What is Infant Bodywork?

If you have a baby and you are in the online space, you’ve probably come across this concept of “bodywork” for your infant. It gets recommended to parents of infants all the time to help solve a number of infant woes from nursing and latching difficulties to constipation, poor sleep, and reflux. And quite frankly, it deserves the hype!

But what exactly is it? Let’s get into it. 

Infant bodywork doesn’t belong to one discipline

There are a number of providers who can provide infant bodywork. These professionals include:

• Physical therapists

• Occupational therapists

• Craniosacral therapists

• Chiropractors

• Osteopaths

• Massage therapists

Each professional is going to bring their own flavor. It’s also very common to see cross training. For example, many physical and occupational therapists will become trained in craniosacral therapy or osteopathic techniques. No single discipline is solely responsible for performing infant bodywork. So let’s talk about the differences between these modalities to help you decide what is best for your baby. 

Osteopathy for infants

Unfortunately, there are not many osteopaths in the States who continue to practice their manual medicine skills after finishing DO school, especially in an infant population. It is much more common overseas to see an osteopath who practices manual medicine. Osteopathic practitioners often work with the bones of the body to bring balance and relieve tension and strain patterns that can cause a whole host of issues in the body. Honestly, I’m probably not doing it justice as I describe it, and that’s because it’s so incredibly rare here. In my area, there are no osteopathic providers (that I am aware of) who treat infants.

Massage Therapy

Massage therapy works with the soft tissues of the body, typically the muscles and fascia. Within the umbrella of “massage therapy” there are many different techniques that we would be familiar with as adults: Swedish massage, deep tissue, myofascial release, to name a few. For infants, one of the most common modalities is literally called "infant massage" and it is a method in which a practitioner can become certified in. Similar to how a gentle, relaxing massage can feel for an adult, infant massage can be extremely relaxing for babies. Infant massage can also be done in a way that is stimulating, to help babies who are struggling with activating certain muscles to be able to use them better. A big bonus here is that parents can often learn infant massage and apply it at home for their babies. 

Chiropractic Care

Chiropractic care is becoming very popular for a pediatric population. The focus in chiropractic care is restoring balance to the nervous system. Particularly for infants, this allows their system to calm and for nerve signals to flow. This can positively impact their feeding reflexes, allowing for better nursing, activate their rest and digest (parasympathetic) nervous systems to resolve issues like constipation, and they can help bring balance to the cervical bones to help in cases like torticollis. 

One common misconception about chiropractic care is that when babies are adjusted that they are getting “cracked” like adults do. This couldn’t be farther from the truth. Chiropractic for infants and children involves extremely gentle mobilizations of the bones, and sometimes the use of an activator tool that provides a gentle but high velocity force to the area being adjusted. There is absolutely no “cracking” involved. 

Physical and Occupational Therapy

I am going to lump these two together since they have very similar approaches with an infant population. While not completely identical, both PTs and OTs tend to take exercise, stretching, and functional movement approach to treating infants. They also can provide gentle manual work similar to massage when it is needed. However, you typically won’t find these providers being recommended for “typical” infant complaints that bodywork is recommended for such as colic, reflux, constipation, and latching issues unless the PT or OT has gone on to get additional training in lactation or another specialty such as craniosacral therapy. Typically, these providers are going to help with issues like torticollis, flat heads, birth injuries like Erb’s palsy, and other developmental delays and struggles. 

Craniosacral therapy

Craniosacral therapy for babies is rapidly becoming one of the most popular modalities that parents seek out when looking for bodywork for their babies. Craniosacral therapy is a practice that involves working with the bones of the head and the sacrum, and everything that lies between those two areas which includes: 

• The dura (covering of the spinal cord and brain)

• The central nervous system

• Cerebrospinal fluid

• Fascia

It is also understood that we can impact distant areas of the body (i.e. the extremities) as well as the diaphragms (of which there are several, not just our respiratory diaphragm) with the use of gentle manual techniques aimed at restoring the body to homeostasis. 

Craniosacral therapy often looks like nothing is really happening because the cranial bones and fascia don’t respond well to heavy pressure. The touch is light, and a practitioner has to be patient when treating the body this way. Fortunately, babies respond extremely well to this very gentle and calming touch, and we can see improvements in a number of symptoms and issues in as little as one session. 

You will often find that PTs, OT, and massage therapists who work with infants are also trained in craniosacral therapy. It is an incredibly beneficial manual skill to have in a treating provider’s toolbox. 

What type of bodywork is best for my baby? 

That depends on the issue at hand, and you may need to try multiple practitioners before you find the right one. You may also find that you need multiple providers, depending on what a given provider specializes in and what you are hoping to achieve for your baby. Looking for better sleep for your baby? The answer may be chiropractic or craniosacral therapy. Looking for help with tummy time because your baby hates it? You’re probably going to consider a physical or occupational therapist. Colic and reflux issues? Craniosacral therapy and chiropractic are often where parents turn. Colic, reflux, and torticollis all at the same time? Seeing if there is a PT or OT with craniosacral therapy training would be an optimal solution, or you may end up seeing a traditionally trained PT alongside a chiropractor. As the saying goes, there are a number of ways to skin a cat, and finding help for whatever your baby is struggling with is no different.

What type of infant bodywork we practice at Foundation PT

We practice a wonderful variety of manual therapy techniques at our Waukesha practice. The beauty of having variety is that a provider can flow between techniques and styles until something resonates with the body in front of them. I’ve had some babies who love a good, deep stretch, whereas others lock up in response to deep stretch and do better with extremely gentle cranial or fascial work. 

I was a traditionally trained PT, so I love a good stretch and tummy time “exercise” session. But adding in craniosacral therapy and some osteopathic techniques to my practice has been game changing. Honestly, it can be hard to tell where one type of bodywork ends and another starts because so many methods work on the same structures with the same gentle touch. The difference is often the intent behind the technique- are we going for nervous system balancing or a mechanical release of tension? Are we looking to stimulate a muscle that hasn’t been showing up, or are we releasing a restriction that’s been preventing it from activating properly? There is no right or wrong answer, but being able to approach a problem from multiple different angles with multiple different techniques often resolves issues faster. I can’t tell you that I practice only craniosacral therapy or only physical therapy because it all starts to blend together in a unique cocktail of manual therapy that helps your baby feel, move, and eat better. 

Looking for bodywork for your baby in the Waukesha area? We would love to help you! Click here to learn more, to submit a contact form request, or to schedule online for your baby.

Infant bodywork at Foundation PT helping baby with latching.

FAQ

How do I know my baby needs bodywork? 

Everyone who is born would benefit from at least a little bit of bodywork, in my humble opinion. Being born is hard work and even the most gentle of births still involve being pressed, squeezed, and forced from warm, dark, and wet to cold, bright, and dry which is a very jarring first experience of the world. However, the most common reasons families seek out bodywork for their babies are: colic, reflux, latch and nursing issues, constipation, poor sleep, tummy time refusal, torticollis, general body tension, fussiness, and inconsolable crying. 

What is the best provider to see for bodywork for my baby? 

This depends on the issue your baby is having and the skills of the providers you are considering. My best advice is to ask around and see what other moms have found beneficial for the issue you and your baby are struggling with.

When is the best time to get bodywork for my baby?

Babies can have bodywork the instant they’re born, though that’s often not realistic unless you have a maternity care provider who is also skilled in a manual therapy modality. However, as soon as you think something might be bothering your baby, that would be a good time to get them assessed and treated for any tension and restrictions that may be causing them discomfort. Remember to trust your intuition and know that colic, reflux, fussiness, and inconsolable crying are not normal. Babies do not cry for no reason, despite what the handouts on purple crying claim, and you can find help for your baby. 

Dr. Sabrina Thorpe is a Doctor of Physical Therapy with a decade of clinic experience. She specializes in treating pregnant and postpartum women and their infants at Foundation Physical Therapy in Waukesha, WI.