G-Tube Advice
Posted by Debra C. Lowsky, MS, CCC-SLP on 29th Dec 2011
Question: I am a mother to a baby who is 6.5 months old, corrected age. He was born at 29 weeks gestational age. Because of being on a high level of O2 support for a long period of time, being intubated several times, and experiencing reflux, he has had an aversion to liquids and was not able to learn how to suck on a bottle effectively. A g-tube was placed before he lef
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How to Teach Straw Drinking
Posted by Debra C. Lowsky, MS, CCC-SLP on 9th Nov 2011
1. To start, cut a regular straw in half. Not only is a shorter straw easier to handle, but it also takes less strength for a child to suck liquid from a shorter straw.
2. Dip the straw into a cup with liquid preferred by the child. Place the tip of your pointer finger over the top of the straw to keep the liquid in the straw. Remove the straw from the cup, keeping the top o
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Tongue Lateralization and Protrusion
Posted by Debra C. Lowsky, MS, CCC-SLP on 26th Sep 2011
Question: Do you have a tool to increase tongue protrusion and tongue lateralization?
We do! ARK's
Oro-Navigator was specifically created to help individuals "get" the concept of tongue lateralization. It's very easy to use. Simply place the cuff on the side of the tongue and guide the tongue from one side of the mouth to the opposite side. Th
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What to Look for in a Sippy Cup
Posted by Debra C. Lowsky, MS, CCC-SLP on 22nd Sep 2011
As a speech therapist, I don't recommend sippy cups since many of them promote a tongue thrust and improper oral positioning, which can negatively affect a child's speech and feeding development. So ideally, particularly for those with developmental delays, it would be best to transition them straight to
cup or straw drinking.
However, I do understand their convenience, so
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