Craniosacral Therapy for Infants
Sometimes newborns might have difficulty latching well for breast feeding. This can be related to a difficult birth process, C-section birth, or tongue ties / fascial tightness creating tension or strain patterns in the body.
Sheri Brimm PT has trained in several Upledger Institute Craniosacral courses including the courses Craniosacral Therapy for Pediatrics (1), Conception/Pregnancy/Childbirth, and Infants with Special Circumstances (such as prematurity, tongue ties, or other difficulties). Sheri has also been doing fascial release, including intra-oral and cranial work for pediatrics through John Barnes Myofascial Release training since taking the Pediatric MFR course in 2010 and has subsequently taken most of the John Barnes course and reached "Advanced" designation of training. Sheri has been working with children most of her 30 year career, but specifically in body work therapies since 2010.
Sheri has more recently taken additional training through Chrysalis Oromyofacial Therapy TOTS (Tethered Oral Tissues) and AOMT (Academy of OralFacial Myofunctional Therapy) Myofunctional Therapy Course to develop more knowledge regarding tongue tie fascial restrictions and how they can be identified and managed regarding tongue mobility and oral rest posture and how this affects suck/swallow/breathing mechanics.
The Craniosacral Therapy techniques work well for assisting infants who have neck tension, off level jaw or cranial bone alignments, and diaphragm tension as well as fascial tightness that occurs through midline of the body. The intra-oral techniques are valuable to assist with loosening tight fascia beneath the tongue, lip, and cheeks for pre and post op tongue/lip/buccal tie procedures.
However, some clients may also want to avoid the surgery if possible. Parents who learn how to work with the child's tense fascia themselves as well as identifying the presence of other midline fascia tension and working on that can go a long way to helping the child feed more efficiently and become more comfortable with breast feeding.
TYPICAL SYMPTOMS THAT DEMONSTRATE A BABY NEEDS CST TREATMENT:
Baby has difficulty latching, upper lip does not seal well or has air leakage or difficulty with coordinating breathing when eating.
Baby feels very tense and is "arching" or popping off the nipple or moving the head and shoulders as if pushing away can be a sign of difficulty breathing during feeds and/or tense fascia in the tongue, neck, spine, or diaphragm.
Baby has severe and frequent reflux, larger volumes of spit up, and fussiness after a feed requiring them to need to sit upright after feedings.
Baby has frequent gassiness, distention of the belly, or squirming and difficulty with bowel movements.
Baby is fussy and difficult to calm, or not sleeping well.
Mom is noticing pain or cracking of the nipples, or feels the baby is "biting" and is not cupping the breast well with the tongue, or has a very shallow latch and cannot get the breast in the baby's mouth deep enough.
Baby is very sleepy or lethargic and only eating a small amount at a time, requiring frequent feeds, and/or not gaining weight as expected.
SCHEDULING SESSIONS
The initial evaluation session is about 45 minutes and costs $105 (as of 9/01/24). I will assess the baby's body for fascial tension, including inside the mouth and the cranial/sacral mobility through the spine and cranial bones. I will also take a look at gross motor developmental movement and reflexes. During the session I will also teach the parents some ideas for how to position and/or work with your child's fascia yourself to assist with improving your baby's comfort. The techniques are very gentle and subtle and I strive to maintain your baby's and your comfort and ease during the process.
Follow up sessions are about 30 minutes (cost $70 as of 9/01/24) and involve direct hands on work including some intra-oral and cranial techniques as needed to help with releasing the full body fascial strain patterns related to the tense midline fascia that can present in the mouth, jaw, neck, diaphragm, and spine.
If your baby has a tongue/lip/buccal revision procedure, I recommend doing some sessions pre-op to clear the strain/tension patterns and begin the intra-oral fascial tension work so that parents can have a more successful and less stressful post-op rehab. After the procedure, I would recommend weekly sessions 4-8 weeks depending on how the child responds. Post-op fascia can still be tight and need some work for a few months on a biweekly or monthly basis with parents doing the techniques between.
As the fascia can become tighter when growth occurs, I often suggest a prolonged (PRN) plan of care to continue up to age 12-13 months, even if the child has had tongue tie procedure and the fascia therapy for that is completed. I will continue to progressively give you more information on how to work with your child's fascial tightness to help support gross motor development of skills such as rolling, tummy time, head control, sitting, and crawling on all 4's, then walking.
PAYMENT
CST sessions are cash pay at the time of the appointment, you can use HSA or credit card or check as well. CST may not be covered by many insurance plans, and tongue tie (Ankyloglossia) codes may also not be something insurance reimburses PT treatment for, so I do not bill insurance directly for these sessions.
You will need to contact your insurance company to see if they might reimburse you for "out of network" Physical therapy for Craniosacral Therapy. FYI anyone covered under Medicare or TNCare (Medicaid) cannot do self claims since I am not an enrolled provider.
DISCLAIMER
I am a Physical Therapist, not a speech therapist or oral motor functional assessment specialist. If you or your doctor have any concerns about choking or difficulty swallowing, you should follow up with a qualified oral motor specialist for further assessment of any functional feeding / swallowing issues. My focus is on releasing the tight fascia through bodywork to improve jaw and tongue mobility to support better breast feeding (pre and post tongue revision procedure), and gross motor development.