Many children and adults experience symptoms like chronic jaw tension, restless sleep, mouth breathing, or difficulty forming certain speech sounds. While these may seem like separate issues, they are often connected to an orofacial myofunctional disorder (OMD), where the muscles of the tongue, lips, and face are not working together in a smooth, coordinated way.
Fortunately, a specialized treatment called orofacial myofunctional therapy (OMT) can help people with OMD eat more comfortably, speak more clearly, and breathe more easily throughout the day.
If you suspect that you or your child may have an OMD, the first step is a formal evaluation with a speech-language pathologist trained in OMT. It’s natural to be curious about what to expect during this first appointment, and understanding the process ahead of time can help ease any uncertainty.
What Is an Orofacial Myofunctional Disorder
An OMD is a motor function issue that affects how the muscles of the face, tongue, and jaw work together during everyday activities like breathing, chewing, swallowing, and speaking. These muscle movement patterns can develop from early habits like thumb sucking or physical conditions like a tongue tie.
Signs you or your child may have an OMD include:
- Breathing through the mouth instead of the nose
- Experiencing facial pain, jaw tension, or chronic headaches
- Snoring, restless sleep, or waking up tired
- Keeping the lips open or apart at rest
- Having difficulty forming certain sounds clearly
- Pushing the tongue forward when swallowing or speaking
- Drooling or food falling from the mouth while eating
If several of these signs sound familiar, you or your child may benefit from an evaluation with a speech language pathologist specializing in OMT.
What Is Orofacial Myofunctional Therapy?
OMT is a specialized form of speech therapy for children and adults that focuses on retraining the muscles of the mouth, tongue, and face to work together in a more coordinated way.
It’s designed to help address everyday challenges related to OMD, such as mouth breathing, restless sleep, difficulty chewing certain foods, or unclear speech.
Often, speech-language pathologists specializing in OMT will collaborate with dentists, orthodontists, and ENT specialists to address any underlying structural concerns, such as dental alignment or airway issues, so therapy can be as effective as possible.
Welcome to Your First Myofunctional Therapy Appointment
Your or your child’s first session is more than just an appointment; it gives your therapist a closer look at how the muscles of the face and mouth impact breathing, speech, and swallowing.
This initial 60- to 90-minute visit is a comprehensive, non-invasive assessment. The therapist uses this time to identify the root cause of functional challenges and begin mapping out a path toward meaningful, lasting change.
Reviewing Your History and Concerns
The evaluation begins with a detailed conversation to better understand your or your child’s history and current concerns. This helps identify what may be contributing to your symptoms.
The therapist will look at whether these challenges are related to:
- Habitual factors: patterns like thumb-sucking, mouth breathing, or a tongue thrust (where the tongue pushes forward during a swallow) that can gradually change how the muscles work over time
- Physical factors: differences such as a tongue-tie, enlarged tonsils, or dental alignment that may make it harder for the tongue and jaw to rest and move as they should
The therapist may ask about your child’s early feeding history, such as nursing challenges or prolonged use of bottles or sippy cups. For older children and adults, they may ask about orthodontic history and sleep patterns to better understand the full picture.
Observing Rest Posture and Breathing
Next, the therapist looks at how the mouth and face rest when you or your child are not speaking or eating, which is often one of the most telling parts of the evaluation.
The therapist will observe:
- how you or your child breathes through the nose or mouth
- whether the lips rest comfortably together or remain open
- where the tongue naturally sits in the mouth
These patterns provide important insight into how the muscles are functioning throughout the day.
Assessing Movement and Swallowing
From there, the therapist may guide you or your child through a series of simple tasks to evaluate the range of motion and coordination of the oral muscles.
This may include observing you or your child while eating a small snack to check for a tongue thrust or inefficient chewing patterns, which can make eating feel more effortful.
Evaluating Speech and Communication
If speech clarity is a concern, the therapist will also listen for how muscle patterns or limited tongue movement, such as a tongue-tie, may be affecting how sounds are produced.
Sounds like ess, zee, shhh, or el may be more difficult to say clearly when these muscle or movement challenges are present. The focus is on helping speech feel more natural and easier to produce in everyday conversation.
Building Your Plan and Moving Forward
Once the evaluation is complete, your therapist will review their findings and walk you through an individualized therapy plan designed for you or your child’s specific needs.
For children, therapy is designed to feel engaging and supportive, using simple, play-based activities to build coordination and new habits over time. For adults, the focus is on developing awareness and gently retraining patterns that may be contributing to tension, fatigue, or discomfort.
With consistency, OMT can help you or your child move through everyday life with more comfort and ease—eating without frustration, sleeping more soundly, communicating with greater clarity and confidence, and feeling less muscle strain or tension throughout the day.
Reach Out to Peninsula Associates Speech Therapy Services
If you are interested in learning more about OMT and you are in the Menlo Park or San Jose, CA, area, Peninsula Associates Speech Therapy Services is here to help. Call us today at (650) 709-9780 to schedule an evaluation or speak with a speech-language pathologist trained in OMT about how therapy can help you develop new habits that support clear speech, proper breathing, and healthy oral development.
