Infant Massage Instructor

Physical touch is known to have numerous beneficial effects to the development of infants and children. That is why infant massage is being promoted by some organizations, worldwide. Do you share their belief? Would you like to learn infant massage and teach others how to do it as well?

Physical touch has been widely known to bring beneficial effects to both adults and babies.

For babies, it is said to help their physical, mental and emotional growth. It can help them relax, feed better, sleep, and digest. It also helps develop their nervous system, and immune functions.

Becoming a Certified Infant Massage Instructor

If you want to learn infant massage and teach others to do it, there are classes that can make you a CIMI or a Certified Infant Massage Instructor. Find the nearest infant massage class in your area. One leader in the field is the International Association of Infant Massage (IAIM). There are no background qualifications to become a CIMI. Anyone can enrol in infant massage classes, which usually lasts for four days. Certification can be obtained by completing an infant massage training course, doing the practical work required by the program and passing an exam. Once certified, you can carry that distinction for life. The certification could be valid in other countries, too. Infant Massage USA offers infant massage training for a $625 fee. Its certification is recognized worldwide.

Certification and the Healthcare Professional

While anyone can be a CIMI, having a background in healthcare is even better. If you have been working as a health care giver for children, having a certification in infant massage could further bolster your credential as a child care specialist. An infant massage class can be worth up to 50 continuing education hours once recognized by the National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork. The International Institute of Infant Massage is one institution whose infant massage classes are approved by the NTCTMB.

Working as a CIMI

As a Certified Infant Massage Instructor, you can work in a variety of settings. You can hold your own infant massage classes in your home with family, friends and colleagues. Or you can visit them at their convenient times in their homes. You can work with pediatricians, lactation consultants, child specialists, childbirth educators, and day care centers, among others.

One area of specialization you can pursue as a child massage instructor is teaching parents and carers of children with special needs and of healthy but prematurely born babies. By learning infant massage techniques and bonding with the child, parents and carers learn how to be sensitive to the baby’s responses and how to read what his bodily cues are. Acquiring this skill is important to every parent, but moreso, for the carers of infants with special needs.
 

1 Comment

  • Angela Hitchcox said on July 11, 2009
    This sounds great! I have been a postpartum/nursery nurse for 10 years. I'm wanting to branch out and do something independently rather than staff nursing. I'm definitely going to consider pursuing career avenue. Thank you.

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