Infant Massage Practitioner New York

Infant Massage Practitioner: The Title Recognized in New York

Infant massage is a delicate and highly specialized practice that requires both refined technique and deep sensitivity to developmental and clinical context. This course is designed exclusively for licensed massage therapists who want to expand their scope of practice to safely and effectively provide massage therapy directly to infants from newborns to pre-walkers in a therapeutic setting.

Important: This course was designed specifically for jurisdictions that do not allow massage therapists to teach massage to anyone who is not a licensed massage therapist including teaching infant massage to new parents. It does not include instructions for conducting parent-infant classes. Therapists who wish to teach infant massage to parents and wish to be certified should enroll in our Certified Infant Massage Instructor Course instead.

Continuing Education Details

Course Overview

Massage therapy for infants is gaining recognition in pediatric and integrative healthcare settings. Research and clinical experience show that skilled touch from a trained professional can offer therapeutic benefits beyond what caregivers alone can provide from relieving common discomforts such as colic and gas to supporting optimal physical development and neurological integration in the earliest weeks and months of life.

This course covers the fundamentals of safe and effective infant massage with a strong emphasis on clinical considerations, infant anatomy, developmental staging, and professional scope of practice. You will gain the confidence to apply gentle, age-appropriate techniques that are fully responsive to each baby's cues and clinical presentation.

Key Topics Covered

• Indications and contraindications: when and how to safely apply massage to infants, including special considerations for premature or medically fragile babies
• Massage techniques for common conditions: hands-on routines for colic, constipation, teething irritability, gas, and sleep challenges
• Infant developmental stages: how motor development and neurological milestones influence your approach and technique selection
• Reading infant cues: recognizing the subtle behavioral signals that guide when to begin, pause, or end a session
• Positioning and comfort: how to safely position infants for massage based on age, muscle tone, and developmental ability
• Clinical practice guidelines: documentation practices, collaborative care with pediatric healthcare providers, and maintaining ethical, professional standards when working with infant clients

Who This Course Is For

• Licensed massage therapists who want to add direct, hands-on infant massage to their clinical scope of practice
• Therapists in states or jurisdictions where teaching massage to non-licensed persons including parents is not within scope, and who need a practitioner-focused training (New York is the state specific about this as of 2026 to our understanding)
• Practitioners working in or seeking to work in pediatric, integrative, or family wellness settings
• Therapists who work with prenatal and postpartum clients and want to extend their expertise into newborn and infant care
• Any licensed massage therapist seeking 15 NCBTMB-approved kinesthetic CEUs in a clinically substantive specialty

About the Instructor

Dr. Deanine Picciano AP, LMT brings over three decades of experience in prenatal, perinatal, and infant massage to this course. A pioneer in nurturing therapeutic care for families, Dr. Picciano's extensive clinical work, doula experience, and contributions to massage therapy education have equipped thousands of therapists to confidently care for clients during the most tender stages of life. Her passion for excellence and warmth as an instructor are evident in every lesson.

Benefits of Taking This Course

• Expand your clinical scope with a specialized, evidence-informed skill set for working therapeutically with one of the most vulnerable and most rewarding client populations
• Serve families more completely by extending your therapeutic reach from prenatal and postpartum care into the newborn and infant period
• Meet a growing demand as pediatric and integrative healthcare settings increasingly seek therapists with formal training in infant bodywork
• Earn 15 kinesthetic CEUs accepted by NCBTMB, AMTA, ABMP, and most state licensing boards
• Study immediately with instant enrollment and full access to all course materials and testing from the moment you register

Course & Certification Details

Test & Certificate: The online exam is completed through your student account at MassageCredits.com. Upon passing, your certificate of completion is available immediately for printing or download as a PDF.

CE Broker Reporting: Institute of Somatic Therapy automatically reports completions to CE Broker in applicable states as General hours, provided your license number is on file in your account. To verify or add your license number, log in to your account and select "Edit" if your license is not shown. This course does not fulfill any required live or hands-on classroom hours.

Florida Licensees: This course is approved in Florida for General hours (course #20-1299582, approved April 24, 2025). If you are a Florida massage therapist seeking infant massage CE hours toward your renewal, please review whether the Certified Infant Massage Instructor course better suits your renewal needs before enrolling in this version.

Provider Approvals: Institute of Somatic Therapy is an NCBTMB Approved Provider (#280672-00), approved by Florida (#MCE-326) and New York (#0019). Courses are also accepted by AMTA, ABMP, and most individual states. Some states limit the number of online or home-study hours permitted per renewal cycle. Please review our State Guidelines section for requirements specific to your state.

Note: CE regulations change. Your state licensing board holds you responsible for knowing the requirements that apply to your license.

Related courses: Certified Infant Massage Instructor, Prenatal Fundamentals, Prenatal Massage Techniques, Massage Doula, Fertility Massage.