Whether you work in Early Head Start, do Early Intervention with at-risk families, serve children with special needs, or work with Parents as Teachers, Nurse-Family Partnership, or Healthy Families, teaching infant massage is a wonderful way to accomplish your program’s goals.
One of my training participants told me:
“Infant Massage is the most satisfying work I have ever done. One of the Early Hard Start staff people I consult with told me: ‘It is the most perfect thing to accomplish all our goals. It does everything we are hoping for.’ Infant massage gets people to focus on what’s going on with their baby. All the talk, all the hours we spend with families, yet infant massage just does it so quickly.”
Here are some things that people who work in Early Intervention have told me after taking my course:
“I have been a home visitor for over 20 years. Infant massage has been a huge asset to my work and goes together with the child development and parenting education I do with families daily. I absolutely love infant massage and it is my favorite thing to do with families. I have had the pleasure of witnessing its effects on babies and caretakers. It is amazing and beautiful, and I am blessed to be able to share it with families!” – from a early intervention home visitor.
“Once each family started classes, they were amazed with the calmness they saw in their child. Families were reporting their child grabbing the bottle of oil and handing it to mom, telling mom they wanted a massage. This response from the families excited me. Their children were a lot calmer and their parents also seemed calmer and happier dealing with their children. Infant massage improved behavior and relationships with the families that have been taking the class.” – from a home visitor in TX
“I just wanted to let you know how much I enjoyed the infant massage class last week. I feel as though I have grown as a home visitor and as an individual by having the privilege to be able to learn from you. I love what you do, and it was an honor to meet you.” – from a home visitor in Boston
“Thank you! This has, by far, been the most helpful training I’ve added in early intervention.” – from a Developmental Specialist LBSW in Alaska
“The course is a must-have for any professional working with infants or working with parents of infants . . . everyone should know this information.” – from the head of an Early Intervention Agency
“I just wanted to thank you for the wonderful training and mentorship you provided my entire group . . . it was a truly life-changing experience for many of us and a big part of that is due to your wisdom and patience. You have been an inspiration to me . . . .”
“Having learned the power of infant massage and had the opportunity to teach it to a family with profound trauma and see its mitigating effects was powerful! I want to continue to offer this gift to the families I work with.”
“A simple and in-depth course, fully preparing me to bring the knowledge to families – a great sense of ease and relaxation! Highlighting teaching families how to teach their children consent, and boundaries from infancy.”
“I have found my passion. I had experience working with families with various backgrounds and dynamics and once I taught the massage it brought all of my knowledge together and completed the puzzle. . . . I found an inner strength and confidence I forgot I had.”
“This training provided me with the knowledge and tools needed to support my families within my community.”
“As a parent educator I’m always looking for ways to help parents bond w/their children. This workshop gave me hands-on skills i can use with any family regardless of their values or lifestyle, and yet it was about much more than strokes – its about stepping back and encouraging parents to empower themselves and tap into their own expertise, which in my field meets the gold standard for family programs.”
“Amazing training on infant massage and its effect on the family unit for a lifetime.”
“This is an amazing training! Everyone working with parents of young children can benefit tremendously from taking this class & becoming a certified CEMI/CIMI infant massage educator.”
“For those of us working with infant children/families this is another helpful concrete tool / resource we can provide to our families. This is something families would see results in a short period of time and [it would] remain through their life if it is constant.”
“The infant massage course is a very comprehensive training that has a wealth of information. You learn about infant massage, child development, parenting and how to be a successful & confident teacher. I loved every day of it.”
“I feel that I have not only learned a skill but I have been given a new understanding of parent-infant communication and the importance of touch in human development. I feel honored and grateful to be able to pass on these gifts to parents.”
“I was so looking forward to this learning opportunity and it still exceeded my expectations. Inspirational, validating and practical for anyone who wants to learn a proven modality for empowering parents – to connecting lovingly with their children and support optimal development for the whole child, the whole family and the whole society.”
“As an EI therapist I now know the importance of a parent being the caregiver and providing the techniques as an educator in order to better empower the parents in the bonding process. {The teachings] matched my own personal belief system in parenting and making early bonds. I am excited to know that this organization met my need as a learner and now as an educator.”
“Helping to empower parents to build loving relationships with their babies through touch is critical. To be able to be the one to support parents in this outcome is one of the most rewarding roles we as clinicians can ever provide.”
“Loved it! Learned so much n a short period of time. . . . Personally, I have learned more about mothers and infants through infant massage than any textbook or home visiting program I have done in the past. Professionally I have gained a wonderful skill, which I hope to only improve in the years to come.”