ARK's Blog

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 mouth she thinks the item is food and tries to open her mouth and touch her tongue with it. She does not yet u …

For any therapist seeking to specialize in feeding, the best piece of advice I could give you is to become a sponge.  Take courses and workshops, read as many articles as you can, talk to and learn from your colleagues, join special interest groups on Facebook and ASHA etc., follow blogs, observe other therapy sessions, and don’t forget - learn from the children you treat as well.  …

Question:  I’m seeking help for our son. The short story is that my son was born at 25 weeks and was in the nicu for 3.5 months and has overcome many things.  When he left the nicu he was always a tough feeder (fussy) but always ate plenty by bottle. Then during a re admission, his feeding slowly declined and after a few weeks he was no longer willing to try anything.  The n …

Hello, I am the mother of an almost 12 year old daughter.  It has been a struggle ever since she moved from baby food to regular foods to get her to eat fruits or vegetables.  Thankfully, she remains healthy so far, but I am concerned about her health long-term with her limited intake of nutritional foods.  Mealtimes have always been a battle between trying to get her to try …