Patricia Oetter, Eileen Richter & Sheila Frick are amazing therapists that support kids who have difficulty with posture, regulation, attention and oral motor (feeding, talking, breathing). They talk all about using the mouth (breathing, biting, chewing, blowing etc) to help calm the nervous system down and develop posture.
From birth, a babies movement is driven by their mouth with their need to feed. Then as children become more mobile, what happens to everything? It ends up in their mouth. As an adult when you put on mascara, whats keeps your face stable? your mouth drops open or locked to help hold the face muscles still. So unsurprisingly, the mouth is plays many essential roles, why not unlock its potential therapeutically?
I highly recommended looking at the below resources to learn more about how oral motor and respiration can used to improve kids posture and self regulation:
For therapists – The Motor, Oral, Respiration, Eyes (M.O.R.E.)Book, Integrating the mouth with sensory and postural functions, By Patricia Oetter, Eileen Richter & Sheila Frick. http://shopau.sensorytools.net/as_books?productID=2851
For parents – “Out of the Mouths of Babes” By Patricia Oetter, Eileen Richter & Sheila Frick.
If you would like to learn more please check out our courses or therapy options on our website calmandconnected.com.au.