Do You Wonder If Your Tongue Can Affect Orthodontic Treatment?
If you’ve had braces before, then I would bet you often wonder about this. I can testify that my darn tongue was the bane of all my orthodontic problems. It frustrated me so much to see how my swallow could affect orthodontic treatment.
If you have braces or have had them, a tongue thrust can be a pain in the butt for a couple of reasons:
- A tongue thrust will push around your nice, straight teeth knocking them out of alignment
- A tongue thrust will affect your orthodontic treatment by prolonging your time in braces. Your orthodontist will be trying to fix one problem and your swallow might continually create a new problem.
What Is a Tongue Thrust?
Tongue thrust (also called reverse swallow or immature swallow) is the common name of an oral myofunctional disorder, a dysfunctional muscle pattern in which the tongue protrudes anteriorly or laterally during swallowing, during speech and while the tongue is at rest. Nearly all infants exhibit a swallowing pattern involving tongue protrusion, but by six months of age most lose this reflex allowing for the ingestion of solid foods. (Wikipedia)
How Do You Know If You Have a Tongue Thrust?
During a comprehensive myofunctional exam, I observe how a person swallows and watch for things like:
- Pursed lip swallowing
- Tongue coming forward or dropping down during the swallow
- Difficulty with swallowing
- Food being pushed out of the mouth upon swallow, and poking it back into the mouth
- “Chicken necking” or shoulders raising
- Mouth breathing
- Ortho relapse
- Can I see the tongue moving funny when you talk
- Speech concerns
- Sucking habits
I also have you observe the actions of your tongue when you swallow. I have my clients tune-in to what the tip of the tongue does during the swallow, as well as what the back of the tongue does.
What Can Be Done to Fix a Tongue Thrust?
Orthodontists have struggled over the years, fighting the strength of the tongue while trying to provide the best treatment.
Many appliances have been invented to “tame” the tongue, and an appliance is one option to help you with a tongue thrust swallowing pattern.
Appliances may be worn for a long period of time before braces are put on. It is important to know your options when it comes to correcting a tongue thrust. Sometimes an appliance can work in combination with other methods of treatment.
Myofunctional Therapy Is Another Option
Myofunctional therapy is another method used for eliminating a tongue thrust. This oral-based exercise therapy teaches clients how to use the tongue and facial muscles normally.
An Orofacial Myofunctional Therapist (OFT) can be an instrumental figure in helping a client re-train the facial muscles and eliminate a thrusting habit. OFT’s are skilled at helping children and adults gain control over muscular habits, including those involved in a tongue thrust.
Stopping the habit is not always easy. This is because the muscles have been programmed (or adapted to dysfunction) over the course of many years. The person’s body does not know how to use the tongue and facial muscles correctly and needs help.
A consultation with an OMT can be very valuable. If the muscles are not re-trained, the orthodontic treatment and final result may be compromised. Besides affecting tooth position and orthodontics, a tongue thrust can have a lasting negative impact on a person’s general health, speech, dental health, swallowing, and breathing throughout life.
If You Have Concerns
By now, if you’ve been following me long enough…you know my path of passion here. You know this stuff is on my heart like a brick and I’m here to serve, educate, and empower YOU to take this time to focus on YOU.
I spend countless hours creating content to educate you. If any of my content makes you nod your head or resonates with you like a fire in your belly, YOU deserve to know more. You deserve to be more. You deserve to be your best self.
How does myofunctional impairment look like for you? Let’s unpack that.
Maybe it’s feeling like poop. Day in and day out. Maybe its exhaustion from poor sleep or a snoring partner. Maybe it’s poor self-image because you don’t like how your face looks. Maybe it’s poor parenting because you just don’t have the energy.
Now….ask yourself….what it might look like if you put YOU first, and made this your year, your month, your hour, your minute to make YOU a priority?
Does it look like you flying out of bed in the morning to voraciously face the day…because you’re rested?
Does it look like you “OWNING” the energy to move your blessed, amazing body because you have untapped energy?
Does it look like you finally being able to shed those last 10-20-30 pounds because your energy and self-love have gone sky-high?
Does it look like you finally feeling good? No digestive issues or medications to mask the problem.
Right now, is YOUR chance to take that first step to feel your best and live your best life. Don’t short change yourself or make excuses. Don’t put up barriers or start with the self-talking lies. Make yourself a pinkie promise to start exploring your myofunctional impairment today. Don’t let another year, month, hour, minute or second go by without you choosing to make YOU a priority.
It doesn’t cost you a dime to make a free 30-minute appointment with me to talk about you and what you should do. Start. Today.
By the way, If you are like me, and you like to do some “me-search” before talking to a human. I get it. For that reason, I like to share my assessment tool with anyone who is suspecting myofunctional impairment. You can get the assessment tool here and it asks you 25 of the most common questions that I dig deep into during a myofunctional exam. And, if you want to step it up a notch, I recently taught a free class “Become a V.H.P: Your 6 Step Roadmap to Becoming a Vital Healthy Person By Understanding Your Myofunctional Impairment” where I walk you through 6 areas that are uber important for you to consider….and I make it easy on you because I tell you what numbers I’m talking about from the assessment tool . You can watch the video replay here. I encourage you to download your assessment first, fill it out and then watch the video!
About Carmen
Carmen found her path of passion years ago as a dental hygienist. After a stint in graduate school to earn her M.B.A., she left clinical hygiene practice to start her business, Integrative Myofunctional Therapy. In addition to seeing clients in her private online practice, she also teaches the craft of myofunctional therapy in her Myo Mastery Program, coaches dental offices on how to implement myofunctional screening into the daily practice, and speaks frequently in various settings.
Carmen is a provider for the Foundation of Airway Health, where she works diligently for the recognition, diagnosis, and treatment of airway related disorders.
In addition, she is a proud member of several professional associations that afford her the opportunity to learn so that she can help her clients. Her professional memberships include: