Babies Are People, Too

Imagine a sweet little child playing in a yard on a warm spring day. In the midst of the frolicking and laughing, suddenly the little one hits a damp patch of grass, slips, and falls flat. Almost instantly those big eyes that were laughing a split second before are filled with tears and the shrieking cry that only rivals a banshee starts. Mom, (who has been diligently watching her child like the good, responsible mother that she is) quickly rushes to calm her child. After a quick inspection, the child doesn't have a scratch and is really more shaken up than anything, but is still howling enough to clear out the wildlife for a 3-block radius. So what is mom to do? With barely a word, she wraps her arms around the child and simply doesn't move. The child feels the embrace and suddenly - as if by magic - quiets down. The shrieking lowers to muffled sobs and then comes down to sniffles and hiccups. Within a few moments, the child has stopped crying, forgotten about the fall, and is happily back to playing. While every young child may believe that mom is magic and can fix everything without anything, the real magic lies in something quite real and everyday - The simple act of a mother's touch has more power than a hundred magic wands.

There has been much debate on children. They are "small adults", they are "completely unique people nothing like adults". Nobody can seem to agree completely on what that is good for adults is also good for children, and if it is good for children, which children? When it comes to bodily benefits, adults and children are very different. They shouldn't exercise the same way, they shouldn't eat the same way. Usually there are many things that children need that adults can do without, or the other way around. There is one thing that adults and children share to help with their well-being and that is massage therapy. (Bet you saw that coming a mile away!)

Massage for a young child may not seem like a completely normal thing. Massage is thought of as being used for old injuries, or for pampering and relaxation - none of which a child could need. But massage therapy is much more than that. A massage should be tailored to the person receiving the massage and a child's reasons for needing massage are very different that an adult's reasons. Massage for children can be used for many reasons to aid and help them. An overly hyperactive child can be calmed by a soothing massage on their arms and legs. A young child with an earache may benefit from a gentle massage on the face, head, and neck. Babies especially can benefit from massage for conditions such as calming colic or fussiness, and aiding digestion. It is simple, non-invasive, requires no foreign drugs or medications, and allows the small developing body to work with itself, not how an outside force would make it work.

We've often heard or discussed how resilient children are. It always seems like they can bounce back almost instantly from just about anything. Children's bodies are impressive because they are in a constant state of change, adapting, and learning. This is probably one reason why they "bounce back" so easily from injury or illness. Their bodies are always taking everything that happens to them and working with it to make the body better. Massage fits into this very easily because the body learns that it can use itself to heal and make the body better.

Touch is very important to children. When babies are born, not all of their senses develop at the same time. Vision, hearing, taste, and smell all take time to stabilize and figure themselves out. Touch is one of the only ones that is instantly known and recognized by a newborn baby. After spending nine months surrounded and enclosed, then suddenly be popped out into a big, wide world with nothing close around, touch allows the child to know that someone or something is there with it - it isn't alone, and since someone is there, it will be safe. Medical journals have done countless research studies on premature infants. In some tests, premature babies were separated into two groups, then one group was touched or held every day while the other group was simply cared for medically with no human contact. In every study like this, the group of babies that were touched significantly gained weight and their health improved more quickly than the group that had no touch contact. Certain types of massage therapy have also been used to help young children who have been victims of various kinds of abuse. In this case, very specialized therapists use this "good touch" to re-train children to trust adults, heal their damaged senses and re-learn to trust their most basic sense which at one time seems to have betrayed them. Massage can truly be used as a healing art for the hardiest child, or the most fragile.

We need touch, we need contact. Sometimes after a long hard, frustrating day, a good solid hug can seem to solve anything. Children are no different. Touch is recognized, known, and understood. It has so many medical benefits for adults, why shouldn't it help children too? It doesn't put strain on a young body like certain kinds of adult exercising, and it doesn't deprive children of what they need nutritionally like adult diets, plus it doesn't have harmful side effects like prescription drugs. It is all-natural, safe, and perfect for children as well as adults. After all, while there are many many varied differences between adults and children, when it all comes down to it, you can break it down to adults - teenagers - children - babies. When all classifications are said and done, no matter the age, they are all the same thing - People.

Coming next time ....... Massage For the Bride