Massaging your baby, can be a calming experience for both you and her. Non-western societies have known this for eons, and infant massage has been part of their culture as a soothing, calming technique.

There are several wonderful books and resources for infant massage, this site gives a lovely demonstration of a massage that is wonderful for stimulating digestion, and relieving the symtoms of colic, and tummy pain. I’ve used this technique on my son – and highly reccomend using an edible oil, such as Olive or Almond oil to massage with (We include a drop each of lavendar and mandarin essential oils, to a 500ml bottle of carrier oil) 

There is a beautiful article here detailing how infant massage is so beneficial both for parents and babies. Touch stimulates the release of feel good hormones, and reduces the production of stress hormones such as cortisol. This  can translate to a better nights sleep for mum and baby! At the very least, a much calmer baby and mum!!

One of the most significant benefits of infant massage is that it can increase your confidence as a parent. When parents regularly massage their babies, they become very aware of the subtle nuances in their baby’s communication, they become more respectful of their baby’s cues and this helps the baby feel secure and calm. After a few weeks of massaging their babies, I often have mothers tell me “I am not so affected by advice from other people any more – I know I am the expert about my baby.”

Pinky McKay also has a great DVD demonstrating and teaching infant massage. Which is available here

Some of the benefits of infant massage are:

• It stimulates digestion
• It deepens respiration
• It improves muscle tone.
• It assists motor development
• It aids in the bonding process
• It strenthens the immune system
• It increases sensory awareness
• It increases the flow of oxygen to the cells
• It’s a fun and relaxing time to spend with your baby!

An exhaustive list of benefits, and indepth explanations about them is available here

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