About baby massage
Many cultures have used massage as part of baby care for
hundreds of years, and research shows it can have many benefits.
Massage enables you to learn about and respond to your baby's
body language. It is also a wonderful way to make your baby
feel safe and secure by showing that he or she is loved
and cared for. There is no set way to massage your baby
- provided you know how to do it safely, you and your baby
will discover what's best for you both. It is important
to remember, however, that massage is something you do with,
rather than to your baby. It is recommended that you learn
from someone with a qualification in baby massage, or from
a midwife or health visitor, to ensure you are doing it
safely.
(From Baby massage: a guide for parents
produced by the International Association of Infant Massage
and Johnson's baby)
The benefits
A ten minute massage, two or three times a week helps make
a more confident mother-infant relationship, babies love
it and it can help alleviate baby ailments too. You will
probably ask yourself, do babies actually need massage?
Surely they are supple, relaxed and do not seem to face
the stresses that make us knotted and tense. Lorraine Tolley
of The Guild of Infant & Child Massage explains that not
every baby knows how to relax: "Many babies are fussy, disorganised
and have colic, cry a lot or sleep poorly. Massage can help
with all these problems."
- Massage can begin from the day the baby is born, but
many parents start later having been taught by health
professionals or having been on a course
- Massage is an excellent way of connecting with your
baby if you are a working mum. A short massage each night
before bath time can help your baby feel loved
- Massage can alleviate trapped wind, soothe colic or
alleviate constipation
- Massaging the jaw can relax a baby who has just begun
to take solids
- Massaging the gums through the skin may ease the pain
of teething
- A face massage can unblock baby's blocked nose
- Massage can alleviate the effects of postnatal depression
and help mother have a more positive interaction with
their baby
The benefits of infant massage for
your child
- Smoothes transition from womb to the world
- Develops baby's first language: touch
- Teaches positive loving touch
- Develops a feeling of being loved, respected and secure
- Develops body, mind, awareness and coordination
- Can help to reduce the discomfort of colic, wind and
constipation
- Helps to regulate and strengthen baby's digestive and
respiratory systems and stimulate circulatory and nervous
systems
- Promotes relaxation
- Can help to reduce 'fussiness' and improve quality of
sleep
- Improves skin condition
The benefits of infant massage for
parents
- Helps parent to understand baby's non-verbal communication
- Enhances parent's confidence and competence in dealing
with baby
- Can help with postnatal depression
- Both parents and baby relax together
- Promotes lactation in breastfeeding mums (through stimulation
of hormones)
- Promotes nurturing instinct (through stimulation of
hormone oxytocin)
(From The Guild of Infant & Child Massage
website, www.gicm.org.uk,
2005)
Many parents have hectic lifestyles, juggling a host of
responsibilities and activities, and many new mothers have
the added stress of having to return to work due to financial
commitments. Quality time with children can often be affected
because of this and infant massage, an age old tradition,
is simple, free, can be administered almost anywhere and
has a host of emotional and physical benefits for both parents
and baby.
In her book The Power of Touch,
Phyllis K Davies provocatively states that 'Touch is not
a pleasant stimulus, but a biological necessity'. Certainly
Bernard Brazelton, child psychologist, believes that touch
is central to the development of the bonding relationship
between mother and infant. Infant massage is a form of positive
touch and therefore without doubt, an extremely important
form of communication between parent and baby and helps
with the attachment and bonding process.
[.]
Infant massage should be a pleasant experience for both
the mother and the infant, and whilst it does not always
come naturally to mothers/parents, it is not difficult and
it can be learned from others practicing or from specially
designed infant massage Classes. The aim of such classes
is to teach basic, safe strokes to parents whilst building
their confidence in touching their babies - thus empowering
parents. Through massage parents can learn how their babies
communicate with them by understanding their baby's positive
and negative cues; promoting understanding and a mutual
respect for one another. The classes can also serve to help
parents understand about over-stimulation of the baby and
why babies cry and use self-calming techniques. Infant-massage
also offers an opportunity for positive touch and early
play, including music and rhymes in the infant massage classes.
Studies have shown that using nursery rhymes can be a wonderful
learning tool and can even enhance brain development of
the child and in addition studies have shown that positive
touch with infants leads to healthy physical and brain development
[.]
Strong attachment can develop a sense of security in a
child and the child is more likely to grow up more self-assured
and self-confident. As attachment is founded in the very
early months, by its very definition Infant Massage has
a profound effect on the emotional well-being of the infant
and can be used to achieve a sense of security for the growing
child. The emotional benefits of infant massage, such as
quality, one-to-one loving touch, can also be experienced
by fathers.It is important to involve older children too.
Sibling rivalry can be a real issue when a new baby joins
the family; involving the older child in the massage routine
can help with feelings of resentment, perhaps massaging
their teddy alongside or just holding the oil bottle!
(Extracted from The Benefits of infant
massage, an article by Anita Epple, qualified infant massage
teacher and Touch-Learn director, for more information visit
www.touchlearn.co.uk)
PROFESSIONAL TRAINING
- Body Basics School of Body Therapy
is a London-ased training provider that offers a Baby
Massage Diploma, a practical course that demonstrates
how to instruct parents in groups and individually on
how to massage their baby safely. For more information
go to www.bodybasicsonline.co.uk
- Essentials for Health run the IAIM Infant Massage Instructor Certificate at St Thomas Hospital, Lambeth Palace Road, London. For more information telephone 0845 108 0088 or visit www.essentialsforhealth.co.uk
- The Guild of Infant & Child Massage
runs an accreditation programme for training providers.
For a list of accredited trainers go to www.gicm.org.uk/Trainers.asp
or call 01889 564555.
- The International Association
of Infant Massage runs a Certified Infant Massage
Instructor (CIMI) course. The course and certificate are
designed to teach people to provide infant massage training
to parents and carers. For more information or to access
a list of instructors go to www.iaim.org.uk
or call 07816 289 788.
- How to teach baby massage is a course run by Sally
Cranfield in Lewes, East Sussex. It is a five day
postgraduate course for massage practitioners, body workers
and health care professionals, with special courses also
available for Sure Start staff. It is accredited by Embody
(the International Guild of Professional Practitioners).
Sally Cranfield qualified in massage in 1987 and has been
running courses for parents and carers since 1991. For
more information visit www.massageforbabies.com
- The Sandra Day School of Health
Studies has been in operation for 15 years. It
offers a range of massage courses including Baby Massage
in Clinical Practice for Health Professionals. For more
information go to www.sandraday.com
- Touch Learn is a training
company that specialises in positive touch training programmes
such as infant massage, music and movement. Its countrywide
courses include an Infant Massage Teacher Training Course
that is designed for participants to become fully competent
teachers with the knowledge required to establish their
own practice. For more information go to www.touchlearn.co.uk
Baby Massage,
by
Alan Heath and Nicki Bainbridge (Dorling Kindersley, 2004).
Covers key techniques, everyday care and massage for different
age groups.
Baby Massage,
by
Helen McGuinness (Hodder Arnold, 2003). This is a
guide for professional instructors and parents under instruction
on how to massage their babies.
Baby Massage for Beginners,
by Peter Walker (Carroll & Brown
Publishers, 2002). This is a step-by-step guide covering
massage for babies up to three years old.
Baby Massage for Dummies,
by Joanne Bagshaw and Ilene Fox
(Hungry Minds Inc, 2005). Covers the benefits of
baby massage, massage strokes and easing health problems
with massage.
Baby Massage: Expert Know-how at
Your Fingertips,
by Gayle
Berry and Bo Lundberg (MQ Publications, 2005). Practical
advice on the art of baby massage.
Soothe Your Baby the Natural Way,
by Pamela Rhatigan (Hamlyn, 2005).
Covers bonding, calming rituals, massage techniques and
natural remedies.
Blossom and Berry. A resource on baby massage, baby yoga and holistic help for pregnancy, birth and childhood. The site also stocks a number of resources to help you learn baby massage at home
. Visit
www.blossomandberry.com
Guild of Infant and Child Massage.
GICM works to set standards for the safe, professional practice
of positive touch with infants and children. For more information
tel: 01889 564 555 or go to
www.gicm.org.uk
International Association of Infant
Massage (UK Chapter). The purpose of IAIM is to promote
nurturing touch and communication through training, education
and research so that parents, caregivers and children are
loved, valued and respected throughout the world community.
For more information Tel: 07816 289 788 or go to
www.iaim.org.uk
Touch Research Institute.
TRI was set up in 1992 as the first centre dedicated solely
to the study of touch and its application in science and
medicine. For more information go to
www.miami.edu/touch-research
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