If you’ve been sitting with the realization that your baby’s body might be holding tension from birth, and you’ve been wondering what you actually do with that, this is where it gets practical.
Baby bodywork is something I’ve practiced for 17 years as an occupational therapist and craniosacral therapist. And one of the things I’ve learned in that time is that a significant portion of what I do in clinic, parents can do at home. Not all of it. But more than most people expect.
Let me walk you through what this work actually is, what it looks like in practice, and where you can start.
WHAT BABY BODYWORK IS (AND ISN’T)
Baby bodywork is not massage in the traditional sense. It’s not manipulation. There’s no cracking, no forcing, no working through a checklist of techniques regardless of what the baby is communicating.
At its core, baby bodywork is about listening to the body and creating the conditions for tension to release on its own terms. It works with the nervous system rather than against it. The pace is slow. The touch is light. The approach is responsive.
In my clinic, this looks like a combination of craniosacral therapy, gentle osteopathic-influenced techniques, and OT-informed movement support. To someone watching from outside, it can look like barely anything is happening. My hands are on the baby, but lightly. I’m following the body’s cues rather than directing them.
What I’m doing, in the language of the nervous system, is communicating safety. I’m saying: you can put that down now. And the body, when it registers that signal in the right conditions, does.
WHAT A SESSION ACTUALLY LOOKS LIKE
We sit together on the floor, mama and baby. I spend the first part of every session just watching. How is this baby resting? Where are they holding tension? What is their nervous system doing right now?
Then I make contact. Usually beginning at the base of the skull and the neck, where so much of the birth-related tension lives. The jaw. The spine. The pelvis and hips. Throughout, I’m following the body rather than working from a script.
Most babies do one of two things: they go very still and quiet, the nervous system processing something deep. Or they fuss briefly and then melt. That melting is what I’m looking for. The moment the body stops bracing and something releases.
The mamas in the room change too. There’s usually a moment, about ten minutes in, where the mama realizes her baby is actually comfortable from the inside. Not distracted into stillness, not exhausted into sleep. Just… at ease. And her own nervous system responds to that. It’s one of my favorite things to witness.
WHAT YOU CAN DO AT HOME
Here’s what 17 years in this work has taught me: the foundational principles that make bodywork effective aren’t complicated. Be slow. Be intentional. Follow the body rather than directing it. Create safety. Let the nervous system lead.
A parent who understands those principles and knows which areas to work with can make a meaningful difference in their baby’s body tension. Jaw release techniques you can do during or between feeds. Neck and occipital holds that encourage the base of the skull to soften. Body sequences that follow the spine and address the areas babies most commonly hold tension after birth.
And here’s what makes parents uniquely suited for this work: you are already the most regulating presence in your baby’s world. The quality of your presence, your touch, your attention, matters more than any technique. What the right guidance does is give your natural attunement somewhere specific and useful to go.
WHERE TO START
If you want to start at home, Baby Bodywork At Home is the course I built for exactly this. It walks you through the techniques I use in clinic, with video guidance and the same warm, practical approach I bring to every session. $47. No clinic appointment needed.
And if you want to understand your baby’s body before you start working with it, the Calm Baby Blueprint is a free foundation.
Your baby’s body has been asking for this. Now you know how to answer.