Parent education and training in infants from a manual medicine perspective

Parents' orientation toward optimal physical care and supporting the development of human infants has been subject to widely different social and cultural historic variations during the many thousand years of human development since evolution of Homo sapiens. In our modern multimedia familial and lifestyle culture, parents are confronted with hundreds of behavioral and care recommendations, which can lead to insecurity and consequently also to bonding problems. In collaboration with pediatricians, midwives, and physiotherapists, the supporting and treating manual therapist has an important task in terms of educating parents in positioning and stimulating their infant. The aspect of optimal neurophysiological development and improvement of persistent unphysiological posture and movement asymmetries plays an important role. Emphasis should be placed on trust-building and deescalating education of parents in harmonious collaboration between treatment and support networks.