ARK's Blog

As a speech-language pathologist, and the daughter of a dental hygienist, I grew up surrounded by conversations about teeth and oral health. Add in my own childhood experience with protruding teeth and a Class II malocclusion, known as a deep overbite, it’s no surprise that I view oral development through a blended lens as a therapist. While dentistry and speech-language pathology are distin …

Living with a child with autism means that you get used to making compromises or, just downright giving up on things all together - because for most situations, nothing matters as much as their mental health and their sense of safety and autonomy. However, one of the very few things that can’t be compromised on is oral hygiene, which means regular trips to the dentist and twice daily brushin …

New Year, New Sensory Diet It’s early January, and today was my kids’ first day back at school. As much as I loved the holiday break, I found myself, and my kids, craving routine, though they would never admit it. For the past week or so of break, my 9-year-old had been thumping his sister on the head for no apparent reason, parkouring off the furniture, and begging his dad for nightly …

Let’s kick off the New Year with new workout goals for the kids! Oral Motor Edition! Oral motor strength and coordination is essential for supporting safe mealtimes, nutritional intake, and independence in feeding. Here are some fun exercises that can help build the oral motor skills needed for chewing, drinking, swallowing, and overall feeding success — all with the help of the Z-Vibe …