Newborns simply love to be touched and cuddled. The skin to skin touch helps you and your baby bond, comforts your baby when she is upset or uneasy with gas or colic problems. Hence, touch is a critical part of growth and development.
The massage strokes used on adults are completely different from the strokes to be used on newborns. The younger they are, more delicate and smaller will be the strokes be.
It is ideal that you take your child either on your lap or lay him on any kind of elevated soft surface such as few thick towels put together. Be very gentle while massaging. If your child cries or does not enjoy it, stop massaging.
Massage steps for the front of the body:
- Lay the child on the back. Start by stroking gently the face, move to the middle of the forehead and temples
- Stroke the cheeks from nose to ears and back moving down to the chin. Gently stroke the area around the eyes.
- Stroke the front of the body along the arms. Make clockwise circles around the navel with both hands. Do gentle wringing action across the abdomen and up the body.
- Take one arm at a time, start stroking from shoulder to hand to fingers. Massage the hand, squeeze and rotate each of the fingers in turn. Do the same for other arm.
- Take one leg at time. Do a gentle wring or squeeze up the leg and stroke down the leg. Do the same for other arm.