General
When working in the parenting field with pregnant women and small babies, it is very important to know ones limits and having a huge network of professionals in other professions at hand.
Today I would like to talk about what a babywearing consultant can do and when it is better to see another professional.
When baby isn’t born yet, there often are a lot of expectations how life with baby will be. What you want to do and how you want to handle your new baby and life.
However, sometimes the reality does not fit the expectations. And at some point you might also reach out for help.
On the internet you often read that babies love to be carried or want to be carried the whole day. You may have read about all these benefits babywearing has: reducing reflux, helping with gassy stomaches, reducing the flat head syndrome, helping with bonding, etc.
So you prepared everything, got a nice carrier, and then it happens: your baby is crying in the carrier!
I already wrote a whole article on what can cause crying in the carrier because there are MANY reasons! I highly recommend reading this article before continuing to read any further!
You can find this article here
Today, however, I want to talk about specific situations and when I go to refer you to another professional.
Today I will talk about babies who have asymmetries (hanging in the carrier like a banana), preferring one side which causes flat head syndrome, aren’t tolerating anything fastened in the neck area (like a baby carrier), crying and straightening their back until they reach a completely hollow back, stiff limbs and joints, or babies who have problems going in the spread squat position.
Sometimes, it happens in a consultation that the completely happy baby is going nuts when we try different carriers.
Let me tell you about one example where the baby was happy in the carrier the family usually used but when we switched carriers, the baby started to cry and won’t stop.
This baby was completely fine in the BabyBjörn Mini the family had used so far. During the consultation we searched for a carrier that is also working on the back, since the BabyBjörn Mini is only for the front and the BabyBjörn Harmony the family had too, is only recommended by the company from twelve months on the back.
The mother first tried different halfbuckle carriers with my doll and was completely happy with one. When we switched to baby, however, the feeling of happiness soon turned into a feeling of disappointment.
As soon as we tightened the carrier, the baby started to cry and won’t stop.
In the Baby Björn he was relaxed. In another carrier which wouldn’t give pressure on the neck, he was fine too but not as happy as in the Baby Björn.
My thought was that we have a baby here who is not tolerating anything in the neck area. Another factor could be the spread squat position which isn’t as pronounced in the Baby Björn.
What I can do here, is selecting a carrier that doesn’t give pressure on the neck and showing how to avoid the pronounced spread squat position, however, this wouldn’t help with the cause for the pain.
Due to birth or the position in uterus, a baby can have blocked joints. I am sure most of you know it yourselves. When you slept in an odd position you feel completely tense and somehow off and only after a few minutes, hours, days, it gets better.
In a baby’s case though, it might be better to compare with an unhealthy position during work. Most people who are working in the same position every day know this. Especially when mainly using one arm. Your body’s balance gets off. One side of your body’s muscles is used more than the other and the body somehow has to balance both sides. You easily get stiff shoulders.
Often, the joints in your spine are locked and a good therapist might unlock some by making your bones crack.
All this can happen to babies too in uterus when it became too narrow, or during an exhausting birth process.
Most pediatrics and orthopedics aren’t trained to loosen locked joints in babies. They wait until baby grew out of it or prescribe a helmet when the flat head becomes too visible.
However, it can happen that, until your baby grew out of it, you won’t be able to use your baby carrier. In combination with a baby that won’t tolerate being physically separated from you, this is devastating.
But there might be people who can help!
I am partnering with a pair of osteopaths who are specially trained in handling pregnant and postpartum moms and also babies.
France (and England) have the highest standards in osteopathy. Sébastien and Julien from the Tokyo Therapy Wellness Center have the highest degree in Osteopathy and Julien has worked in France for many years with women and babies after birth.
Both are fluent in English, French, and Japanese.
With Osteopathy, it is possible to loosen locked joints and make it comfortable for the baby to be in a straight position and use both sides evenly without preferring one.
This can help with the flat head syndrome, a baby that’s always hanging to one side in the carrier, or can’t well go in the spread squat position.
It even goes further. Babies who are crying on the breast, making breastfeeding impossible, might be able to latch normally after the therapy.
There is one downside though.. the Japanese health insurance is not covering this therapy which will include two or three sessions.
Every family has to decide by themselves what is the best for themselves and their baby. In mild cases, your baby will grow out of it. The helmet against flat head syndrome is substituted and helps too. It is not always necessary to book a therapy spot.
Keep this information in mind. Just in case
