Paediatric Osteopathy - What to expect on your first visit
Most of the time, parents find us because their child is experiencing some sort of discomfort, and may have been referred to us by a Midwife, a Lactation Consultant, a friend or even a stranger's recommendation from an online parenting group, but aren't quite sure what Osteopathy is, or what Osteopathic treatments are like. If you're feeling anxious, I hope that by reading on, most or all of your questions will be answered.
What to Expect
1.) Upon booking your appointment, an intake form including the health history will be automatically sent to you via email. Providing the most accurate information helps us to understand you and your baby's story, and begin to formulate a plan of action for where help & support may be needed.
We'll talk about the health history at the beginning of your child's appointment.
With newborns, talking about how they came into the world is a vital piece of the puzzle, because no matter what the circumstances, birth is a big deal!
Here are some common reasons (that we see in our clinic) why babies might display signs discomfort:
There was a long/stalled labor
There was a long pushing stage (approx. over one hour)
There were necessary interventions used for a safe delivery (forceps, vacuum, c-section, medications)
Baby was in a less-than-ideal position for a prolonged period of time, or 'stuck'
Baby was in distress (heart rate dropping with contractions, meconium present)
Mother was in distress (fatigue, anxiety, illness)
Baby has a tongue tie
A valuable note:
When carrying out my research and subsequently writing my thesis, titled "The Effect of Global Osteopathy on Children with Growing Pains", I explored potential circumstances that might cause some children to experience intermittent, nocturnal pain, while others did not. I discovered in the research that growing pains have nothing to do with growth whatsoever, which led me to dig deeper...and that's when things got really interesting!
Among a variety of theories pointing to possible causes of 'growing pains', I came across research pointing to the concept that the process of birth may in fact play a major role. Specifically, during long, arduous labours, possibly with baby in a less-than-ideal position, the repetitive nature and force of contractions on baby's head & body may cause micro-damage within the brain and nervous system that express symptoms after birth, and/or later on in life.
Here is a link to an abstract talking about just that: https://www.sciencedirect.com/sdfe/pdf/download/eid/1-s2.0-S0031395516318703/first-page-pdf
This isn't to be confused with more serious birth complications - in fact it often goes unnoticed to many - however, to an Osteopathic practitioner, this is key information to explain why some babies require support shortly after birth while others don't.
It can often be difficult to connect symptoms with causes, but at this point in my career, it is my belief that many of the common issues that affect newborns comes down to the events of their unique entry into the world.
2.) During the health history discussion in your first appointment, we will talk about the type of symptoms your child is experiencing.
Here are some common symptoms that come up, often as a result of traumatic birth:
Difficulty eating (may be from cranium, jaw, neck, upper back, ribs, diaphragm for example). This can look like 'chomping', losing the latch, 'clicking' noise during feeding, or swallowing air. This can lead to gas pains for baby, or pain/bleeding/cracked skin for the mother if breastfeeding.
Inability to turn head both left and right (making feeding or lying down difficult/uncomfortable)
Tight muscles (often in the neck & upper back)
Frequent crying, fussiness, colic, inability to be soothed
Arching the back
Difficulty burping which can lead to painful gas later on
3.) Questions and Consents
There's always time for questions, either before treatments begin, during, and usually afterward too! We encourage and welcome all questions.
When it comes to consenting to treatment for your child, you always have the right to ask for treatment to be changed, paused, or stopped all together. I do my best to carefully watch and pay attention to each child to notice when they use non-verbal communication to ask for a break, comfort from a parent, a clean diaper, a burp, or most of the time, food!
Soothers, bottles, breastfeeding or any other form of feeding is 100% welcome, and is often very helpful & calming for babies, allowing treatment to be continued while they rest. Nursing pillows are available and quite often, I do the best work while a baby is nestled close to the parent of their choice.
4.) Determining the most likely underlying cause of discomfort helps to direct where treatment should take place. Time for the hands-on assessment!
Now that questions have been answered and consents have been granted, it's time to move on to the assessment portion of the visit.
Babies are typically placed onto the treatment table in a safe, warm 'baby nest' which has soft sides to prevent rolling. Sometimes they stay with a parent if that's more comfortable for everyone.
Assessments are hands-on, over the clothing, allowing the practitioner to feel where restrictions are in the body, to imagine how they might be interconnected throughout the whole system, and begin to understand what may be causing the symptoms your baby is experiencing.
What's checked during the assessment?
The skeleton
The joints
The diaphragm
The organs
The muscles
The ligaments
The cranium
The dura
The brain
The fluids
The fascia
And...
The quality, vitality, mobility and interactions between them all.
5.) Now, on to the treatment!
Once the key areas requiring treatment have been determined, it's time for treatment to begin to help those areas to release tension and begin to move & function easier.
Osteopathic practitioners have very refined, specialized palpation skills (hands-on/feeling) that get better and better the longer we're in practice. Because of this, we don't waste a lot of time on the 'fluff', we do our best to locate the specific, underlying cause of what may be causing dysfunction in the body, and treat that.
Treatments are very gentle, pain-free and relaxing. Many patients fall asleep, especially babies.
Treatments are done over the clothing.
I always do my best to describe the areas that were worked on, how those areas felt before vs. after treatment, and explain why that matters in the context that's relevant for each child.
Babies and children generally respond quickly to treatment, and often show signs of improvement right there in the treatment room. Many mothers have commented that while breastfeeding during the treatment, they could feel changes in the quality of their baby's latch, with noticeably less pinching & pain. Many others have reported improved latch, less pain while nursing, less chomping, easier burps, and so many other improvements after minimal treatment. Nothing makes me happier than to hear that! My goal is to help people to heal, not to keep them coming back over and over.
6.) Home Care
Depending on your baby's individual needs, home care suggestions may be discussed after the treatment has completed.
I hope this has helped to clarify what to expect on your first appointment, and to ease any anxieties you may have had about Osteopathic treatment for your child.
I am so grateful to be in the position to help newborns and their families, and am constantly in awe of the healing capacity within all people, especially within children.
Lisa Woods, D.O.M.P., D.Sc.,O.
Osteopathic Manual Practitioner
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