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CREATING A SPECIAL BOND BETWEEN PARENTS AND CHILD
Soothing. Stimulating. Bonding. Together without words, parent and child
come to know and love one another.
Is there anything more comforting to a child than the gentle touch of
a loving parent? It is said that touch can speak louder than words and
that touch is our first language. How true! When a father cuddles his
baby or a mother rubs the back of a crying toddler, their touch is saying
in no uncertain terms, "I care." This quiet yet clear communication
between a parent and child is powerful, and its positive effects on children
cannot be overstated.
Research shows that premature babies who were touched and massaged regularly
by their parents gained more weight and were more active, alert and responsive
than babies who were not massaged. Best of all massaging your baby is
a wonderfully enjoyable way to build the loving connection between the
two of you. Massage is known to contribute to the development of secure,
self-confident children.
So remember, when you comfort your young child, regardless of his/her
age, touch can play an important role in how you communicate your affection
and support.
General Guidelines
- It's generally considered safe to gently massage babies at any age,
even newborns. However, do not massage baby if baby is ill, has had
recent surgery or has any cuts or skin abrasions.
- The best time for a baby massage is after a bath when she is content
and relaxed. (However, do not wake baby up from a nap to massage her.)
Wait until at least an hour after baby has eaten.
- Prepare a soft massage surface. A pillow covered by a blanket works
great.
- Keep baby warm and cover areas you will not be massaging.
- Before you begin, talk soothingly to baby and smile at her. This
will help stimulate her senses and make her feel more comfortable. Take
your time.
- Allow baby to move to different positions if she chooses to.
- Apply a little bit of non-scented baby oil to your hands.Warm the
massage oil by rubbing hands together before applying.
- Always use very light pressure while massaging baby.
Read on for your step-by-step guide to a few basic infant-massage
moves.
CHEST AND TORSO
You can start the actual massage in this region, by sitting on the floor
with your legs stretched out in front of you and your baby lying face-up
on your legs, his head toward your feet. He should be naked--but keep
towels nearby in case of accidents. As always, if he shows signs of discomfort,
change the position.
Begin by laying your hands flat in the center of his chest. With a firm,
gentle touch, open the chest out, as though you were smoothing out the
pages of a book. As with all moves, do this three or four times, or until
you have a sense of your child's attention span. Now, put your hand on
one of his hips and smooth it up across his body to the opposite shoulder.
Go around the shoulder and back down again along the arm or back. Switch
sides.
ARMS AND HANDS
With one hand, hold your baby's arm up by the wrist. Use the other hand
to massage up the arm from shoulder to wrist. Then, thumb-over-thumb,
rub each baby hand, opening the palms and fingers.
ABDOMEN
With a full palm (baby massage is never probing), go hand over hand, straight
down from the bottom of the ribs to the pubic bone.
LEGS AND FEET
With one hand, hold your baby's leg up by the ankle. Use the other hand
to massage up the leg from hip to ankle. Now, rub a full palm along the
feet, upward from heel to toe.
BACK
If your child doesn't mind being on his stomach, turn him across your
legs. Use your flat palms to slowly lift and land across the back, working
your way from the neck to the lower back and up again. You can also put
one hand on the buttocks for support and, with the other palm, make a
straight, smooth stroke from the neck to the base of the spine.
THE FACE
With light fingertips, stroke across the forehead from the center to the
sides. Then glide across the bridge of the nose and down along the sides
of the nose. "Babies either think this one is funny or they squirm
away," Mitouer says. "If they don't like it, stop. But you might
try to introduce it again the next day. With massage, you have to take
it in baby steps--so to speak."
When Not To Massage
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
The Benefits of Massage
Infant massage and movement provide the following benefits to infants
and parents:
- Support of the bonding process
- Release of muscular tension created by motor skills acquisition
- May calm anxious babies and relieve symptoms of colic
- Contributes to brain and motor development, self-esteem and pleasure
in their bodies
- Supports learning appropriate posture and movement patterns
A new review has added scientific proof to something that mothers always knew - massaging infants is good for their baby's health. A research found that a good massage for babies under six months not only makes them cry less, but also makes them sleep more and become less stressed. The studies showed that a massage lowered levels of stress hormones such as cortisol in infants - something they said also had an effect on how much they cry and sleep.
"Given the apparent effect of infant massage on stress hormones, it is not surprising to find some evidence of an effect on sleep and crying," said Angela Underdown of the University of Warwick. |
Baby Massage Oil
A light vegetable oil easily absorbed by the skin such as sweet almond
oil is perfect for your massage. Remember to use only cold pressed, unrefined
vegetable oils. Mineral oils are not suitable as they tend to clog pores
and do not penetrate easily.
The following aromatic recipe may be used as a general massage oil. It
is recommended that you make up a 50 ml bottle.
- 1 drop of Roman chamomile
- 1 drop of lavender
- 1 drop of neroli
- 1 drop of rose
Do not be tempted to use more drops of essential oil - babies, and young
children require a low amount of essential oils. Too much is harmful.
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