Infant Massage Therapy

Infant massage therapy, also known as baby massage or neonatal massage therapy, is very popular now among new parents.

It is an experience that provides closeness between parents and their newborns. You, the massage therapist, do not give a baby massage. The parents do!

You teach the parents how to perform infant massage, either individually with one or both parents or in a classroom full of parents and their infants. You will show them, step by step, the type of touch that calms and soothes their baby.

Some therapists hold classes for new parents. The parents bring their new babies and massage them while you teach them how to do it. You can either borrow a baby or use a life-sized doll to show the parents what to do.

Baby massage is great for bonding parents with their new bundles of joy.

It also teaches the parents how to help the baby feel more comfortable when there are episodes of colic, gas, teething, and even congestion. Believe me, those episodes can come often.

Personally, I thought I had it made. My two boys never had an episode of colic or anything really bad. But my daughter went through a period of about three months where she had colic every single evening and would cry for about an hour. She and I spent many hours rocking in my wooden rocking chair. Of course, her one year old brother was jealous and had to be rocked in my other arm at the same time. It would have been very helpful to know about infant massage for colic back then!

Infant massage therapy is a very soothing way to calm newborns after a bath, so they can relax and go to sleep.

Knowing how to massage a newborn tends to give new parents self-confidence in parenting and gives them a feeling of being in control instead of feeling helpless when the little one cries out in pain.

It also provides a loving time for Mom and Dad, especially Dad, to relax with the infant while gently talking and stroking him/her, making him/her feel secure and loved. Mom is usually the one who takes care of the baby, especially during crying times so it is important for Dad to get involved and not be afraid of breaking the baby.

The class sessions usually run four to six weeks, meeting once a week. The classes are well worth the time and money parents invest in learning neonatal massage therapy, especially if this is their first child.

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