When someone thinks of a baby getting adjusted, such fear can come to mind. “You’re going to rack and crack a baby?” The answer is clearly “no”, but maybe the chiropractor can do a better job at demonstrating the how and why aspect. I believe showing can change the way others think about the role chiropractic plays for the whole family, especially in the very beginning.
This video was made, to show how gentle and specific an adjustment can be for a baby. There are many reasons that a baby can become unbalanced at a segmental level or from a neurological standpoint.
Here are the 3 most common sources of tension that I run into in practice:
- A forceful labor and delivery
- Intrauterine constraint (baby not in ideal position in mommy’s belly)
- Oral motor dysfunction (baby not latching with ease)
The autonomic nervous system stays front of mind for the chiropractor when they assess and treat these baby’s who are in “fight or flight” mode at their feeds. If something is making them uncomfortable each time they feed, their body will start to posture in such a way that you can just tell they are uncomfortable.
Though these babies are gaining weight, the posture is making them uncomfortable and causing further restrictions in other areas of the body as they compensate overtime.
What a parent may notice and what that means to the chiropractor:
- Furrowed eye brow or angry eyes | chiro sees overlap of cranial bones d/t oral tension or neck tension
- Arched back | chiro sees source of reflux, diaphragmatic spasm, and lack of balanced spinal curvatures
- Head preference | cranium, neck, shoulder, and hip tension
Chiropractors will dive in, find where the tension is, and begin to remove the tension from baby so they can immediately start to slide into their parasympathetic nervous system “rest and digest.” This is where the human being was designed to live and thrive. This is where we heal, repair, grow, and adapt.
If your baby is uncomfortable, take them for an assessment. Make sure the chiropractor you are taking them too is familiar and comfortable adjustment little ones. We are all meant to adapt and so will your baby!
