A great source of well-being and relaxation, massage has many virtues for your baby: it promotes his awakening and helps him to become aware of his body, it calms him and prepares him for sleep, and it can also contribute to relieve minor stomach aches. Finally, the massage is a lovely moment of tenderness and complicity with you.
Discover our tips for massaging your baby and get started!
THE MASSAGE RITUAL
The right conditions
• You can massage your baby from birth and up to 3 years, or even later if he continues to enjoy these moments.
• Choose a quiet moment when you are fully available so you can devote yourself to the massage peacefully without being interrupted.
• Sit in a warm (approximately 26°C) and quiet room, with dim lighting.
• Place your baby facing you on a towel or blanket, on a bed, a changing table or on the floor on a soft rug.
• Your hands must be clean and warm, your nails short.
• Remove anything that could catch your baby's skin, such as jewelry.
• Use a specific massage oil for babies. Coat your hands with it and rub them to warm the oil before touching your baby.
• Your baby's skin should be healthy and not irritated.
• Avoid massaging your baby if he is sick, and immediately after a bottle or meal. The right gestures Massage is different from caresses: your contact must be warm and gentle but firm, made of stimulating and enveloping pressure. You can extend the session for up to 30 minutes, if your baby seems to enjoy it.
However, he may be reluctant the first time: in this case, stop after a few minutes and offer him another massage the next day or a few days later. You can take inspiration from the following gestures to massage your baby:
• Start by gently massaging his shoulders starting from the neck then going down the arms without forgetting the hands and fingers.
• Then, with your hand flat, massage the thorax and stomach in clockwise circles: place your hand crosswise under his chest and go down gently, then start again with the other hand. Do not press, the weight of your hand is enough.
• Hold your baby's foot with one hand, and with the other hand, massage from the calf to the thigh, then to the hip. • Hold his foot between your hands and gently massage from the toes to the heel. Go back to the toes and massage them one by one and then gently stretch them all together upwards.
• For the hands, massage the heart of the palm with gentle, circular movements, then gently stretch each of the fingers.