patterns of appropriate action are in all such cases inherited with the physiology of the species. Known as "innate releasing mechanisms" (IRM's), they are constitutional to the central nervous system. And there are such in the physical make-up of the species Homo sapiens as well.’ (Joseph Campbell, ‘Myths to Live By’ p.117) Innate is Latin for ‘born with’.

Inherited IRM's provide us with an ‘instinctual’ pre-programmed behaviour that we can do quickly, and without thinking, to keep ourselves safe. Whether this be a little chick running from a hawks shadow or a Homo Sapien running from a lions roar the organism can react instantly and move to safety without first having to weigh up the situation and then decide on the best possible outcome.   By the time we had done this it may have been too late and we would be killed by the threat.

The total reliance on instinctive behaviors, which are genetically programmed and usually are not influenced by experience or learning, by more ‘primitive’ species like insects, has positive and negative effects. If your species is constantly being reproduced in a stable environment this system works well. You can still change and evolve slowly over time through ‘natural selection’ or ‘fortunate genetic mistakes’ which will gradually lead to the development of a new species that is adapted to a new environment. Yet you do not have the ability to adapt quickly, so if your environment suddenly changes radically within one generation, then you might be wiped out.

Imprinting.

The next evolutionary step up from relying purely on genetic pre-programming is for the organism to have the ability to adapt more easily to its immediate environment and to be able to pass what it has learned onto future generations. Its offspring need to be more flexible and adaptable, particularly in their youth, even though this also makes them more vulnerable in their infantile stage.

An example of this more complex interaction between genetic and environmental influences on animal behavior is provided by imprinting. It is a phenomenon exhibited by several species when young, mainly birds, such as ducklings and chicks. Upon coming out of their eggs, they will follow and become attached (socially bonded) to the first moving object they encounter (which usually, but not necessarily, is the mother duck or hen).The first scientific studies of this phenomenon were carried out by Austrian naturalist Konrad Lorenz (1903 - 1989), one of the founders of ethology (the study of animal behavior).

This ‘Imprinting’ accelerates the bonding process between the mother and her offspring. Once they are imprinted she can rely on her offspring following her, and she can focus her energy on looking out for danger, this therefore improves their chances of survival.

More Complex Species

As species become more complex with their biology there is a whole spectrum of different mixtures of innate and learned behaviours. For example, many learned behavioral patterns are dependent on innate mechanisms. A kitten has the brain mechanisms for hunting rats, but it must learn how to use them with its mother cat. The same happens with some song birds: they must hear their colleagues singing otherwise their singing patterns will come out garbled and un-recognisable for the birds of the same species.

Homo sapiens have both pre-programmed innate ‘instincts’ and the ability to learn and take on a cultural imprint. The sucking behavior of babies is one of  several instinctive behaviors which we are born with. On the other side we have behaviors which are almost entirely dependent on learning, such as the language you speak.

It was once thought by many people that our environment had the most influence upon our development and behaviourists like B.F.Skinner took this to extremes. The nature versus nurture debate is now well and truly over as we now have more understanding about the complex relationship between innate and learned behaviours. Some of these innate ones are universal to our species (Jungian archetypes of the unconscious) and some are more specific to us as individuals and our family of origin (cellular memory).

As a species Homo Sapiens are evolutionary masters. Our minds and bodies do whatever it takes to survive. If you encounter something that is too overwhelming for your consciousness to deal with it will suppress those thoughts and feelings and store them in our subconscious or ‘body mind’ until you are in a place where your subconscious believes you are ready to face them. If possible your subconscious will suppress this trauma until you have had children so that it gives you the best chance to hand your genes onto the next generation.

Organ Transplant Recipients

The ability to hand down patterns of behaviours from one generation to the next is further verified by the experiences of many organ transplant recipients. After the organ has been transplanted they often take on patterns of behavior that are similar to the person who donated the organ. 

In his book ‘The Hearts Code’ Paul Pearsall Ph.D. presents many examples of heart transplant recipients who experienced changes in their thoughts, appetites and desires after their transplant. These were not negative and were expressed in many different ways such as changes in sex drive, changes in appetite, and recurring dreams. When investigated further it was found that these patterns of behaviour and preferences were the same as ones held by the people who donated their heart to them.

Family Genograms

The best way to observe any patterns in your family of origion that may have been handed down to you is to do a Genogram of your family. A Genogram is a family tree that shows not just who lived and died but what their relationships were like with each other. You can easily see family patterns, and how if they are unresolved they are they are passed on from one generation to another. Of course some of these are handed down through environmental conditioning, and as the studies of twins and adopted children have proven it also happens when children are brought up in a different family than their genetic family of origin.

How this works is simple - Firstly our genes that are handed down to us from previous generations effect our physical makeup, our desires and what motivates us. We then interact with our environment and depending on how we perceive this interaction, our thoughts and feelings then effect our genes and we hand those onto the next generation.  In fact twin studies have shown that your genes account for 50 to 75 per cent of you choices. Which makes sense from an evolutionary perspective as we would want to be as prepared for our new environment as much as possible and still have the flexibility to adapt to changes in our environment.

Why is Unresolved Trauma Handed Down Genetically?

Why is unresolved trauma handed down genetically? Because IRM’s are primarily there to protect you and make sure that you have the best chance of surviving in the environment that you are born into. Therefore if you experience trauma from your environment you want to pass on to your offspring the ability to avoid the same trauma. Now this works great if you are a chicken and your main predator is a hawk and you want your offspring to avoid being eaten.

Yet today we live very complex lives and trauma effects us in complex ways. If you were sexually abused for instance you may shutdown emotionally, avoid certain people, and dislike sexual intercourse. You may also have taken on the conscious or subconscious belief that you must be bad and need to be punished. Therefore you either punish or hurt yourself or you find someone to do this to you. For this is the best way for you to cope with the trauma and survive. Now whilst this may be a good short term coping mechanism it is not a pattern of behaviour that you would want to pass onto your children because it would be harmful to them, limit their quality of life, and not enhance the projection of you genes forward to future generations.

For example, if your mother and/or father were sexually abused and this is unresolved in them, then it can be genetically handed down to you as an IRM. This may present in you as a strong feeling of being uncomfortable around anyone who has similar ‘energy’ to the person who abused your mother. You may have no logical reason why you dislike these people. Yet you will react towards them exactly the same way you would, if they had abused you. When you see them your sexual abuse IRM is triggered and you do what ever you need to do to keep yourself safe so that you are not hurt again.

Whilst you have unresolved trauma within you, whether it be genetically inherited or from your own experience you subconsciously keep recreating similar traumatic situations in order to bring this trauma to the surface to be healed, and released. That's why we may find ourselves attracting the same type of people and having relationships with them, even though theses relationships are traumatic, and even when we are doing our best to avoid these type of people, Our system simply wants to find closure and heal. So if you don’t resolve things, and pass them on, your children will keep recreating the same negative patterns that will have plagued you, even though they might consciously strive to do the opposite.

Therapeutic Application.

The real proof as to whether or not an unresolved pattern of behaviour has been passed on through cellular memory lays within each individual. If the pattern exists, has not been handed on through personal experience or social conditioning, and is having an adverse effect on the quality of some ones life, then knowledge about cellular memory and how it works can give you an insight into the origin of the pattern and some clues as to how to resolve it.

It is merely another diagnostic tool.

It also gives us all more incentive to resolve our own issues so that we don’t hand them onto future generations either genetically, energetically, or through social conditioning.