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Osteopaths are increasingly
being asked to treat babies and children for complaints attributable to
mechanical strains acquired before or during the birth process. For a
parent, the treatment is particularly welcome as it does not involve the
use of any drugs and is non invasive.
Osteopathy is based on the
principle that all ailments whether minor or serious are as a result of
an imbalance somewhere within the body's systems. A paediatric
osteopath will use manual techniques to bring about profound changes
within the body through gentle manipulation. This allows the different
body systems (E.g. the nervous system, the digestive system, the muscular
system, the circulatory system) to work effectively and optimally.
Birth is one of the most stressful events in our lives, baby is
subject to enormous forces as the uterus pushes to expel baby against
the natural resistance of the birth canal. The small amounts of
movement that exist in the infant skull permit the baby's head to adapt
to the forces of labour, with the soft bones overlapping, bending and
warping as baby descends, in order to reduce the size of the head
allowing passage down the birth canal..
The baby’s head has the
remarkable ability to absorb these stresses and in the first few days
the head can usually be seen to gradually lose this extreme moulded
shape, as the baby feeds and cries. However, the infant head may not
fully recover from the distortion, especially if the birth has been
difficult. This may result in subtle changes in function, leading to
problems such as feeding difficulties, irritability and disturbed sleep
patterns.
When osteopaths examine babies,
areas of tension are often found in the spine or head, which are
indications that the baby is uncomfortable. A baby cannot complain of
backache or headache, and will typically express this by crying and
being unsettled or irritable.
As the child grows, problems
may become apparent which may have arisen because of earlier strains, or
as a result of trauma such as knocks on the head, or falls. Mechanical
stresses within the body can upset a child’s development, behaviour,
sleep patterns, and general health, as well as causing aches and
pains. Asymmetry of the head, neck and body can lead to postural
imbalances and discomfort or tension in the musculoskeletal system of
the body, which can result in the child being fidgety, making sitting
still difficult, and therefore affecting concentration.
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