A few days ago I read a text by Marisa Hernando, Infant Massage educator, entitled "Child massage ... and frustration came", which I liked for feeling identified as a father.
I confess, I'm a dad too massager frustrated. I know that I am not the only one, because many fathers and mothers also explain that Children's massage, more than a moment of relaxation, ends up causing the opposite, "no relax".
Children's massage, which sounds fashionable or novelty, has been carried out for centuries. What I say centuries, there are references of massages to children in Egypt and China of more than 3000 years ago. The benefits are innumerable, since it supposes a wonderful encouragement for babies and for parents, an increase in the emotional bond (we know him better, we know what he likes, what he dislikes, what relaxes him, ...), a substantial improvement in sleep and rest patterns and a long etcetera (they even gain more weight than children that do not receive massages).
But sometimes the result of offering a massage to our baby is very different from the imagined and instead of having our son surrendered to our hands enjoying our caresses we find that he is sleepy, wants to eat, wants to play, bothers him that he Tumbes, turns to observe the environment, etc.
At that time the parents ended up thinking that "my child does not like massages", that "he is very small", that "he is very old", that "he prefers to play", that "he is very moved", ... and we just giving in and deciding we'll try another time when “The best moment is Now“, Marisa explains.
It is not that there is failure, but that our children act according to their desires and needs and need, like everyone else, a time to get used to a new, more physical and "invasive" mode of communication, such as infant massage.
We hope as parents that with our hands we will achieve in an instant that our baby enjoys and is still and yet they show us their abilities, their games, their feelings before nakedness, before the calm environment and before our close presence and what It was supposed to be a session in which we parents were going to use our abilities for the sake of our son, it becomes one in which they are the ones who show us their true abilities.
In other words, children become teachers and take advantage of the moment we are with them exclusively (sitting face to face with them) to show us a piece of his life and his energy.
Given this situation, it is advisable to simply enjoy it and be patient. “Everything has its rhythm and its time, and we must know how to respect each other's”says Marisa.
So, little by little, day by day, they begin to enjoy the moment and after massaging their chest a little, they offer you the arms so that you continue and so, little by little, day by day, parents know our babies more. We communicate by talking and touching them and they do it moving, playing and in some moments, letting themselves be touched.
Think of a scared animal that allows you to be caressed little by little. It is not that our babies fear us, much less, but that they have to know gradually the sensations we give them when they touch them and they also have to feel that they are able to “tell us” things, even if it is quite the opposite of what we expected .
