Infant Massage: Soft touch with purpose taught at WTRC - ReporterNews.com

[massage]

By Laura Gutschke of the Abilene Reporter News

Posted: Yesterday 7:15 p.m. 0

With the lights dimmed and soothing, soft music playing in the background, 10-week-old Cooper Henderson recently had his first massage.

Before the session started, he was sleepy in the arms of his mother, Leah Henderson. But as the diaper-clad infant lay on a blanket and his mother gently worked her grapeseed-oiled hands on his legs and feet, his eyes brightened and he cooed softly.

IF YOU GO

What: Infant Massage Class

When: Five-week class meets 9:30-10:30 a.m. on Tuesdays, Sept. 13-Oct. 11.

Where: West Texas Rehabilitation Center, Pediatrics Department. 4601 Hartford St.

Admission: Cost is $85. Registration required. 325-793-3452.

"It's almost like a dance between the mother and baby," said JoBeth Huber-Willis, director of pediatrics at West Texas Rehabilitation Center, during the massage therapy session.

During the session Huber-Willis sat next to Henderson and demonstrated proper infant massage technique on a life-size baby doll. Henderson then repeated those movements on Cooper.

Huber-Willis, who also is a physical therapist, is one of two WTRC professionals certified as educators of infant massage. They teach permanent caregivers — parents, grandparents and foster parents in the process of adopting — how to massage their infants ages 0 to 12 months.

"If the baby has a disability, we can do the infant massage class up to 7 years of age," Huber-Willis said.

The benefits of infant massage include promoting interaction and bonding between the caregiver and infant; providing stimulation of several body systems and motor skills; offering relief of gas, colic and other tummy issues; and promoting relaxation that can help sleep patterns, muscle tone and flexibility.

"Babies almost double their size in the first year. There's a lot of discomfort with all that growth," Huber-Willis said.

Henderson is interested in the infant massage helping Cooper, who has Down syndrome, with his sleep and development. Cooper is the third child for her and her husband, Hondo. Their first child also has Down syndrome, and the family knows firsthand the effectiveness of rehabilitative and other services that are obtained as soon as possible.

"Will this help wake up his muscles?" she asked during the session.

"It can," Huber-Willis replied.

Since infant massage classes began at WTRC in 2015, the feedback from participating parents has been positive, Huber-Willis said.

"They just feel like their babies are sleeping better and are not as colicky. They feel like they have a special connection with their babies," she said.

But the class also has benefited the parents as well.

A class can consist of a mix of caregivers — new mothers and fathers, experienced mothers, parents of twins. Sometimes conversations spring up on parenting topics beyond infant massage.

"They really love the interaction with the other moms," Huber-Willis said.

The infant massage classes are one hour a week for five weeks. The cost is $85 and includes handouts with step-by-step diagrams and the book "Infant Massage" by Vimala McClure, founder of the International Association of Infant Massage. The next class starts at 9:30 a.m. Tuesday.

During the class parents learn a mix of Swedish and Indian massage and reflexology techniques for infants. In the first class, parents learn some important concepts, such as using an edible, organic, cold-pressed vegetable oil in case the babies put their hands in their mouths. They also are taught to ask the infants if they want a massage before beginning.

"If the baby is crying and fussy, then that's not a good time for a massage," Huber-Willis said.

The first class also focuses on massaging just the legs and feet. The next class adds massages for the stomach and chest. Class three focuses on arms and hands. Movements in the fourth class address the face and back. Parents learn in the fifth class a special massage routine for colic and gas.

By the end of the class, parents should be able to give their babies a complete massage in about five minutes any time at home when the infant seems agreeable to the contact.

"If the baby doesn't like a part of the routine, you can skip it," Huber-Willis said.

The special massage routine for colic and gas is more regimented, needing to be administered three times a session, two to three times a day for two weeks, she said.

During Henderson's lesson with Huber-Willis, the mom first glided her hands on Cooper's right leg and foot. As she moved to repeat the massages on his right limb, the mom already noticed a relaxation in the infant's first leg.

Even though the baby is getting the massage, the benefits will ripple to the parents.

"If babies sleep better, then mothers sleep better," Huber-Willis said.

About Laura Gutschke

Laura Gutschke is a free-lance writer for the Abilene Reporter-News

Let's block ads! (Why?)