ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the relevance of present moments for the child’s development of a self-regulation capacity and a mature personality. It discusses how the co-ordination of expressions that have communicative value is evident from birth, and how the internalisation of intersubjective regulatory interactions enable the development of a creative self. Louis Sander introduced the term “moments of meeting” in the 1950s, based on the bio-rhythms that begin with the mother—child interaction around the establishment of sleep, waking, and feeding rhythms, and which depend on the carer’s and child’s engagement in shared activities. Sander pointed out that moments of meeting increase the nervous system’s capacity for intensifying and co-regulating with another person’s activities. The present moment provides openness and a sense of belonging that activates the brain’s subcortical areas, which are related to affects about emotions. The present moments are co-created by the two parties in the relationship and require an emotional openness from them both.
