BSR FOR BABIES & CHILDREN
Often children are labelled as naughty, disruptive, dreamers or slow learners when in fact often screaming babies, toddlers with growing pains, attention disorders, restless behaviour or bed wetting might actually be suffering from body stress.
A common sign that a baby has body stress in the neck is constant crying for no apparent reason. When body stress is present in the lower back the baby might cry or niggle when the hips are lifted during nappy changes or the child may present with constipation. Stress in the diaphragm area could influence digestion, colic, and reflux. Niggly babies, babies that cry all the time, or babies that have disrupted sleep, cramping, and wind, may be suffering from sites of body stress; and toddlers refusing to walk or young children who complain of having sore legs (so-called “growing-pains”) may likely have body stress in the lower back and hip area.
When there are sites of tension in the lower back, hip and pelvis the leg muscles may be affected, causing a tendency of the feet to turn inwards. Bed-wetting may occur if the nerve supply to the bladder is irritated.
At school, a child with tension in the neck may lack concentration and become disruptive. If there is pressure in the lower back, the child may be restless and unable to sit still. Teenagers may start to develop problems with spine curvature or scoliosis and this can be exacerbated by carrying heavy shoulder bags, high impact sports or poor posture.
Many parents bring their babies children for regular check ups to ensure that the body remains free of stress and tension and that their child’s growth and development is normal and healthy.
Causes of body stress in babies & children
Often babies carry stress soon after birth, especially in the neck and lower spine – this may be severe in traumatic births, but is often apparent even if the baby had an easy entry.
Small children are likely to accumulate body stress as a result of frequent falls and jerks while playing, or trying to lift heavy objects while older children may sit incorrectly or spend too much time reading hunched over, watching television slouched on the couch (putting pressure on the lumbar curve) and causing pressure to build up in the spine.
As they approach puberty, children become more self-conscious and may develop poor posture, hunched shoulders, a contracted chest and downward tilted head as a defensive mechanism against the new challenges and stresses in life.
Muscles tighten and tension becomes locked into the body. Prevention is the operative word! It makes sense to have babies and children assessed for stress regularly, even if there does not appear to be any problems. In this way, if there is any tension stored in the body will be released before it accumulates to have an adverse impact on the nervous system.
Quite often small children cannot always verbalise what they are feeling, but the parents may observe signs indicating the presence of body stress.
For example, a normally good-natured child will become sullen and uncooperative, or the child may talk about a “funny feeling in the tummy”, become exceedingly restless or complain of sore legs. Children enjoy experiencing BSR as it is a gentle procedure and they become aware of how different they feel once the stored tension has been released. Babies & children respond very quickly to BSR, as the pressure has not been present in the body for a long time and is readily released.
Effects of body stress in babies & children
A common sign that a baby has body stress in the neck is constant crying for no apparent reason.
When body stress is present in the lower back the baby will cry when the hips are lifted while the nappy is being changed. The impact on the nervous system may cause constipation.
Body stress in the area of the diaphragm may result in colic.
Toddlers who refuse to walk and demand to be carried, or who complain of sore legs, (so-called growing pains) very likely have body stress in the lower back. The leg muscles may be affected, causing a tendency of the feet to turn inwards.
Bed-wetting may occur if the nerve supply to the bladder is irritated.
At school, a child with tension in the neck may lack concentration and become disruptive.
If there is pressure in the lower back, the child may be restless and unable to sit still.