We were lucky to catch up with Melanie Wattles recently and have shared our conversation below.

Melanie , looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to hear about how you went about setting up your own practice and if you have any advice for professionals who might be considering starting their own?

My background is in Pediatric Nursing and Neonatal Intensive Care Nursing. I worked for many years in Neonatal Case Management and really enjoyed the travel and management experience. However, I had my son later in life and so decided to leave my full-time job to become a stay at home mom. I loved it but as my son grew older, I missed the connection with parents and babies. I had completed Infant Massage Instructor training as part of my continuing education for my RN license. I loved what I learned. I decided to open Babystrokes Infant / Child Massage Instruction and share my passion for infant massage by teaching Parents, Grandparents and Professionals. The most significant challenge for me was and still is education. People are still very unaware of the very significant benefits of infant massage for both parent, baby, and child. I had and still must educate people as to why they should massage their babies. They need to understand that before they are willing to take a class to learn. I spend a lot of time on social media doing IG live sessions or posts to explain why massage is beneficial and what it is about. Once a parent learns infant massage, they don’t need me again, so my goal is not repeat business rather attracting new clients. This is a challenge too although people have babies all the time, I still need to educate them to take a class.
Reimbursement for the classes is another challenge. It is not always lucrative. Finding that balance is at times difficult.

Melanie , love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

My background is in Pediatric and NICU. I completed both an Infant Massage Certification and a Pediatric Massage Therapy certification. I teach Infant Massage to Expectant Parents, Grandparents and those with Newborns, older babies, Toddlers and Children. I offer in person classes and virtual live and virtual recorded classes. I can teach small groups and offer private classes too. I also teach Professionals such as Nurses, Doulas, Infant Teachers, Nannies, Physical, Occupations and Speech Therapists on an individual level or in a group work setting. I have spoken at conferences and large Baby events. Massage has so many possible benefits for parents and the babies / children. I am passionate about sharing this with as many families and professionals as I can. I love teaching my classes and showing a parent how the simple gentle strokes can calm and soothe their babies. I feel I can offer a parent help. Many parents are concerned and stressed when their baby has gas or colic, and I can teach them gentle tummy massage to help relieve the painful symptoms. My classes always cover benefits, massage oils, and then massage strokes. Some classes cover Face Massage or Tummy Massage specifically and others cover Head to Toe Massage. I do offer customized classes too for Parents with an older baby or Child. I also offer in-home hands-on massage for a child over 1 year of age. I really enjoy working with children as massage can help with anxiety, sleep, tummy aches, headaches. Helping through education.

Putting training and knowledge aside, what else do you think really matters in terms of succeeding in your field?

I think to be successful as an Infant Massage instructor or Pediatric Massage therapist one of the most helpful qualities is to be a good communicator and to make people feel comfortable. As a Nurse I feel I have really been able to fine tune this skill and so when I teach my classes either in person or online (Zoom usually) I make those learning (Parents, Grandparents or Professionals) feel comfortable. A non-threatening – baby friendly / parent friendly environment is essential. Although I am teaching them, but I see it more as imparting knowledge, sharing knowledge and promoting parent / infant or child bonding. The feedback I receive from my classes is often related to this – Melanie made us feel comfortable, at ease.

Another important area is flexibility. To succeed in this field, you can’t be rigid. Parents with newborns and or children are often busy and stressed managing everything ad I do not want to add to their stress. If a parent needs to cancel and reschedule a class or must leave halfway through, I will make it work for them. I try to be as accommodating as possible.

I also think that how a parent learns is very personal and individual and I have had to be flexible in that area too. The ideal way to learn massage is an hour class over 4-6 weeks. This does not work for everyone. I have offered recorded courses, online classes, in home classes, group and individual classes. Some parents choose to turn their screens off, so I do not see them, others are learning with their babies and very involved. I cannot and do not want to be judgmental in any way and encourage parents to learn the best way for them I am always available to them after a class.

Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?

Social Media has been the most effective strategy for growing clientele and for sharing education / information about Infant / Child Massage. I had a Facebook Page early on and was very reluctant to start Instagram however I finally did. The account has grown to 27.3k people. I post frequently and offer IG chats on other accounts and have worked closely with several similar businesses. Once I became an established IG account holder, I started to network with others in a similar practice area. This was extremely helpful to me. Networking is key. I also offer classes through other companies as well as through my own company. This has allowed me more visibility and that has helped me grow clientele.

I have also done a lot of in person networking with other local professionals…. meeting for coffee or lunch. I offered mini educational sessions to educate on the benefits of infant massage.

I also have had the opportunity on two occasions to join our Austin Texas morning TV KXAN 36 channel to teach massage and discuss the benefits. I really enjoyed this TV exposure.

I have participated in FB live chats, Podcasts, and many interviews. All of this has helped promote exposure to Babystrokes and increased interest in infant massage.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.babystrokes.com
• Instagram: babystrokes_infant_massage
• Facebook: @babystrokes1 Babystrokes Infant / Child Massage
• Linkedin: Melanie Wattles RN