‘Reading the baby’ - the art of tuning into the baby's behavioural cues, is a significant component of Cherry’s Positive Touch Programme and the International Association of Infant Massage (IAIM) approach.
The dialogue between the baby and parent, an important influence on every child's development, needs particularly fine tuning in the case of preterm infants whose sensitivity to stimulation makes them highly vulnerable, easily overwhelmed and difficult to read. Massaging delicate babies in the neonatal unit can easily be such an overwhelming experience and understanding the link between touch and communication is an essential part of safely guiding parents and babies towards confident, loving contact.
As a developmental specialist on a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit that employs Cherry Bond, an IAIM trained nurse; I see this approach as a valuable contribution to an individualised developmental programme that sees the baby as an active agent determining how we respond. Listening to the baby and the parents comes first and this makes Positive Touch amendable for very small babies who may not be ready for massage at all but who will benefit, now and in the future, from the power of comforting parental touch.
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