How To Normalize Infant Massage
Infant massage has been around since the dawn of time. I'm sure that every mother learns very quickly the effect of touch of a baby. Vimala Schneider McClure brought this ancient art to the United States in the 1970's, after she observed the positive effect it had on infants in India. She practiced the Indian massage strokes on her own baby and observed its benefits first hand. Ms. McClure is the founder of the International Association of Infant Massage, and the author of "Infant Massage, a Handbook for Loving Parents". Swedish strokes, reflexology, and yoga along with the Indian massage strokes, make up the curriculum for teaching parents the art of infant massage.
The application of infant massage as a catalyst for normalizing a baby's physical and emotional life has a wide range of …show more content…
benefits, including helping to promote relaxation; improving sensory integration; helping aid deeper and longer sleep; encouraging mid-line orientation; assisting in bonding and attachment; assisting in vocalization; stimulating the circulatory and GI systems; assisting in pain relief; and enhancing neurological development.
The benefits of infant massage are a two-way street: Infant massage contributes to infant-parent attachment. The experience resonates with the baby, while bringing out nurturing qualities in parents. This is why infant massage is advocated as a parenting interaction, rather than as therapy performed by a massage therapist. Many leaders in the infant mental health field share this view: Infant massage is for those who will be raising the baby over the long haul.
Preterm Infants that received tactile/kinesthetic stimulation over a 10-day period. The infants averaged 21% greater weight gain per day and spent more time awake and active during sleep/wake behavior observations. Preterm infants who were massaged before sleep fell asleep more quickly and slept more soundly with better sleep patterns, then ones that had not received massage.
Massage has also been shown to have very positive benefits: such as the relief of discomfort, the breaking up and release of sinuses, relief of colic, and the coping with emotional distress.
Relief of discomfort: Massage releases both oxytocin and endorphins and therefore can assist in relieving discomfort from teething, congestion, colic and emotional stress.
Teething has been described as a painful struggle for some babies. Though infant massage has not been proven to relieve all discomfort associated with teething it can be successfully used in conjunction with the parent's choice of care during these times. In addition to providing the infant with reassurance and comfort, the endorphins and oxytocins released assist with pain relief and mood enhancement. Congestion/Sinuses: The Swedish massage technique for breaking up' the congestion of mucous in the chest involves a form of tapotement. This technique, when learnt and practiced properly, can break up' the mucous in the lungs making it easier for infants to eliminate the excess mucous. Massaging the sinuses on the face helps clear the sinuses of excess mucous. This is helpful to infants as it eases the process of ridding the nasal passage of excess mucous.
Colic: A painful gas causing a distended, firm abdomen, which takes an infant a long period of time to eliminate without assistance. Repeating a small series of strokes on the abdomen has been used to relieve colic. In addition to this the stoking helps the infant to relax so that tension does not escalate their discomfort. By applying gentle pressure to the abdomen while stroking using a specific sequence, small amounts of gas trapped between other substances can be moved through the colon, assisting in elimination. If these small amounts are consistently being eliminated a build up of gas can be prevented.
Emotional Stress: Infants sometimes use their massage time to weep and though IMIS does not recommend that stroking continue through this crying we do believe this emotional release is positive. Studies have shown that withholding emotions can lead to health problems; it is for this reason that qualified instructors encourage parents to view an emotional release during massage as an opportunity to truly listen to their child and allow them to release tension.
Some of the general conditions for the infants massage are;
· Time - it is good to get baby into a routine where he/she knows when the massage will happen, whether it be first thing in the morning, after a bath, just before bedtime
· Temperature - make sure the room you are massaging in is warm - babies are not good at regulating their body temperature (especially premature infants).
· Light - it is best not to have the room too bright - and be especially careful not to have either electric light or sunlight shining in your baby's face as it will be uncomfortable for him or her.
· Oil - it has been shown that babies prefer massage with oil - massage therapists recommend a vegetable or plant oil, i.e. not traditional baby oil, which is mineral based. Plant based oils are easy to absorb into the skin, and easily digested if your baby sucks his thumb with oil attached! Mineral oils are not readily absorbed and, if not harmful are certainly not good for you. The two most common are grapeseed oil and sweet almond oil.
Practical Application: Always begin with massaging the legs.
This is the least intrusive way to begin a massage as the legs are touched constantly while changing nappies. To place your hands directly on the infant's chest or abdomen to begin massaging can be intrusive, and unacceptable to many infants. Use long firm strokes. Light, feathery massage irritates infants, as it does most adults. Hold one foot in one hand and use the other hand to "milk" the leg, moving from ankle to thigh. Then, hold the thigh with both hands (like you're holding a baseball bat) and use a very gentle twisting and squeezing motion as you move your hands from thigh to foot. Now roll the leg between your hands from knee to ankle. To finish, stroke the legs from thigh to feet. To massage the baby's abdomen, slide palms and fingers in a hand-over-hand circular motion, moving gently from the rib cage downward. Now slide both hands around the abdomen in clockwise, circular movements. If a baby has gas, picture an upside down U over the baby's abdomen. Start with a downward stroke like an "I" on baby's left side. Then stroke along the imaginary upside down "L" and then along the upside down
"U."
Contraindicatoins The following conditions represent situations where massage should be avoided
· Open or weeping wounds
· Infected skin irritations
· Fractures or other acute injuries
· Bleeding
· No massage over an unhealed navel
· Burns, including sun burn
· Undiagnosed lumps
· No abdominal massage if the infant has hiccups or has just been fed.
I personally am not sure if its an actual modality or not but I figured under the current situation I felt it best to do the research and put together a paper for my own personal benefit with becoming a new father. There isn't really a field out in the real world to profit off of infant massage unless you become certified to teach classes or seminars to instruct new parents on techniques and the do's and don'ts.
Field, T. (2001). (Review).Massage therapy facilitates weight gain in preterm infants (Review). Current Directions in Psychological Science, 10, 51-54.
Cullen, C., Field, T., Escalona, A. & Hartshorn, K. (2000). Father-infant interactions are enhanced by massage therapy. Early Child Development and Care, 164, 41-47.
Field, T. (1995). Massage therapy for infants and children. [Review]. Journal of Developmental & Behavioral Pediatrics, 16, 105-111.
Mathias, M. (2003) "Infant massage- Everyone Benefits." Massage Today
November, Vol. 03 issue 11
Sinclair, A (2000 2006) Childbirth Solutions, Inc.
The application of infant massage as a catalyst for normalizing a baby's physical and emotional life has a wide range of …show more content…
benefits, including helping to promote relaxation; improving sensory integration; helping aid deeper and longer sleep; encouraging mid-line orientation; assisting in bonding and attachment; assisting in vocalization; stimulating the circulatory and GI systems; assisting in pain relief; and enhancing neurological development.
The benefits of infant massage are a two-way street: Infant massage contributes to infant-parent attachment. The experience resonates with the baby, while bringing out nurturing qualities in parents. This is why infant massage is advocated as a parenting interaction, rather than as therapy performed by a massage therapist. Many leaders in the infant mental health field share this view: Infant massage is for those who will be raising the baby over the long haul.
Preterm Infants that received tactile/kinesthetic stimulation over a 10-day period. The infants averaged 21% greater weight gain per day and spent more time awake and active during sleep/wake behavior observations. Preterm infants who were massaged before sleep fell asleep more quickly and slept more soundly with better sleep patterns, then ones that had not received massage.
Massage has also been shown to have very positive benefits: such as the relief of discomfort, the breaking up and release of sinuses, relief of colic, and the coping with emotional distress.
Relief of discomfort: Massage releases both oxytocin and endorphins and therefore can assist in relieving discomfort from teething, congestion, colic and emotional stress.
Teething has been described as a painful struggle for some babies. Though infant massage has not been proven to relieve all discomfort associated with teething it can be successfully used in conjunction with the parent's choice of care during these times. In addition to providing the infant with reassurance and comfort, the endorphins and oxytocins released assist with pain relief and mood enhancement. Congestion/Sinuses: The Swedish massage technique for breaking up' the congestion of mucous in the chest involves a form of tapotement. This technique, when learnt and practiced properly, can break up' the mucous in the lungs making it easier for infants to eliminate the excess mucous. Massaging the sinuses on the face helps clear the sinuses of excess mucous. This is helpful to infants as it eases the process of ridding the nasal passage of excess mucous.
Colic: A painful gas causing a distended, firm abdomen, which takes an infant a long period of time to eliminate without assistance. Repeating a small series of strokes on the abdomen has been used to relieve colic. In addition to this the stoking helps the infant to relax so that tension does not escalate their discomfort. By applying gentle pressure to the abdomen while stroking using a specific sequence, small amounts of gas trapped between other substances can be moved through the colon, assisting in elimination. If these small amounts are consistently being eliminated a build up of gas can be prevented.
Emotional Stress: Infants sometimes use their massage time to weep and though IMIS does not recommend that stroking continue through this crying we do believe this emotional release is positive. Studies have shown that withholding emotions can lead to health problems; it is for this reason that qualified instructors encourage parents to view an emotional release during massage as an opportunity to truly listen to their child and allow them to release tension.
Some of the general conditions for the infants massage are;
· Time - it is good to get baby into a routine where he/she knows when the massage will happen, whether it be first thing in the morning, after a bath, just before bedtime
· Temperature - make sure the room you are massaging in is warm - babies are not good at regulating their body temperature (especially premature infants).
· Light - it is best not to have the room too bright - and be especially careful not to have either electric light or sunlight shining in your baby's face as it will be uncomfortable for him or her.
· Oil - it has been shown that babies prefer massage with oil - massage therapists recommend a vegetable or plant oil, i.e. not traditional baby oil, which is mineral based. Plant based oils are easy to absorb into the skin, and easily digested if your baby sucks his thumb with oil attached! Mineral oils are not readily absorbed and, if not harmful are certainly not good for you. The two most common are grapeseed oil and sweet almond oil.
Practical Application: Always begin with massaging the legs.
This is the least intrusive way to begin a massage as the legs are touched constantly while changing nappies. To place your hands directly on the infant's chest or abdomen to begin massaging can be intrusive, and unacceptable to many infants. Use long firm strokes. Light, feathery massage irritates infants, as it does most adults. Hold one foot in one hand and use the other hand to "milk" the leg, moving from ankle to thigh. Then, hold the thigh with both hands (like you're holding a baseball bat) and use a very gentle twisting and squeezing motion as you move your hands from thigh to foot. Now roll the leg between your hands from knee to ankle. To finish, stroke the legs from thigh to feet. To massage the baby's abdomen, slide palms and fingers in a hand-over-hand circular motion, moving gently from the rib cage downward. Now slide both hands around the abdomen in clockwise, circular movements. If a baby has gas, picture an upside down U over the baby's abdomen. Start with a downward stroke like an "I" on baby's left side. Then stroke along the imaginary upside down "L" and then along the upside down
"U."
Contraindicatoins The following conditions represent situations where massage should be avoided
· Open or weeping wounds
· Infected skin irritations
· Fractures or other acute injuries
· Bleeding
· No massage over an unhealed navel
· Burns, including sun burn
· Undiagnosed lumps
· No abdominal massage if the infant has hiccups or has just been fed.
I personally am not sure if its an actual modality or not but I figured under the current situation I felt it best to do the research and put together a paper for my own personal benefit with becoming a new father. There isn't really a field out in the real world to profit off of infant massage unless you become certified to teach classes or seminars to instruct new parents on techniques and the do's and don'ts.
Field, T. (2001). (Review).Massage therapy facilitates weight gain in preterm infants (Review). Current Directions in Psychological Science, 10, 51-54.
Cullen, C., Field, T., Escalona, A. & Hartshorn, K. (2000). Father-infant interactions are enhanced by massage therapy. Early Child Development and Care, 164, 41-47.
Field, T. (1995). Massage therapy for infants and children. [Review]. Journal of Developmental & Behavioral Pediatrics, 16, 105-111.
Mathias, M. (2003) "Infant massage- Everyone Benefits." Massage Today
November, Vol. 03 issue 11
Sinclair, A (2000 2006) Childbirth Solutions, Inc.