Parent's Touch, a Therapy

The Parent's Touch is the first confirmation signal a child receives promising the baby that absolute love and wholesome care soon after stepping into this word. The sense of touch, is the first of the five senses developed right when in utero. When Mom touches her belly, the child feels the warmth. This parent-child interaction without words is priceless. It teaches the child that Mom will take care of him/her in this strange world. It proves to the child that parents love their children immensely and nurtures that confidence to learn to live.

However, the vagus nerve which conveys 'sensory' information to the brain is still not developed even after birth. Parents' touch helps stimulate this nerve growth, useful for a healthy brain functioning in the future. Studies show that infant who received regular body massages developed this nerve faster than babies who ddnt receive special body massages and were only touched by parents during diaper changes and baths. What more does massaging do...it is all about touch..massaging has other benefits like improving blood circulation, enhancing the function of immune system, and ease bloating, gas, colic and congestion. It helps the body to relax which is why massaging spas exist for adults. Massaging helps babies to calm down and relax, it helps parents to easily put babies to sleep and stay asleep longer. Touch therapy has helped bring back many 'at-risk' babies to life. There have been quite a good number of articles on this, waking up a baby to life from a coma stage etc.

Touch therapy is used by many pediatric orthopeditians and physio therapists who deal with neurologically challenged babies, they use it to stimulate nerve growth. The Deaf and Blind schools and carecenters use this Touch therapy to help calm down and even educate kids. At the University of Miami, USA, Doctors use Touch therapy to boost the health of babies in neonatal ICU. Kangaroo Care is one such, they use it in hospitals across America and other places. If the parents ask, Doctors offer to bring a just-born to the Mom, and allow the child to bond instantly..during this time the child is not drapped in clothes. Touch therapy is not involving a therapist or a Doctor to massage babies, they ask the parents to touch and massage babies, targeting the parent-child relationship positively for the wellbeing of the child. This nurturing touch enriches emotional, social, psychological, physiological connections of both child and parents.

When a parent starts the massage, the child forgets everything and begins to watch mom/dad. The parent gets engaged in watching the child's cues, responses, pleasant moods etc., it is a techinique that helps and teaches parents to handle babies, soothe them, comfort them...which makes it easy to handle kids without anyones help in the future. It is an excellent tool to help parents get closer to their babies. Its all in your hands !!

--Pratyusha