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Debbie's Blog
Can't Eat by Mouth, but Still Want/Need to Chew?
I’m a therapist searching for a product for an older woman with intellectual disabilities. She loves food and drink, but it’s not an option to drink and eat all day. So we’re looking for a safe way to her to chew without actually eating. I was thinking about your grabbers? What do you [...]
When Kids Think Feeding Utensils Are Food
Question: I work with a child who has Down Syndrome. She is 16 months old. She presents with open mouth posture and tongue thrusting not during feeding. Mom purchased a Z-vibe and I saw your article on using the Z-vibe to promote lip closure. Only problem is....anytime we go near her [...]
Oral Motor Straw Workout
Below are directions for a Straw / Lip Blok program I've used with many of my kids over the years. I usually do this in conjunction with tongue thrust therapy when their swallowing pattern needs to be changed. And it also helps work on oral tone and tongue retraction. . . What You'll Need: 1. Krazy Straws. [...]
Chewelry for Girls
All of our chews are used by both boys and girls. They come in a variety of shapes and colors for lots of different interests. But for anyone looking for traditionally "girly girl" designs, check out: ARK's Diamond Chew Necklace - As they say - diamonds are a girl's best friend! . . ARK's Krypto-Bite Chewable Gem Necklace - a beautiful [...]
Frequency of Speech Therapy Sessions
Question: Do all children with speech problems have to attend regular speech therapy?Not necessarily. Sometimes you can place mild cases on consultation to monitor their development and progress. For example, I recently saw a child with an L distortion in a private school. She was four years old, and I knew the parents would be very [...]
Feeding Problems - When It's Psychological
Question: I've read your Food Refusal article, that feeding problems are usually related to oral motor or sensory problems. But can it be psychological? I’ve searched the internet and can find very little practical advice about addressing the fear of solid foods for an infant/toddler. Our son (3 and 1/2 now) is still eating pureed food [...]
Feeding Therapy - Moving Beyond Food Prep
Question: I am working with a 7 year old girl in feeding therapy who is refusing to open her lips and just purses. She has been involved heavily in food preparation which she enjoys foing and shows great participation. However when it comes to the taste testing part she refuses all foods. She does [...]
The Benefits of Embracing the Need to Chew
Does chewing on shirt sleeves/collars sound familiar? Chewing on legos or pencils? Nail biting? When this happens, one’s gut instinct might be to say “Don’t chew on that.” And that’s true - we don’t want kids putting random objects in their mouths. BUT, chewing (when redirected to something safe to chew on) can actually be [...]
Chewing on Ice
Hello - I have questions about the Dino Bite necklace. Would it work well for a 6 year old autistic child who likes to chew/eat ice? He eats ice constantly and I'm wondering if this would be a better option for his teeth. Thank you! . . Hello! It sounds like a chew tool would be a great [...]
Food Aversions & Spoon Feeding Issues
Question: Hi, I have a toddler who is almost 2 years old, have sensory processing disorder. He also has feeding aversion. and super sensitive to texture & taste. Some goals I am looking to achieve: desensitize the oral aversion, teaching him to eat different textures, making spoon-feeding fun (he is now fighting spoon-feed) and teaching [...]
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