Orofacial myofunctional services are a systematic, individualized regimen of exercises and behavior modification techniques designed to retrain dysfunctional, adaptive patterns of the muscles in the face, mouth, and throat. These services aim to re-establish a healthy orofacial environment to support proper breathing, chewing, swallowing, and speaking. 

The primary objectives of orofacial myofunctional therapy (OMT) include:

• Improving Oral Rest Posture: Retraining the tongue and lips to rest in their proper positions (e.g., lips sealed, tongue resting on the palate). 

• Establishing Nasal Breathing: Promoting breathing through the nose rather than the mouth, which stabilizes the airway and supports proper craniofacial growth. 

• Correcting Swallowing and Chewing: Eliminating aberrant swallowing patterns (such as a tongue thrust) and teaching the muscles of the lips, tongue, and jaw to coordinate effectively during eating. 

• Eliminating Harmful Habits: Using behavioral techniques to stop non-nutritive, noxious oral habits like thumb/finger sucking, prolonged pacifier use, nail/cheek biting, and teeth clenching or grinding. 

• Supporting Dental Work: Helping stabilize dentition and improving the long-term success of orthodontic treatments or pre/post frenectomy (tongue-tie release) procedures. 

Individuals with an orofacial myofunctional disorder may experience one or more of the following:

• Open-mouth posture and difficulty keeping the lips closed

• Mouth breathing or chronic nasal congestion

• Tongue thrust during speech or swallowing

• Thumb sucking, prolonged pacifier use, or other oral habits

• Reduced speech clarity or articulation difficulties

• Drooling

• Sleep disturbances, including snoring, restless sleep, or sleep apnea

• Difficulties with chewing, feeding, or swallowing

• Poor oral resting posture of the tongue and lips

Specialized Pre- and Post-Release Care

We specialize in therapy for children with lip ties and tongue ties (tethered oral tissues).

When the tongue cannot move freely, it may interfere with proper tongue posture and oral function, which can impact feeding, speech development, facial growth, and airway health.

Children with tongue ties may experience:

• Difficulty breastfeeding or bottle feeding

• Messy or inefficient eating

• Food pocketing or difficulty chewing

• Speech sound difficulties

• Snoring or sleep-disordered breathing

• Dental crowding or spacing concerns

• Frequent headaches or facial tension

• Jaw discomfort or TMJ symptoms

• Difficulty maintaining oral hygiene

• Drooling or excessive saliva

Our therapy program helps prepare children before a release procedure and provides guided exercises afterward to support optimal healing and long-term functional improvements.

OMDs rarely have a single cause. They often result from multiple contributing factors, including:

• Enlarged tonsils or adenoids

• Chronic allergies or airway obstruction

• Mouth breathing patterns

• Tongue tie or other tethered oral tissues

• Low muscle tone (hypotonia)

• Developmental delays or neurological conditions

• Structural differences such as cleft palate or jaw abnormalities

• Genetic factors and birth-related complications

When left untreated, these factors can influence facial growth, dental alignment, airway health, and overall function.

Untreated OMDs may contribute to:

• Improper jaw and facial development

• Dental malocclusions and orthodontic relapse

• Speech sound disorders

• Feeding and swallowing difficulties

• Temporomandibular joint (TMJ) dysfunction

• Headaches, neck pain, and facial discomfort

• Sleep-disordered breathing and obstructive sleep apnea

• Reduced quality of life and challenges with daily functioning

Early identification and intervention can help prevent long-term complications and support optimal growth and development.

Orofacial Myofunctional Therapy is an individualized treatment approach designed to retrain the muscles of the face and mouth and establish healthy functional patterns. Therapy goals may include:

• Promoting nasal breathing

• Establishing proper tongue resting posture

• Improving lip closure and oral resting posture

• Normalizing chewing and swallowing patterns

• Improving strength, coordination, and endurance of the oral muscles

• Eliminating harmful oral habits such as thumb sucking, nail biting, tongue sucking, clenching, and grinding