Osteopathy for Babies
During birth the baby is subject to enormous pressures as the uterus pushes to expel the baby through the birth canal. At this stage, much of a baby’s skeleton is not yet bone but softer cartilage, especially the plate-like bones that form the skull. These ‘plates’ are quite soft and malleable, which enables them to withstand the forces of birth and allow the bones of the baby’s skull to overlap as it squeezes through the mother’s pelvis. This journey is likely to be one of the most stressful events we will undergo in our lives.
Babies generally cope well with the birth process. Most issues are resolved within the first few days after birth through the normal process of adapting to breathing in air, crying, and sucking. However, on occasion the birth may not be as straight forward, taking a long time, requiring, for example, medical interventions or caesarean section. This may overwhelm the baby’s ability to absorb these stresses and may lead to uncomfortable tension within the baby’s head and body. If left unresolved, this may give rise to a variety of symptoms including feeding difficulties, digestion issues, sleep disturbances, and crying and irritability.
Babies can be treated with osteopathy from newborn onwards. Osteopathic treatment can help discover the stress patterns and address these using extremely gentle techniques. Babies usually respond well to the treatment, becoming more relaxed, sleeping more, and content.
What kind of problems can osteopathy treat?
- Plagiocephaly and head shape problems
- Irritable, unsettled babies
- Suckling and feeding difficulties
- Torticolis
- Colic and reflux
- Spine alignment and scoliosis
Osteopathy for Children
Children’s bodies have a remarkable ability to cope with stresses and strains. This is just as well considering how many bumps and tumbles occur whilst they are growing and developing. At times these abilities may be compromised, as the body may require more support for a variety of reasons.
Stresses and strains in the child’s body may occur during their everyday carefree play or whilst maintaining a prolonged posture sitting at a school desk, carrying a heavy school bag, sitting for long period watching TV, or playing computer games.
For small children gentle techniques are applied to the head and body to rebalance and normalize. In older children and teenagers additional approaches of soft tissue massage, stretching etc., may also be used to mobilize body structures.
What kind of problems can osteopathy treat?
- Sports injuries and repetitive strain injuries (RSI)
- Headaches
- Spinal and postural problems
- Foot and knee problems