This series of sessions shows how important it is to treat the mum (aswell as bub) when baby is exhibiting signs of breast refusal. Ivy* was a lot more settled after the first cranio treatment. Subsequent sessions included her mum and helped encourage her back to the breast.
Recently I worked with a breastfeeding mum and her 12 week old baby girl Ivy* over a period of three weeks. They were seeing a LC for slow weight gain, low supply and breast refusal. Ivy* preferred the left breast to the right. She had had a tongue tie released with some improvement, though recently top-ups were increasing and she was preferring the bottle. The LC noted a distressed cry and nervous tension and suggested she explore bodywork. Her mum describes her as a “generally unsettled baby who fights sleep”. She had been born via assisted birth – vacuum plus three attempts with forceps after induction.
Ivy* seemed really rigid /hypertonic and not comfortable in her body. I had to treat her sitting up as she preferred to arch forward. It was clear during cranio that her system was in shock from birth trauma which seemed to originate from an experience with her left shoulder and upper back/neck (possible nerve compression/pain from spinal accessory nerve). She also released some tension from her right jaw. She responded really well to the first treatment – afterwards her father commented she was “a different baby” and her mum said she was “a lot more settled and had also latched on once or twice”.
During subsequent visits Ivy* continued to process the compressive forces from the birth. At the second visit I treated her mum for a short time before treating Ivy*. Both mum and bub got a full treatment at the last visit.
Ivy* began regularly taking the left breast for short periods and continued to be settled – sleeping 6 hours in a row at night and being put down for naps twice a day (which she couldn’t do before).
Posted with permission. *Name changed to protect identity.