Many Certified Infant Massage Instructors have developed specialized programs for special needs, premature babies and teen parents. Your massages will have to be adapted as your baby grows into a child. When a baby begins crawling or walking, there are just too many exciting things to explore and the baby may crawl or walk away from the massage, making it harder or impossible to do. It s never a good idea to force a child to receive a massage. Just wait until the child is ready again.
Preschoolers usually love massage, and they can stay still for a longer period of time.
My preschooler continues to love her massages and even likes to give me massages now. You can include rhymes and games along with the massage to keep it fun. School-age children may also love massage and benefit from it, but don t try to push it on them if they don t want it. Massage can be very beneficial to adolescents, who are usually concerned about body image and facing a lot of emotional challenges. You can always ask them if they d like their neck and shoulders massaged when they are doing their homework.