Author: Admin

Sometimes referred to as tongue thrust or oral myofunctional disorders, orofacial myology disorders may include one or a combination of the following signs and symptoms.:

• Speech articulation disorders such as lisps.
• Mouth breathing as opposed to nasal breathing
• Negative oral habits such as thumb, finger, lip, and tongue sucking habits
• Messy, slow, or otherwise unnatural eating pattern
• An inappropriate mouth-open, lips-apart resting posture
• Chewing, bolus collection, swallowing issues

What Age can Therapy begin?

We are all born with an Orofacial Myofunctional Disorder consisting of an incorrect resting tongue and lip posture and incorrect swallowing pattern which we should have outgrown by the time we are six, seven, or eight years of age and it should have transitioned into a normal resting tongue and lip posture and normal swallowing pattern.

Children as young as five can benefit from an evaluation or therapy to eliminate harmful sucking habits.  The general rule in dentistry, and affirmed in pediatrics, is that oral habits should be addressed and eliminated prior to the eruption of the adult incisors, or by age six (Hanson and Mason, 2003).  Without habit elimination, a maxillary posterior crossbite and an anterior openbite, or other malocclusions, will likely occur as well as speech errors.

Age five is also a good age to be evaluated to determine if there are causative factors that require prevention or intervention such as referring a patient for a medical evaluation of an airway interference issue.  Children seven or eight are good candidates to receive some form of Orofacial Myofunctional Therapy.

Small Talk Pediatric Therapy has IAOM-trained Orofacial Myofunctional® Therapists and Licensed Speech-Language Pathologist that achieved the expertise and training to treat. Give us a call today!

We often are asked by parents “how do I know if my child may need occupational therapy?” Below are some behaviors that your child may show that could indicate occupational therapy would help your child.

• Difficulty paying attention or following instructions.

• Overly sensitive to sound, touch, or odors

• Difficulty with manipulating toys and puzzles

• Frequently pushes, hits, or uses too much force when playing with other children

• Difficulties with clothing fasteners: zippers, buttons, shoelaces

• Low or high muscle tone or poor balance

• Difficulty coordinating both sides of the body

• Difficulty with copying shapes or letters

• Constantly moving, jumping, crashing, bumping

• Does not accept change in routine easily

• Finds it difficult to make friends with children of the same age, prefers to play with adults or younger children rather than peers

• Inability to calm self when upset

If you have any concerns or questions give us a call at 208-996-0552

1. Friendly & Cozy Offices– We aren’t your ordinary hospital or clinic. Our waiting room and therapy rooms are warm, friendly and fun and free Wi-Fi for the parents. You are welcome to join us in the therapy room or stay in the waiting room whichever will best serve each client.

2. Family Focused– Don’t you get frustrated when you are ignored? So do we. We value family input and want parents to participate in our sessions. Your involvement only serves to reinforce what we are working on.

3. Goal based therapy– We may look like we are having a lot of fun. Because we are! With years of experience and training, we integrate specific goals into each session and activity.

4. Convenience– We are here because you live here. It can be difficult to find services where you need them so that’s why we love supporting our community.

5. Keep our parents in the loop– We always give a portion of time to parents to keep you in the loop on session and goal progress, what we are working on and what homework is being assigned. This helps all of us stay on the same page and is the perfect time to ask questions.

6. A Good Team– As a Therapist group we are able to collaborate and work together as we build lesson plans, work through challenges and build relationships. We each have our strengths and weaknesses and find we are stronger together as a team of therapists. If perhaps there isn’t a good initial fit we always have another therapist that may better serve you.

7. Continually learning– Each therapist is required to take continuing education courses. This keeps us up-to-date on the latest techniques and technologies, which we can integrate, as appropriate into our sessions.