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Cranial Osteopathy for colic

Hello all,

I just wanted to share my recent experience with the above. My DS is now 15 weeks, has had colic from 7 weeks. We used all the remedies out there, colief, comfort milk, massage etc. Nothing really worked, he just used to spend the whole night crying in pain.

So we went for CO, it cost ??45 and the session lasted around 90mins. Lots of questions asked about his birth, labour etc and then she went on to treat my son.

Well, from that night on he has slept through and is a different baby! Now, I know this could be a fluke, but I thought I would share our experience, if anyone is thinking of doing it, especially when you have run out of other options, go for it!

Replies

  • Hi,

    My LO is 3 weeks and has been suffering from colic since 4 or 5 days after birth, i've tried Colief, Infacol etc. I think the Infacol has improved things slightly but shes really unsettled during the day and then the evenings can be a nightmare which is so upsetting as she looks like shes in so much pain.

    My midwife suggested CO before the colic had even started as I had quite a traumatic forcep delivery, so was just wondering if you had a good/bad birth? Also did you just have to have the one session? Do you think 3 weeks is too young?

    Has anyone else tried CO?

    Thanks x
  • I took Adam for his first CO session yesterday, as he has been really unsettled and seemed 'tense' (in the words of the health visitor!)

    Adam has been like a different baby today - really happy and smiley and sleeping like a dream (he's alweays slept well at night but not in the day).

    I am taking him back next week for another session! image

    xx
  • Hi Chunckles,

    I would say go for it, I don't think 3 weeks is too early at all.

    Yes, I did have a traumatic delivery, DS was stuck with his chin hooked into my pelvis for a long while which meant I had an emergency section and even then he had to be really yanked out.

  • we had several sessions (from about 5weeks i think) but unfortunately it didn't make any diff to my little boy but i have heard such great things that i would still recommend it and you'll know if its working for you. he seems to be growing out of but is still unsettled and "colicky" a lot of the time (12 weeks now)
  • Daisy-Mae has quite severe reflux and we had some CO when she was about 8 months. She still has issues with reflux, but the difference in her general sleeping pattern (which was where the major problem lay with her reflux) is amazing! I can't recommend it enough!

    C x
  • Our baby girl was born in Feb and was a great sleeper from the start. She was reluctant to feed however and we moved to mixed breast and formula feeding, which helped. At week 3.5 weeks however, she developed really extreme colic..and after a week we were desperate. She would start screaming at around 7pm and this would carry on until 11pm..and then she would fall asleep and be fine...this was accompanied by back arching, bright red face, vomitting etc. Nothing we did made any difference at all and she was fine for the rest of the days / nights. She did appear to have a gassy tummy also. It was impossible to even hold a conversation over her screaming!
    We took her for CO and after the first session, we never had colic again.. She was windy and a bit grizzly the following few days, but that was nothing. After the second session it disappeared completely. She had a few more sessions, to also help her feeding and also her hip alignment..the results were miraculous....
    A friend also had extreme problems with her babies digestion and sleeping ( or total lack of at night and constant crying ) and they had the same results...three more friends have since been for milder issues - all of which have been resolved.
    Three of the babies were born with forceps and this is directly linked ot their issues. The fourth and firth were an emergency C secs after very long labour.
    Read up on the web how it works...it all makes sense and the results speak for them selves.
  • I have not been personally but a couple of my friends have and their LOs are like totally different babies now x
  • I took my son at 3 weeks, 4 weeks, 6 weeks and 9 weeks and will go again in 3 months. He had his cord round his neck twice but otherwise delivery was ok. The difference it made to his sleeping and feeing is amazing and well worth the money!
  • I took Dixie Lola for the first time today as she is quite windy nothing major tho and i've heard it's good to take them after birth anyway - I had a really easy 5 hr labour no pain relief natural birth in water but he still found some tension in her neck... she has been really good the rest of today and i'm takin her back next week XXX
  • I took my lo who is now 11 weeks for 3 sessions between 4 and 9 weeks. He had colic (which now seems to have gone, touch wood!) I also had a difficult labour.

    I really rate it's and well worth the money.

    H x
  • I wish more people would post who haven't had this miracle cure, because they are out there.



    As (I now know) with most alternative therapies the negative results are often forgotten within the mist of time and the array of techniques attempted.



    I let my wife take our son for cranial osteopathy when we were at our lowest ebb with colic and reflux.

    I checked with a paediatrician regarding risks who said that a practitioner who had good "training" would be very unlikely to do any harm since the pressures applied are so minimal.



    It didn't work and the nearly ??200 wasted made wife even more depressed.



    Since then I have looked into both Osteopathy and Chiropractors, which I had assumed were real treatments.



    I didn't realise that they are both based on a completely made up systems of how the body works with no scientific basis what so ever.



    There is barely any evidence that they work for even their best application (chronic lower back pain).. never mind the utter nonsense that is gently massaging a baby's head, and massaging cash out of the hands of desperate parents.



    The placebo effect is very strong, especially when applied to anxious/distraught parents.
  • I haven't taken LO for this, although I am thinking about it.

    However, I wanted to post and say that my friend took her DD for it due to severe reflux and was so completely impressed that she quit her job to re-train as a practitioner!
  • My osteopath treated my 13 week old(7weeks corrected) baby girl after suffering with reflux and constipation and the very next morning she did the biggest poo she had done in a long time! She also slept through the night afterwards.

    I know it doesnt work for all but def worth a try and mine charges ??20 for children x
  • Hi all

    I am an Osteopath, and specialise in paediatrics and pregnancy. The vast majority of the above comments are typical of responces to osteopathic treatment for children and babies with these problems. I am happy that you have had good experiences with your children on the whole. I am sorry to read however Collum, that you didn't get the results that you were looking for with your child. Like any medical profession we can't help everyone.  I must correct you however in your description of Osteopathy. It is a registered qualification that has been recognised by law as being a distinct medical practice, to that end we have the same legal status as doctors or dentists. All Osteopaths study the pure sciences as part of their training such as Anatomy, Physiology, Pathology and Neurology and are trained to a very high standard for a minimum of 4 years full-time. Cranial Osteopathy is largely taught post grad as it requires advanced levels of palpation and understanding of anatomy and neurology. Diagnosis is based on clinical assessment, orthopaedic testing, and palpation following a thorough case history. The principles used by osteopaths to treat are founded in research and a good working knowledge of the above clinical sciences and applied specifically to the individual infront of them. Please do your research more thoroughly before condemning a recognised profession.  Thank you.

  • My boy is 5 months and suffers from reflux. Just booked with osteopath to have session to see if it helps. As a healthy skeptic I have tried to do my research but can only find advocates in the form of mother & baby forums and practitioners themselves. To the above poster, you request we do our research but it would be helpful for you to provide us with links/references to peer-reviewed studies of how osteopathy is a) safe and b) helps infants with reflux, colic etc. I can find no such studies.

    Believe me, I want it to work. But am I better spending my money on a babysitter and a haircut to make me feel better and take my baby to the doctor at no charge instead?

     

  • Anyone keen for evidence might be interested to spend $90 od (Aus) to buy "Manual Therapy In Children" edited by by the German orthopedic surgeon Heiner Biedermann.

    His extensive list of contributing authors (from pediatricians, psychologists, a psychiatrist, an obstetrician, anatomy and embruology specialists to orthodontic specialists, physiotherapists and rehabilitation specialists) provide a clear mechanism and explanation for the issues around upper cervical birth trauma.

    The key mechanism of injury here is twisting of the atlas on the skull, and associated torsion on the dura mater.

    The treatment provided by craniosacral therapists is of direct relevance to this problem, and the evidence supporting its existence is easy to encounter, provided one is prepared to venture beyond the bounds of what is offered in the anglophone scientific press.

  • If you're considering cranial osteopathy, check out these links first:
    Good Thinking About? Craniosacral Therapy (or Cranial Osteopathy) » Good Thinking Society
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TW8kLdYLofc

    To the osteopath who posted earlier in this thread (or any other osteopath), if you can provide any good quality scientific evidence to prove that Cranial Osteopathy isn't just a "bogus treatment" that is "biologically implausible" I'm sure we'd all like to read it.

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