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Oral Motor exercises are designed to increase the strength, coordination, and range of motion of the muscles we use for feeding and speaking. But how? Oral motor exercises strengthen the muscles of the lips, tongue, and jaw through mass practice. Super Duper Publications provided a great list of at home oral motor exercises. http://www.superduperinc.com/handouts/pdf/179_Oral-MotorWorkout.pdf LIPS ο Open and close your

Practice is one of the most important parts of speech therapy! As speech pathologists we only get to see a child or adult once or twice per week (sometimes more but it is rare). What about the rest of the time? Practicing outside of the therapy room is crucial for progress and success. Here are some great practice ideas: practice

This week ” The Story of Luke” is released in a limited amount of theaters. It isn’t like the rest of the summer blockbuster movies people are dying to see…but maybe it should be. The story follows Luke, a 25 year old man with Autism whose life is turned upside down after his long term caregiver (his grandma) passes away.

I came across this story on Facebook and had to share it! This is from Carly Fleischmann’s Facebook page. Carly is a non verbal teenager with Autism.  Below is her response to a newspaper article written about her and an introduction from her Facebook page. So guess the cat is out of the bag! I CARLY FLEISCHMANN someone who is

Turner Syndrome is a rare genetic disorder that is caused by deletion of the second sex chromosome in females. It occurs in 1-2500 births, and is a common characteristic in many miscarriages. According to the Turner Syndrome Society, common physical characteristics for women with turner syndrome: ·        Narrow, high-arched palate (roof of the mouth) ·        Retrognathia (receding lower jaw) ·        Low-set ears ·        Low

A new study has just been published on the relationship with Autism and the human voice! Here is the abstract: Underconnectivity between voice-selective cortex and reward circuitry in children with autism. Authors: Daniel A. Abramsa,1, Charles J. Lyncha, Katherine M. Chenga, Jennifer Phillipsa, Kaustubh Supekara, Srikanth Ryalia, Lucina Q. Uddina, and Vinod Menona,b,c,d,1 Abstract Individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs)

Dysphagia is laments terms is difficulty with swallowing. Dysphagia can occur at any stage of swallowing…below are the phases of swallowing and what should be occurring during a typical swallow. Oral phase – sucking, chewing, and moving food or liquid into the throat Pharyngeal phase – starting the swallowing reflex, squeezing food down the throat, and closing off the airway to prevent

A cochlear implant is a implant is a device that provides direct electrical stimulation to the auditory (hearing) nerve in the inner ear. People with a sensorineural hearing loss (a hearing loss that results from damage to the inner hair cells of the cochlea, a structure of the inner ear) were previously thought to never regain their hearing. The cochlear implant

Myofunctional therapy is a specialized remedial program specifically designed for the correction of the tongue thrust/posture problem. Most of the patients in our practice are referred for myofunctional therapy by an orthodontist, ENT, or other medical professional. The idea behind myofunctional therapy is to improve and train the muscles associated with  swallowing. If you think about how often we swallow, it