Neonatal Touch & Massage Program
The “My Family and Me Infant Massage Class” is a parent-child class taking place over the span of 7-8 weeks. This class is provided free of charge. Each class lasts for 50-60 minutes, depending on your child’s tolerance. It is specifically designed for children who have spent time in the NICU, experienced a challenging birth or who have a diagnosis that puts them at risk for developmental delay. The purpose is to help educate families on providing comforting touch and to learn more about helping their infants to develop. Infant Massage has been shown to improve infant regulation, feeding and overall development in infants who were born prematurely. Positioning techniques and home activities can also help your child to progress.
The class focuses on infant massage and handling techniques and teaches caregivers an awareness of sensory strategies to facilitate infant regulation. We will focus on providing positive touch and reading your baby’s cues. We will also practice activities to promote your child’s development, share information on positioning and promoting infant learning. You will be participating in the class with your child and up to 4 families total will be participating in the class too (socially distanced). Each week you will learn a new massage stroke and information about promoting your child’s development. One physical therapist will be leading the group and guiding you through massage & activities with your child.
If you have additional questions about this class, please contact mmoses@thebellcenter.org or jlamb@thebellcenter.org .
CLICK HERE TO ENROLLComments from families who have participated in the class:
“This was a great class! It was most helpful learning massage strokes to promote muscle strengthening and development”.
“This was a wonderful class. We learned so much during the 8-week period. We have seen tremendous development during that time.”
“This was a great class for us! We were able to implement suggestions and techniques learned fairly early into our daily routines.”
“One of the most helpful things I learned was how to help calm and regulate (our baby) when she gets worked up.”
“This was my third interaction with Pediatric PT’s and the most effective by far. I left every session encouraged and ready to propel my baby forward. I appreciated the innovation & problem-solving nature, while still encouraging hard work for the babies in the class.”
Support for this program is provided by a grant from Community Foundation of Greater Birmingham.
