Labor And Delivery Massage Therapist

Being a labor and delivery massage therapist in the maternity ward at a hospital can be a very rewarding career.

How exciting it is to be with expectant parents who are about to bring a new life into the world! Some hospitals employ therapists to be in the L&D rooms with the expectant mom and dad. This type of job is gaining popularity around the country.

The therapist provides massage for the mom-to-be, mostly back massage, which relieves some of the pain brought on by contractions. He/she also shows dad (or the birthing partner) how to give some basic massage to help the expectant mom while the therapist is not present.

The massage therapist will spend most of his/her time in the labor rooms, going from one expectant mother to the next as needed. Rarely will the massage therapist be in the actual delivery room.

The massage therapist may also provide massage therapy for the new mother in the days following delivery as well. This is beneficial for the new mother as she recuperates and gets ready to go home and take care of her infant.

He/she may also show the mom how to perform infant massage. This will enable the new mom to feel confident about handling her baby and it gives her a trick or two for quieting the baby when nothing else works.

Some babies will have colic and infant massage seems to help relieve the pain and crying. This comforts the newborn. Confident handling helps the baby to feel secure.

This is a relatively new field and, as with most hospital based massage, it will be quite a while before most hospitals have massage therapists on staff.

Return from Labor And Delivery Massage Therapist to Hospital Massage