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Myofunctional therapy is a treatment modality that involves specialized exercises to improve facial posture, swallow function, and airway function for those who experience these disorders.

This works by neuromuscular retraining of the muscles of the face and mouth to create overall awareness, independent muscle function, and to reduce muscle strain.

Elevate your health with Myofunctional Therapy

orofacial-conditions

We help manage these symptoms for overall wellness

These are all signs and symptoms of possible myofunctional disorders and can adversely affect everyday life. Sleep quality, attention span, growth, swallowing, and speech can all be improved with the help of myofunctional therapy at any age. If left untreated, these conditions often worsen to more significant health problems later in life, tethering adults to medications and machines instead of allowing them to live their life to the fullest.

Bed-wetting is sometimes associated with sleep-disordered breathing, including obstructive sleep apnea, especially in children. By promoting nasal breathing, improving tongue resting posture, and supporting a healthier airway, myofunctional therapy may help improve sleep quality and reduce bed-wetting when it is related to airway dysfunction. Therapists collaborate in a team approach with physicians and other healthcare providers to support patients seeking multiple therapeutic interventions.

Myofunctional therapy addresses tongue thrust by teaching proper tongue posture and swallowing patterns, thereby improving oral function and supporting long-term dental stability.

Gentle, positive-reinforcement programs to help children overcome digit sucking habits by addressing underlying oral muscle patterns and sensory seeking behaviors.

Poor oral rest posture, clenching, and muscle imbalance can contribute to TMJ discomfort, jaw tension, headaches, and migraines. Myofunctional therapists use exercises and habit retraining to improve muscle function, reduce joint strain, and stabilize the muscles to alleviate TMJ pain and improve quality of life.

Myofunctional therapy may help reduce chronic fatigue when it is associated with inefficient breathing patterns, low tongue posture, or sleep-disordered breathing. Therapy can help support more restorative sleep and improve daytime energy levels.

Optimal breathing is low, slow, and through the nose. Mouth breathing can contribute to chronic hyperventilation, poor sleep, dry mouth, altered facial growth in children, and oral health issues. We seek out the root cause of mouth breathing and work to correct unhealthy oral habits through specific exercises that retrain the facial muscles, tongue, and lips to support healthy nasal breathing function.

In many cases, acid reflux is commonly associated with sleep-related breathing disorders, especially obstructive sleep apnea. By supporting healthy oral muscle tone, function, and breathing patterns, therapy may complement a comprehensive treatment protocol aimed at improving both airway health and sleep quality.

Clenching and grinding are often associated with poor tongue posture, mouth breathing, airway instability, or muscle imbalances that can place excess strain on the jaw. Myofunctional therapy helps address underlying oral muscle dysfunction by improving tongue posture and retraining healthy muscle patterns to reduce strain on the jaw.

Orthodontic relapse can occur when improper tongue posture, mouth breathing, or other habits continue to place pressure on the teeth after orthodontic treatment. Myofunctional therapy helps support long-term orthodontic stability by identifying and correcting dysfunctional muscle patterns and establishing healthy oral muscle function.

Sleep Apnea is a recurrent interruption in breathing during sleep, reducing oxygen levels and increasing the risk of fatigue-related accidents, heart problems, and other significant health complications. 

Myofunctional therapy works to strengthen the airway muscles and the tongue, support nasal breathing, and complement medical treatment interventions to help reduce the severity of sleep apnea in many cases.

Snoring can be a sign of poor airway function and may disrupt both sleep quality and overall health. Myofunctional therapy uses targeted exercises to strengthen the tongue and the airway muscles, promote nasal breathing, and help reduce snoring in most cases.

Difficulty concentrating can sometimes be attributed to poor sleep, inefficient breathing, or oral muscle dysfunction that affects oxygenation and sleep quality. Myofunctional therapy promotes healthy breathing and proper oral muscle tone, which may improve sleep quality and support better focus and attention.

A hypersensitive gag response can be attributed to oral sensory defensiveness or dysfunction, mouth breathing, allergies, acid reflux, and other factors. Myofunctional therapy can use gradual desensitization techniques and exercises to improve oral awareness, tongue control and coordination, and reduce gag sensitivity in many individuals.

Tongue tie can restrict normal tongue movement, affecting proper oral function, swallowing patterns, speech, and tongue posture. Myofunctional therapists help improve tongue mobility, strength, tone, and coordination through specific exercises. Therapy can also support optimal frenectomy outcomes in the following ways:

    • Before- preparing the muscles and improving tongue function prior to a release procedure

       

    • During- providing exercises and stretches during the healing stage

       

    • After- teaching post-frenectomy exercises to decrease the risk of reattachment

An open-mouth resting posture can contribute to low tongue rest posture, mouth breathing, and altered oral muscle function. Myofunctional therapists retrain proper lip seal, tongue posture, and nasal breathing to restore optimal habits and improve overall oral function.

Myofunctional therapy helps establish efficient swallowing patterns that may reduce excess air swallowing, which can contribute to bloating and gas in some individuals.