Services for Infants & Babies
“Being touched and caressed, being massaged, is food for the infant; food as necessary as minerals, vitamins, and proteins.”
Infant Massage Instruction
Infant massage has been researched since the mid-1970's thanks to the pioneering work of Vimala McClure It has been practiced in cultures around the world for thousands of years. Touch is the first sense developed in humans and a baby's sense of touch is exquisite.
Soteria Wellness is proud to offer instruction in infant massage to parents and caregivers in private or small group sessions! Dawn is a certified infant massage therapist and infant massage instructor with the Institute of Somatic Therapy.
“As a father, I loved the infant massage class. It was so neat to see our little one relax like we hadn’t seen before. Since our baby is breastfed, it has been harder for me to bond with our son, but these very simple and easy massage techniques helped me become closer to him. Then, we were able to go home and give our baby and our 3 year old son a massage and they both loved it!”
Benefits of nurturing your baby through massage include:
Inducing relaxation
Enhancing parent-baby bonding
Easing digestive discomfort of gas or constipation
Soothing a fussy baby
Improving immune function
Lessening stress of both baby and parent
Increasing myelination of nerves and brain development
Enhancing growth and weight gain, especially in preterm infants
Relieving colic
Providing parents time to relax and unwind from the busy pace of life
Improving muscle tone and motor skills
Promoting communication between parent and child
Enhanced sense of love and security
Teaching healthy body awareness and nurturing touch
Improving sleep
Enhancing self esteem
Increasing prolactin (the love hormone) levels in parents
Relieving pain from teething
Easing congestion and promoting respiratory development
Improving circulation
Providing intimacy between father and child
Babies and CranioSacral Therapy
Minor uncorrected problems in infancy can be magnified in the growing child and adult. CranioSacral Therapy is a gentle hands-on approach to wellness that is useful for any age. Babies respond to CranioSacral work especially quickly and are treated with a "less is more" approach using a very light touch. Brief sessions with several weeks in between allow baby to integrate the changes that are introduced. Many reports of colic reduction, head molding correction, nursing problems resolved, and more peaceful babies abound.
Babies and children may benefit from CranioSacral Therapy when they have experienced:
Difficult birth (prolonged or fast labor; umbilical cord entanglement or tight wrapping around neck; vacuum or forceps assisted delivery; cesarean birth; pain and fear during labor which influences hormonal balance; separation from mother at birth; etc.)
Painful procedures, which, while medically necessary or chosen based on parents deeply held beliefs, cause fear and tension in the baby (NICU stays; multiple heel sticks for blood draws; intubation or deep suctioning; circumcision; immunizations; etc.)
Head molding that doesn't resolve within the first week (misshapen or overlapping bones of the skull)
Uneven appearance to the face after the first week (one eye or ear appears higher than the other)
Difficulty nursing or absent sucking reflex
Post tongue/lip tie revision
Colic, restlessness, difficulty settling, and excessive crying
Developmental delay
Bumps and bangs of newly mobile infants and toddlers
Any life circumstance which would benefit from a release of tension and stress
Photo courtesy of Rintamaki family
“During labor and delivery our son moved through the birth canal quite quickly which led to bruising on the top of his head and a lot of molding. When he was three weeks old, he was really colicky, crying up to 4 hours at a time, so we had Dawn do some CranioSacral Therapy on him. Dawn showed me how his skull bones were still overlapping in the back of his head. The day after she worked on him, his fussiness was so much better and he is now a very happy baby. At his four day wellness check-up, his head circumference was in the 15th percentile and at his four week check-up it had jumped up to the 35th percentile. In less than a week from the time he was worked on, his head rounded out nicely and things moved right into place. I don’t believe that would have happened without the CST.”
“My daughter was diagnosed with Down Syndrome a few days after her Birth-day. She experienced a 48 hour labor. One of the challenges she faced right away was a struggle to latch on and maintain a good latch for breastfeeding. She also struggled to breathe well while sleeping and eating. she spent a week in the NICU, undergoing many tests and treatment—stressful on her little body. We saw Dawn for CranioSacral Therapy to help bring balance back to her body, including her head, due to all she had experienced. I also hoped it might help with her latch and breathing. Within a few minutes, we saw visible changes in her head, face, and jaw. The shape of her palate changed enormously, and there was less tension in her jaw. Her sinuses began to open up. We have been back several times, and continue to see marked improvements in her overall health and posture. She is now nursing without any challenges, and is able to breathe (and sleep) much better (and quieter!) This has changed her life, and ours, forever.”