BABY MASSAGE

& foot reflexology

BABY MASSAGE

& foot reflexology

What are the benefits of an infant massage?

The ancient art of infant massage has been practiced for centuries by cultures around the world and is one of the earliest stimuli a parent can provide for their infant.

By using simple massage strokes, you can enhance your role as a parent and provide the right type of stimuli to promote optimal development. You and your baby will experience many benefits from infant massage during a child’s first years and for years to come. Here’s more about the benefits of this special technique from our physical therapists who are certified in infant massage.

Massaging your baby is a wonderful and loving way to begin a lifelong relationship

Massage has many other physical and emotional benefits for your baby. These benefits include:

  • Promoting social, emotional and cognitive development

  • Helping a baby relax and release tensions of daily stimuli

  • Decreasing irritability and excessive crying

  • Reducing gas, colic and intestinal difficulties

  • Regulating behavioral states and promoting sleep

  • Strengthening and regulating primary systems (i.e., respiratory, circulatory, nervous, musculature, digestive and endocrine)

There are also benefits for parents and the development of parenting skills. The act of massaging an infant helps:

  • Promote better understanding of infant cues

  • Enhance communication and emotional ties

  • Increase confidence and handling skills

  • Provide quality one-on-one interaction

  • Encourage parents to unwind, relax, and listen to their baby

How touch and infant massage can enhance development

Early development is influenced by touch and infant massage can support development in these five areas:

  • Communication skills – promotes emerging speech, direct eye gaze, listening and turn taking

  • Motor skills – improves muscle tone and coordination, increases body awareness

  • Social skills – encourages infant and caregiver to engage one another

  • Self-help skills – stimulates oral motor musculature awareness, lip closure, and relaxation of tension needed for swallowing

  • Cognition – enhances overall awareness of self and body boundaries, cause and effect, and increase in attention span

The growth in popularity for infant massage instruction is due to positive research outcomes, our changing lifestyles and a desire by parents to provide better care for their infants. Massaging babies provides an important source of stimulation involving the sensation of touch (tactile stimulation) and this stimulation promotes development and well-being as early psychological and sensory input is vital in facilitating an infant’s development. In addition, starting touch early in life improves parenting skills and promotes a baby’s overall health.

Infant massage promotes bonding, growth and much more

Infant massage encourages bonding through eye-to-eye contact, smiling, soothing vocal sounds, loving touch, caressing and mutual interaction. Studies show that bonding increases a parent’s feeling of attachment as well as their desire to nurture and care for their infant.

Massage can also enhance oxygen and nutrient flow to cells and improve breathing patterns and lung health (respiration). It can enhance the release of hormones, including growth hormones to help with weight gain, and can spark neurons in the brain to grow and branch out to improve mental processing/skills (cognition).

Foot Reflexology for Babies

Foot reflexology has nurturing, therapeutic effects for everyone!

But because baby’s feet are still not fully developed, they tend to respond better to reflexology.

The great thing about foot massage is that you can do it anywhere and even on top of socks. It is non-intrusive and can be very soothing for baby, particularly if they are feeling under the weather.

Massaging the feet can bring many benefits as they have reflex points that correspond to specific organs, muscles, bones and body systems. By gently applying pressure to these areas, you can help relieve discomfort from congestion and blockages.

Testimonials

We knew Kirsty very well as she had been the Nanny to my cousin’s three youngest children for many years. As a single parent with a demanding career in the banking industry, I knew Kirsty was the perfect nanny for Kelly! Kirsty is easy-going with a sunny disposition and warm, kind, compassionate nature; she was a great comfort to us all when my mum was diagnosed and became terminally ill. Kirsty was a true rock and was always willing to go that extra mile ~ far beyond her remit as Kelly’s nanny ~ and assist with whatever needed doing Kirsty was always punctual, very flexible and accommodating if I had to work late or was delayed in peak hour traffic and she never missed work due to illness or personal issues!

We were both very grateful to Kirsty and I would highly recommend her as a Maternity Nurse and/or Nanny to any loving family, & wish her every success in her new endeavours abroad.

Wendy Jeursen

Kirsty was a life saver! She stepped in with such confidence and surety which allowed me to breathe and know that I was doing everything possible for my daughter to thrive and made me believe that I could do this on my own. When I was 3 months pregnant, we had contracted Kirsty for 8 weeks to ease us into our new parenting roles but my husband I separated when I was 5 months pregnant (and divorced while I was still pregnant) and consequently Kirsty kindly obliged to prolong her contract and stay with me for the first 6 months of my daughter’s life which was a god send. Not only as a new mother but also because I had to return to my demanding career.

After her 6-month contract, I have subsequently asked her to come to my aide multiple times, firstly with sleep training Chante, and then stepping in to proxy parent my daughter when I was required to travel out of time for work.  I highly recommend Kirsty for any position she is needed for as I do not know what our lives would’ve been like without her there with me every step of the way.

Anelle MacKinley

My partner and I employed Kirsty as our Maternity Nurse on a 24/6 basis (7 nights/6 days) for six months when our son was born by surrogate in Austen, Texas. Kirsty joined us ten days prior to Aiden’s birth to help set up his nursery & guide us on what to buy for our newborn. Kirsty had Aiden sleeping through the night from approx. 14 weeks of age, and introduced solid foods when Aiden was ready; Kirsty prepared everything from scratch & often prepared meals for us too. Aiden has continued to grow into a happy, calm toddler – we put this down to Kirsty’s influence in his early life – for this we are very grateful!

Bruce Bonnet

Kirsty was able to come in at a moment’s notice when our baby was born six weeks early as the Maternity Nurse we had booked was still contracted at her previous baby. Kirsty was an absolute saviour (referred to us by a family friend whom she had worked for over the years), she joined us at The Kensignton Wing of Chelsea & Westminister Hospital in where she & I roomed in together so she could assist me with hand-expressing colostrum & pumping breastmilk as baby was initially tube-fed in NICU. She encouraged skin-to-skin whilst Leo was still in an incubator & had him taking little feeds directly from the breast within a week at which time he joined us in the room until we were discharged on day 13.

Kirsty is structured but gentle, great at time-management & organised, and the nursery was always neat & tidy. She is very accommodating and flexible – always happy to change her daily break at the last minute if necessary & had no qualms to include the kids when knocking together a quick meal for herself when babysitting when we were out for dinner.

We all loved having Kirsty in our home and the older children talk about her fondly. We have already referred her to a couple of our friends for Sleep Training. We highly recommend her as she would be an asset to any family!

Samantha Bennett

Kirsty Wright was our Maternity Nurse on two occasions. The main reason we hired Kirsty with Jamie, was mainly to assist with nights & to muck in during the day if the older siblings needed help. Kirsty was great she was always willing to get involved with our older children, whether to make them a snack after school, or breakfast on the weekends. She quickly got Jamie into a good routine, and he was doing really well by the time Kirsty left.

Our twins were born unexpectedly whilst we were visiting family in London, and thankfully Kirsty was available to help out when our maternity nurse had to leave to another contract. Both boys were sleeping well overnight by the time Kirsty left. She is easy-going, light-hearted and the children enjoyed her humour & pranks. She is a good cook and often volunteered to prepare healthy meals for all the family.

We all love Kirsty’s sunny personality, and she is a very professional calm & efficient maternity nurse who could slot into any family situation – we highly recommend her!

Caroline Corman