Breastfeeding can be a stressful time for new mums, but there are steps you can take to make it easier for yourself and your baby:

• Massage your breasts when you can. This reduces the sodium content of the milk, making it taste nicer for bub. It also reduces the chances of mastitis
• Babies feed best when they have just woken up and are calm, so try if you can to feed them before they start crying to be fed. Look for little cues, like tongue thrusting and lip smacking.
• Very young babies will push their head back if pressure is put on the back of their head . So, bring their body in close to yours when you try to feed, but instead of pushing against the back of their heads to guide them on to the boob, try putting your hand under their cheek and supporting their head that way. This will give them the freedom to move their head and neck in to the most comfortable and efficient position to feed .

If you have any questions about any of these tips, please call Sharon on 9907 8919

Cranial Osteopaths are trained to feel a very subtle, rhythmical shape change that is present in all body tissues  and use very gentle guiding pressure to encourage the release of stresses throughout the body, including the head. It is extremely effective in treating a wide range of conditions in people of all ages.

'Cranial Osteopath' are Osteopaths who practise a gentler, more subtle approach to therapy.  Cranial Osteopathy treatment is safe and pain free. One of its most common benefits is that the treatment is so gentle that it often has a soporific effect, whilst tissue and tensions are relaxing. This makes it an ideal treatment for newborns, children and pregnant mothers, which North Shore Osteopaths specialise in.

Cranial Osteopathy Can Treat:

Paediatric issues

Pregnancy Symptoms

Joint pain

Back and neck pain

Headache and migraine

Digestive disorders

Period pain and irregularity

Recurrent infection

Sinusitis

Asthma and chest complaints

Stress, depression, and fatigue

General ill health

What are the added benefits of treatment?

Osteopathic treatment can not only relieve symptoms and pain. Many patients feel an improvement in general well-being, energy levels, sleep patterns, and with symptoms that the patient did not originally come to their practitioner for.

Would you like to maximise your chances of a straight forward birth?

Did you know osteopathic treatment can improve birth outcomes? (1)

As well as helping to relieve back , pelvic and pubic symphysis pain, heartburn and headaches during pregnancy, recent research has shown better birth outcomes in women who have osteopathic treatment during pregnancy (1). 

Treatment is gentle and can help to balance out your pelvis and spine. This is thought to help the baby to enter the pelvis as level as possible as well as ease it's passage through the birth canal.

Sharon has also found that linking osteo treatment with the Calmbirth courses (www.calmbirth.com.au) plus good nutrition can all add up to a more straight forward, happier delivery....

BUT please don't leave it too late ! If you want your pelvis checked out for the birth, come along as soon as you can. That way, if there are any major issues, we have a bit of time to sort them out.

Need more info? Call Sharon on 0414 529 203

(1) Osteopathic manipulative treatment in pre-natal care. Evidence supporting improved outcomes and health policy implications '. Hollis H King AAO Journal 2000

Did you know that osteopathic treatment can help relieve heartburn during pregnancy?

Did you also know that quite often you get Heartburn and pelvic pain together?

The diameter of a woman's rib cage is meant to expand by up to 9cm over the course of her pregnancy, to make room for the baby.

For this to happen, she needs a nice flexible ribcage and a happy, stretchy diaphragm.

The diaphragm is not only the main breathing muscle, but it also has the food pipe pass through it to get to the stomach. Any tightness through the lower ribs and the diaphragm can not only worsen heartburn, but it can also reduce the room for baby.

As the baby grows and the uterus expands, if the diaphragm and lower ribs don't lift up and out of the way , the baby has to stay low and find room in the pelvis. This increases the load on mums' pelvis and means we often see pelvic and pubic symphysis or pelvic pain go hand in hand.

YOU DON'T HAVE TO LIVE WITH IT !!

We can help the heartburn and the pelvic pain. Call 02 9907 8919 now for further information or to make an appointment.

Sharon Franklin - Director

We are thrilled to be offering our expert advice and helping the wider community understand what cranial osteopathy can do for babies. Our latest article has been published on the Woolworths Baby and Toddler Club website - click here to read it.

Did you know that osteopathic treatment may be able to help sleeping and behavioral issues in babies and kids?

Have you recently been on a flight , even a short, 1 hour domestic flight and your little one has stopped sleeping properly?

'Has your little one recently had a growth spurt or a fever?'

Are they more cranky or tearful than usual or just 'not themselves' and you have no idea why?

Over the sixteen years I have been treating babies and children, I have had Mums bring their little ones to me over and over for the above reasons and have experienced it in my own little girl. Time and time again there have been areas of tightness or irritation in their bodies, which, once treated , have led to a happier, calmer bub or toddler, and improved sleep. As an adult, you can understand if you are in pain or discomfort, or simply 'don't feel right' and are able to explain this clearly to others. Babies and children cannot do that, so we need to follow their cues and, as parents trust our instincts that they may need a little extra help.

I still remember treating my bub at 2am one morning as she had been struggling with teething for hours and the baby Panadol hadn't really helped. It settled her for the rest of the night. It has also reached the stage, now she is nearly six, that my husband (who isn't an osteopath), will say ' Sharon, I have no idea what's wrong with Asha at the moment, PLEASE will you give her a treatment ', or she will ask me herself!

Don't struggle, trust your gut and get them checked. If you're unsure, CALL me for a chat on 0414 529203.

Sharon

Sharon Franklin has been helping pregnant women and babies for over 14 years. She is a full trained paediatric and cranial osteopath operating practices in the UK, NZ and Australia and also worked at the world renowned Osteopathic Centre for children in the UK. She is also a trainee tutor with Australia’s leading post-grad cranial foundation – SCTF of ANZ.

Join Sharon for a complementary morning tea, learn some tips and meet other mums

• Learn simple hand on ways to help settle your baby
• Help overcome constipation and reflux with gentle massage
• Calming techniques to sooth and relax your baby
• How to identify the signs of tiredness

Date: Wednesday 30th September
10am – 11am
North Shore Osteopaths
185 Condamine Street
Balgowlah NSW 2093 (free parking in council car park behind)

Booking is essential. Reply to info@nso.com.au or contact (02) 9907 8919 

Reflux is a common condition in babies that most mums have either heard about or experienced. It involves the baby vomiting after most feedings and results in upset babies and worried parents:- not to mention an extraordinary amount of washing!

Silent reflux, however, is much harder to detect and can result in a very unsettled baby.

In silent reflux, a small amount of stomach acid and contents flow back into the oesophagus. However, unlike classic reflux, there is rarely any vomiting.

The discomfort caused by the stomach acid irritating the upper gut can cause the following signs and symptoms:

• Irritability
• Difficulty settling
• Frequent waking
• Can only be comforted by being in an upright position, especially after feeding
• Arching the back
• Noisy breathing

Sharon Franklin of North Shore Osteopaths has seen hundreds of mums who, after weeks with a distressed baby and the uncertainty of what is causing this, have finally been given the diagnosis of silent reflux.

What can you do?   

• Small and frequent feeds with the head elevated, and continuing an upright position after feeding.
• Dietary sensitivities should be considered and explored. (If breast feeding, mothers may have to try an elimination diet to pin-point the irritant.)
• Homeopathic treatment or gentle antacids can also help calm the inflammation in the gut
• Osteopathic Treatment

Why Osteopathy can help

The irritation of the gut also causes local muscle and joint soreness and tightness in the area of the spine between the baby’s shoulder blades. This then sets up a vicious cycle where one maintains the other. Osteopathic treatment helps to break this cycle, as well as gently releasing any tension in the base of the skull which may be irritating the main nerve to the gut.

Sharon Franklin and her team are skilled in Paediatric Osteopathy and have a highly developed sense of touch. They use this, combined with a detailed birth case history and structural examination to determine the extent and location of any areas of restriction (strain patterns) in the baby's body. They then use extremely gentle manual techniques to resolve these strains in order to relieve discomfort and improve the body's function. This will allow the different body systems - the nervous system, the immune system, the muscular system and the circulatory system - to work effectively and optimally.

To find out more about Paediatric Osteopathy and silent reflux, ring for an appointment with North Shore Osteopaths on (02) 9907 8919 or visit our website www.nso.com.au.