For my dear friend and teacher, R D Laing

CONTENTS

Foreword

Introduction
The benefits of touch

CHAPTER ONE

Introducing your baby to massage

Getting in touch

Intro to tummy time

Skin-to-skin contact

Partners and carers

Tummy time

Air bathing

CHAPTER TWO

Feet-to-head massage

Baby massage strokes

Baby massage oils

Before you begin

Toes and feet

Legs

Hips

Belly

Chest

Shoulders and arms

Hands

Back and spine

Head and neck

Craniosacral technique

CHAPTER THREE

Securing your baby’s posture

Helping your baby to sit

Sitting supported

Sitting unsupported

Second sitting position

CHAPTER FOUR

Mobility and soft gymnastics

Encouraging mobility

Tailor-pose swing

Strong, flexible legs

An open chest and shoulders

Body confidence and agility

Reintroducing massage

CHAPTER FIVE

Therapeutic touch for sickness and additional needs

Coughs, colds and congestion

Relieving sticky eye

Treating glue ear

Wind, colic and constipation

Teething and irritability

Sleeplessness

Tiger in the tree

Caesarean babies

Premature babies

Visual impairments

Hearing impairments

Talipes

Cerebral palsy

Acknowledgments

Foreword

Touch is a universal language that transcends all religions, colours, cultures and creeds. It is your baby’s first language, and it is as vital to the health of a baby as any vitamins and minerals.

Foetal responses to touch start in utero at just 12 weeks, and during the last trimester of pregnancy babies are even known to reach out and touch the inside of their mother’s abdominal wall when the tummy is rubbed. Following birth, it is through touch that the biological unity between a parent and their baby can continue to function, their skin-to-skin contact being responsible for the regulation of the newborn baby’s heartbeat, breathing rhythm and body temperature as well as the flow of milk when breastfeeding.

For the baby, birth is an intense experience. After being pushed, squeezed and sometimes pulled through the birth canal, a soft touch can do much to welcome a baby into this world and relieve any trauma associated with their arrival.

The first 1,001 days of a child’s life – from conception to mobility – is recognized as being the most vital time in their development. It is in this primal period that the roots of emotional, physical and physiological health are laid down. The 1,001-critical-days theory recognizes that this early period has a major influence upon child and adult health and future lifestyle choices.

HOW TO USE THE BOOK

• The book is designed to be placed on or next to where you massage your baby so that you can readily refer to the text and pictures for guidance.

• The left-hand page of each exercise explains the purpose and the benefits of the massage, and the right-hand page shows you how to do it, step by step.

• Boxed text highlights any contraindications or important issues to bear in mind while you massage your baby.

As the oldest and the most natural of all the healing arts, baby massage has long been practised to relieve intra-uterine, birth and early-separation trauma. It is used to stimulate and soothe babies and remedy a variety of childhood disorders in many cultures the world over.

Baby massage is an immediate and effective way to develop a loving attachment with your baby. Practising a gentle massage from birth can help parents increase confidence in holding and handling a baby. The techniques and exercises in this book show you how to relieve emotional trauma at every stage. Use them to help secure the full structural health and fitness of your baby through every major postural-motor milestone during those critical 1,001 days.

Baby Massage begins by introducing you to the physical and emotional benefits of massaging your child.

1

CHAPTER ONE shows you how to use touches and strokes – with your baby dressed or undressed – in order to develop a close relationship with them in their first few weeks and to help them relax more fully and thrive.

2

CHAPTER TWO demonstrates an effective full-body massage routine along with everything you need to know – about the preparation, strokes, oils and ambience – to make it successful. Practised regularly, this toe-to-top routine, along with the early touches, will promote emotional security and the prime physical attributes that constitute good posture, health and fitness. It will enable you to promote and maintain your baby’s strength and suppleness. The techniques can also bring to light and alleviate any hidden areas of muscular tension and joint inflexibility.

3

CHAPTER THREE shows you how to use massage in later babyhood to help your child to secure and maintain a healthy and comfortable sitting posture.

4

CHAPTER FOUR keeps pace with your baby who, as they become more mobile, will want to explore their wide range of physical movement. This is the time to introduce some soft baby yoga, fun and games that engage your baby in versatile movement. These movements are designed to maintain existing suppleness and promote strength, balance and good posture while sitting and standing. At the end of this chapter you also can discover which time is best for you to massage your mobile baby.

5

CHAPTER FIVE covers some common complaints and shows how massage and movement can be used to prevent and alleviate these conditions. Additional needs are also discussed, and there is advice on how massage can complement existing forms of treatment and therapy.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

PETER WALKER is an international teacher and author. A renowned physical therapist, he has worked with mothers and babies for over 45 years and has been featured in many national publications, including most UK mother and baby periodicals. He has written nine books, some of which have reprinted in over 20 different countries. Peter has also made numerous television appearances and been featured in documentaries and breakfast shows on all UK major channels. His teacher training courses attract professionals from all around the world, and Peter has personally taught and certified some 20,000 teachers.