Orofacial Myofunctional Therapy

Myofunctional Therapy is all about re-programming your default patterns and changing habits, behaviours and muscle patterns to improve the way you breathe, chew, swallow, sleep, speak and rest your tongue. Myofunctional disorders may include: mouth breathing, snoring, atypical swallowing pattern(tongue thrust), atypical chewing, restricted tethered oral tissues(tongue/lip ties), lip incompetence(lips apart) and oral habits(thumb sucking/nail biting).

Our Myofunctional Therapy Wellness programs provide customized orofacial myofunctional exercises to rehabilitate the oral and facial muscles related to proper tongue placement, breathing, speaking, chewing, swallowing and facial development.

In children, myofunctional therapy helps to instil healthy habits for life. Poor functional patterns such as an incorrect oral rest tongue posture, tongue thrust (reverse swallow) pattern, open mouth breathing, restricted tongue/lip ties, lack of chewing or low muscle tone all restrict facial growth and development.

In adults, poor breathing habits such as mouth breathing is a consequence of having a low tone or a restriction in mobility and function of the tongue. Myofunctional therapy can be beneficial for those suffering from TMD/ TMJ pain, head and neck tension, headaches, clenching & grinding, poor posture and obstructive sleep apnea.

Myofunctional therapy helps to address the “root cause” of problems, not just the symptoms. The first step is to identify any compensations of the jaw and the neck during chewing, talking, and swallowing to help to alleviate pain and dysfunction.