Babies cry. But when do you speak of a cry baby? For this, you can use the 3 times 3 rule of thumb. The baby cries for 3 weeks or more, at least 3 days a week for 3 hours or more. As a parent, you often intuitively feel that “something is not right. The tone of crying is often more reminiscent of screeching. This may be a sign of pain or agitation. A very different tone from, say, the “I’m hungry” cry.
The cause of crying: childbirth
Childbirth is a beautiful, but also a stressful and in some ways traumatic event, not only for the mother, but also for the baby. From a warm, quiet, relatively dark and familiar environment, the baby suddenly finds himself in an environment full of stimuli and stimuli.
The passage in the birth canal is only just big enough for the head and shoulders to pass through, the baby’s skull comes under considerable pressure. There is great pressure from the uterus, pushing the baby through the birth canal. In the process, the child also makes a (pivotal) turn. The forces this exerts on the neck and shoulders are considerable. By nature, the child’s head is designed to adapt to the passage. It can (de)form to the narrow passage through the bony pelvis. The deformations normally disappear shortly after delivery.You see especially in very fast deliveries (great pressure in a short time) or in prolonged deliveries (pressure over a long time) that great forces are exerted on the head and neck from the uterus.
Then, of course, there is assisted delivery, which uses a vacuum pump or forceps to extract the baby. This also creates considerable forces on the head and neck.Sometimes a cesarean section is involved: again, you often see a prolonged labor where a complication occurs along the way so that a cesarean section is still the only solution. Also when “pulling”, pulling the baby out during the cesarean section, there can again be considerable forces on the body.
In all situations, there may be such an impact on the head or twisting of the neck and shoulders that the head or neck and shoulders cannot properly recover from themselves. All this can lead to the baby becoming a cry baby. A tough situation for all involved. An osteopath can then offer a helping hand.
Osteopathy for a cry baby
What can an osteopath do for a cry baby? By examining the baby’s body with the hands, the osteopath is able to detect loss of motion or tension in the head, neck, shoulders and the rest of the body. Then, using gentle techniques, the osteopath can reduce or completely eliminate the tensions and movement losses found. Generally, the baby experiences the treatment as pleasant, often surrendering to it, so to speak, after some time.
By releasing the tension in the abdomen, spine and head-neck-shoulder area, the jammers disappear from the body and the baby will be able to feel more comfortable in his or her skin again.
No manipulations (“squatting”) or so-called “holding techniques,” a technique in which a baby is completely folded, so to speak, are used with infants. In fact, the latter can lead to compression of the trachea with all its consequences.
Cry babies often respond very well to treatment. But there is no one therapy that can solve all problems, and that includes osteopathy. In order not to treat endlessly without results, it is always agreed that there should be results after 3 treatments. This does not mean that the complaint will disappear after 3 treatments, but there should be a significant improvement.
After treatment
After the osteopathic treatment, the cry baby is often tired. It is therefore wise to allow the baby to rest after the treatment. When he or she falls asleep, it is better not to wake him or her for a feeding. Let your little one sleep soundly. This will allow the baby to get maximum benefit from the treatment.It is also possible that the child shows restlessness in the days after the treatment. Sometimes there is a temporary worsening of symptoms. In most cases this does not last longer than 1 or 2 days.
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