I have been involved in a discussion over at BodyworkOnline.com regarding infant CranioSacral Therapy. (Read full post here.) But I thought I would post my responses here as well. They are fairly detailed and contain quite a bit of information regarding CranioSacral Therapy during gestation, labor and delivery. Here’s my first post on the thread. (My second post will follow shortly.)

CST for newborns is amazing work. Most of us who have had advanced training and work with the craniosacral system on a daily basis, wish that we could get our hands on every newborn coming into this world.

Even the easiest, least complicated gestation, labor and delivery process can be traumatic not only for mom but for baby. (I am not saying this is true for every newborn – some do just fine)

The birth process is kind of like the newborns first craniosacral system ‘adjustment’ as his/her cranium is collapsed down the birth canal and re-expanded coming out into the world. Also, there is a dural twist that happens along the way. If the newborn’s self healing systems are all 100% ok, there’s an excellent chance that all will re-expand in a healthy state.

However, because the delivery process can be long and traumatic, the baby may be stuck in a position for hours. Cranial bones may overlap too much for too long and get stuck. How many of you have seen a newborn that looks like the frontal bone slightly overlaps the parietals giving a little ‘ridge’ across the forehead? Only to find out labor was long and mom pushed hard.

Another concern is when the baby’s head pops out and the person delivering, in an attempt to help the mom, holds on to the baby’s skull to gently pull/guide the baby out. Many times this is done in a way that puts the baby’s cervical spine into extreme extension. We see a lot of O/A compression post delivery. To start off life with this compression effects the baby’s ability to truly get into parasympathetic.

Imagine starting off life with any of these restrictions in your nervous system. From the get go your body is trying to adapt and balance itself with these issues present. The entire rest of this person’s life may be dealing with anxiety issues because of a compressed O/A from birth. Or perhaps some sort of learning concern because of cranial membrane tension or stuck suture … or add/adhd … or unexplained migraines/headaches … the list could go on and on …

My point being, if we can address any restrictions that may be present in the first few days of life, what is the possibility of this person’s body to do its job and maintain homeostasis. How many syndromes/symptoms/conditions might we help children avoid if his/her craniosacral system is as healthy as can be from the beginning.

I have worked on several 1or 2 day old newborns. It is beautiful work and often brings a tear to my eye to think that I may have helped this child to lead the healthiest life possible. It is a great honor.

I have also worked with older newborns to help relieve colic, poor latch, ear infections, nose discharge, and other symptoms.

I hope this helps some to see the possibility that is present.

Do any of you have newborns or children who had CranioSacral Therapy early on in life?