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Made4Baby Massage Tips


Massaging your baby is a wonderful way of enhancing the bond between parent and baby, and to help the relationship develop.

 

Benefits for Baby:

  1. relieve stress and anxiety, helps baby become calm and secure;
  2. assist with longer periods of sleep;
  3. help reduce discomfort of colic, wind and digestion;
  4. develops mind and body, awareness and co-ordination

Benefits for Parents:

  • parental confidence with baby;
  • may help reduce post-natal depression;
  • relaxation – one on one time with baby;
  • helps build bond that can last a lifetime.


Are you ready to give your baby a massage?

Before you start, just run through the following checklist:

  1. Is the timing right? A good time is after a bath or between feeds (you don’t want baby to be full or hungry), a nice routine is bath, massage, feed and bed (but remember, this is just a guide, find what works best for you).
  2. Are you relaxed? If you are too stressed or tired, maybe think about doing it tomorrow;
  3. Prepare the room - make sure it is warm as baby will have no clothes on;
  4. Get everything you need

·      Made4Baby Sleep Tight Massage Oil

·      Nappy

·      Clothes

  1. Ask baby “Can I massage you now?” Never massage a baby that doesn’t want to be massaged and is crying or thrashing their arms and legs around.
  2. Where possible, keep eye contact with baby, and it is nice to sometimes sing or talk quietly to the baby during the massage.
  3. Remember, you are massaging a baby, a gentle approach is required, and try to make each stroke long, slow and rhythmic.

BUT most importantly, try to enjoy yourself in the knowledge that you and your baby are having this special time together.



Baby Massage Strokes

We suggest you do each of these strokes several times before moving onto the next one.

Face

  1. Start with the thumbs on the forehead, just above the nose and stroke out to the ears.
  2. Stroke the thumbs from the side of the nose out to the ears, and when you have done this a few times give the ears a little rub.

Chest and Tummy

  1. Put both hands together in middle of babies chest and sweep the hands out, across the lines of the ribs.
  2. With both hands sweep down the front of the baby along chest and stomach.
  3. Massage the stomach in a circular motion – move your hands clockwise on the stomach, with one hand following after the other.

Legs and Feet

  1. Take the first leg and gently hold the baby’s ankle with one hand, with your other hand rub down the inside of the baby’s leg, do this several times and then change hands, place the ankle in your other hand and rub down the outside of the leg several times.
  2. Placing your thumbs on the top of the baby’s leg and your fingers underneath, gently  squeeze from the top of the leg, down to the ankle.
  3. Gently squeeze and rotate each toe.  

          Repeat 1 – 3 on the other leg

Arms and Hands

  1. Form a circle at the top of the arm with one hand and gently squeeze your way down the arm.
  2. Stroke the top of baby’s hand, moving from the wrist along each of the finger bones.
  3. Rotate inside baby’s palm with your thumb in a circular motion.
  4. Gently rotate each of the baby’s fingers.

          Repeat 1 – 4 on the other arm

Back

  1. Place your two hands together at the top of baby's back.   With the whole of each hand stroke down the baby’s back from shoulder to buttock.
  2. Do circular motions on the babies buttocks.


Give your baby a big kiss and tell your baby how much you love them!