The way you pet your baby depends on the goal you want to achieve.
IN THE MORNING
The goal is to stimulate it, for example, with arm twists or foot massages to start the day smarter. As you touch him lovingly you help him become aware of the parts of his body. Touching it with that mommy warmth shows you how much you love it.
1. First contact: rub your hands until they are warm. Put them on your chest and gently press your little one’s torso for a minute looking lovingly into his eyes. This way you will establish contact for the following morning massage maneuvers.
2. Feet: With the thumb, trace circles on your heel and the center of the sole of the foot. Run across your sole from heel to toe and stop at each finger, gently press with your index finger and thumb. Lastly, massage your ankles and foot joints.
3. Arms: Offer your baby thumbs to hold on to, extend their arms out to the sides, and then cross them across the chest. This will help you find your inner balance. Opening and closing your arms is useful to gain awareness of your body identity.
IN THE AFTERNOON
The goal is to relax him to promote sleep, for example, with caresses on the back or a massage on the abdomen that will help him expel the gases (you can give it to him at any time if you see that he is upset). If you already have more experience you can do the entire massage. In this case, it is usual to start with the arms or legs and end with the face or back.
1. Hips: Cross your little legs over the abdomen and gently rock your hips from side to side. In this variation of the lotus flower pose, (one of the best known in yoga), the muscles relax and the mind relaxes.
2. Abdomen: These massages will help you expel the gases. Pass your hands around the navel clockwise or walk your fingers from one end of his abdomen to the other. Always ends on the left side.
3. Back: alternately passes one and another hand diagonally down the back, from the right pompi to the left man and vice versa. When the first hand reaches the top, the other starts again at the bottom.