Infant Massage, Something Natural

Carolyne Young, Manidoo Gi Miini Gonaan/R.B.Russell Infant Centre

Cuddling babies and allowing skin to skin contact is very nurturing to babies, beginning at birth.

Caregivers and parents massage their babies instinctively in many ways. A gentle stroke, a caress while a baby is rocked to sleep, or a cuddle and back rub when a baby is hurt, all these come very naturally to the nurturer. Recently our centre staff have begun to acknowledge the infants' needs for touch at other times and hence, we discovered infant massage as an enhancement to our program.

There are many benefits to massage both for the adult and the baby. In a child care setting, infant massage establishes a closeness between the baby and caregiver. Some ways we use massage techniques are during diaper changing times and when a child is preparing for sleep. We have used massage in our centre to calm babies experiencing stress, babies with poor muscle tone, and babies who show signs of failure to thrive.

The benefits to the babies have been tremendous. We have learned that our touch increases circulation. Infants who are listless or who show signs of failure to thrive are motivated to action through massage. It promotes relaxation and is used before an infant prepares for sleep or while the baby is falling asleep.

Infants occasionally suffer from constipation. A simple manipulation of stretching the feet and legs back and forth often eases the gas pains. Massage has been known to aid the digestive and respiratory systems. Lying the baby across the caregiver's lap and firmly patting the back with a cupped hand helps babies who suffer from asthma or who are very congested.

Infant massage does not take a lot of time. You will see benefits from massage even when practiced for 15 minutes a day. Often babies will want more time as they become used to the touch. Babies will know when they have had enough and the caregivers will know when to finish.

There are many complex procedures that trained therapists use. In a child care setting often the simplest procedure works best. It is most important to ask the infant for permission to touch her/his body through either verbal or non-verbal means. It is essential to always respect the baby's response. If the infant does not want to be touched, do not be discouraged. For various reasons, the baby may need the caregiver to approach slowly. When the infant is very resistant to massage or touch, take things slowly or the benefits will be minimal, if any at all. As the caregiver becomes more aware of infant massage, she/he will find specific times in the day to practice massage.

At the centre, we massage the babies at change time, sleep time or spontaneously as for instance when a child approaches the staff. Generally, we lay the baby across our lap or we sit on the floor with the baby's feet toward us. A partial massage can easily be done while the baby is being rocked to sleep. We have discovered at this time that babies especially enjoy their feet being rubbed, their hands being massaged and their faces being stroked.

Generally we do not use anything on the babies' skin. If time is available and the child allows, the caregiver can use a natural or non-perfumed lotion. The Body Shop's "Mama To-To" line is excellent and very gentle for babies' skin. When more pressure or a better grip is required, try powder.

The experience of infant massage has been most beneficial to the infants and an honour for the staff to have been part of the process. Most babies are born loving their bodies and they feel comfortable in them. They have a natural instinct within that tells them how they want to move and they usually do so with ease.

This article first appeared in Child Care Focus (Volume 32, Winter 94, p.15), published by the Manitoba Child Care Association.

Posted by: Manitoba Child Care Association, September 1996.