When my kids were little, we’d wrestle. They’d have a blast and laugh their heads off when I would tickle them. And always they would try to tickle me. I willed myself not to laugh. It was tough at first...but I learned to steel myself. This was the first time I ever practiced using my mind to suppress a reflex. A small feat to be sure, but they were impressed.

Can fear be controlled? Can you suppress the reflex to flinch? Ignore an itch? Can pain be ignored? Physical pain? Mental or emotional pain?

To learn techniques (if possible), would surely take practice to achieve level 4 competency- that they become like muscle memory- reflexes in their own right.