What can cause Dysfunctions?
Causes of OMDs
-Prolonged thumb/finger sucking
-Low resting tongue posture
-Lip/tongue ties
-Prolonged sippy cup/bottle or pacifier use
-Nail biting
-Obstructed or restricted upper airway
-Chronic mouth breathing
-Deviated septum
-Enlarged tonsils and or adenoids
-Developmental delays
-Family history of OMDs
-Genetic defects
-Neurological defects
What we see when OMDs are left undiagnosed
-Sleep disordered breathing
-Snoring
-Narrow palate
-Crooked/crowed teeth
-Cross bite
-Orthodontic relapse
-Craniofacial growth and appearance concerns
-Restricted facial development
-Inadequate jaw growth
-Jaw pain/ TMD
-Atypically swallowing
-Improper chewing technique
-Food aversions and texture issues
-Digestive problems
-Head/neck/shoudler tension and pain
-Higher risk of cavities due to dry mouth and bacteria
-Postural issues
-Breathing impairment
-Increased seasonal allergies
-Asthma
-Chronic sore throats, swollen tonsils/swollen adenoids
-Tongue thrust
-Speech impairment
-Poor oral hygiene
What is Myofunctional Therapy Continued:
Goals of
Myofunctional Therapy
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Eliminate oral habits
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Achieve comfortable and easy breathing through the nose all day and all night.
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Keep your lips sealed together at rest all day and all night.
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Achieve an ideal resting tongue posture at the roof of your mouth, which includes a stable relationship and no compensation with the tongue, lips, teeth, and jaw
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Maximize the muscles of the tongue to their optimal function before, during and after a lingual frenectomy.
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Develop correct swallow pattern with food and drink.
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Create lifelong habits that will help you live a healthier and happier life.
HOW IS MYOFUNCTIONAL THERAPY PERFORMED?
Myofunctional therapy is a series of exercises you can do at home. I teach you to control your facial muscles and tongue. These exercises retrain the muscles in your mouth and jaw and help you breathe through your nose.
IS MYOFUNCTIONAL THERAPY SAFE?
Myofunctional therapy is a safe, noninvasive, and drug-free treatment. While mouth breathing may be a cause for concern, using mouth taping techniques, jaw alignment exercises, and other myofunctional therapy techniques can provide relief.
Myofunctional Therapy
Myofunctional therapy is based on a series of exercises that help patients learn to change bad habits. This improves tongue placement, breathing, speaking, chewing, and swallowing, which can have a huge impact on their overall health and well-being.
Orofacial myofunctional therapy, sometimes referred to as myology, is basically physical therapy of the tongue and orofacial muscles involved in speech, swallowing, and breathing. The goal is to create or re-establish proper function of the oral cavity via a patient specific, non-invasive therapy program. It starts by assessing existing oral dysfunction (OMD) and root causes. A therapy program of stretches, neuromuscular training, and habit awareness and alteration then helps patients gain proper lip seal, nasal breathing, swallow, and tongue posture. When these goals are reached a long list of acute and chronic conditions are improved and quality of life heightened.
Benefits of Myofunctional Therapy
Myofunctional Therapy is a type of treatment that looks at the way the tongue and oral muscles move and function. Some of the issues you may have may seem normal, because everyone else snores or breathes through their mouths. Even headaches, suffering from asthma and allergies, or ADHD have become more of the norm. However, just because they are common or many people chronically deal with these symptoms, it doesn’t make them normal. Dysfunction is never normal. My goal is to help you teach your body, your mouth, and your tongue to work for you instead of against you!
Myofunctional therapy is all about bringing awareness, changing habits and strengthening muscles to improve the way we breathe, speak, chew and swallow. It is possible to have life-changing results from a myofunctional therapy program, by eliminating a mouth breathing habit or easing sleep apnea symptoms, however every patient is different. Some patients may experience jaw pain or suffer with mouth breathing, while others have been told they are tongue-tied or have a tongue thrust. Therapy and outcomes will depend on your unique symptoms and your commitment to the therapy program. The Four goals of Myofunctional therapy and the exercises may sound easy, but many patients can tell you they are not as easy as they sound and having the support, and guidance to complete therapy is what makes all the difference in your outcome! I am here to provide that care and support as you progress in getting your body to function optimally the way it was designed to do!
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Decreased chronic pain such as TMJ, Shoulder, Neck, Headache
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Better breathing
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Better sleep
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Reduction in teeth grinding
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Reduced nasal obstruction
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Less snoring
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Reduction in sleep apnea
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Improved results of orthodontic treatment
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Better facial symmetry
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Improved posture
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Supports proper facial-cranial development in children, often eliminating airway issues later in life
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Fewer ear infection
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Improved digestion
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Improved speech clarity
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Improvement in athletic performance
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Improved attention span and behavior
OMT can benefit anyone with OMD symptoms
In children, the therapy works closely with natural growth and supports development of structure, function, and habits. This can prevent dysfunction or reverse it before permanent limitations develop.
In adults, therapy works to reverse dysfunction by addressing root causes and harmful compensations plus creates new neuromuscular connections, and brings habit awareness into passive life choices.