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Osteopathic Care of Children

 

 

It is a fact that as many as 9 out of 10 children suffer from birth trauma. The trauma can take the form of a long labour and slow delivery through the birth canal, often with the complication of ventouse or forceps intervention, through to a fast expulsion or the need for a caesarean delivery. All of these factors alter the normal rhythmic aspects of 'natural' birth and can leave their imprint on the newly born child.

 

The effects of birth trauma

It has been found that birth trauma can in effect 'imprint' on the pattern for physical, mental and neurological development of children and can lead to a wide variety of symptoms in childhood, such as colic, glue ear, hyperactivity and behavioural problems, cerebral palsy, etc. Many problems in later life may be attributable to birth trauma.

 

The treatment of children

In the hands of a skilled osteopathic practitioner these children can be released from the burden of their birth trauma and allowed to develop as naturally as possible from a strong and balanced basis.

The treatment can be very gentle, taking the form of an 'unwinding' of the lesion patterns in the new-born and young child, which may take only a few minutes, to longer and perhaps stronger looking treatments as may be necessary with the older child.

All treatment whether for child or adult is the least and gentlest treatment possible to make the changes necessary to help the body heal itself.

With young babies in particular, it helps to settle the child after treatment if they can be fed or given a drink.

 

Pregnancy and Birth trauma

Anyone who specialises in paediatrics must be interested in the birthing process, pregnancy and the condition of the mother before conception. So what comes first the baby or the mother? Certainly the condition of the mother during pregnancy will have a bearing on the birth process, and possibly on the decision made as to which birth procedure is chosen, eg squatting, in the pool, etc

 

Osteopathy as a preventative therapy

In an ideal world all mothers and babies could be checked and treated immediately after the birth process. In this way, eventually, all treatment would become preventative instead of having to be curative.