Pediatric Feeding Therapy
What is pediatric feeding therapy?
Feeding therapy is a specialized treatment that utilizes techniques from occupational therapy and speech-language therapy to address feeding struggles in children. Feeding therapy can help children overcome sensory processing difficulties that lead to picky eating as well as develop the oral motor and fine motor skills they need to successfully nurse, eat, and drink. Through personalized treatment based on your child’s specific needs, our caring feeding therapists can help your child master feeding for better nutritional intake and improved overall happiness.
What Does Pediatric feeding Therapy Address?
Pediatric feeding therapy can address several areas of your child’s development, such as:
- Fine motor control
- Hand-eye coordination
- Sensory processing
- Oral motor control
- Mealtime behavior
Who Can Benefit from Pediatric Feeding Therapy?
Any child who struggles with the developmental skills mentioned above can benefit from pediatric feeding therapy. Our compassionate therapists have worked with children who have a variety of conditions, including:
- Cerebral palsy
- Down syndrome
- Autism spectrum disorder
- Picky eaters
- Sensory processing disorder
- Muscle weakness
how pediatric
feeding Therapy Works
Your child will work with one of our expert speech-language pathologists (SLPs) or occupational therapists (OTs) to improve their feeding skills depending on their unique struggles. In general, children who struggle with oral motor skills (like nursing, chewing, or swallowing) will work with an SLP, and children who struggle with sensory processing, hand-eye coordination, or regulating their emotions at mealtimes will work with an OT.
By using evidence-based, proven treatment techniques, our therapists will empower your child to master their feeding skills so they can enjoy the wide variety of nutritious foods their growing body needs. These techniques may be activities, exercises, or games that address the specific skills your child needs to build.
Our feeding therapists may look like they are only playing with your child during their session, but this is intentional. By creating a fun environment and treating therapy like a game, we keep children motivated to work on their feeding skills and help them reach their developmental goals.
Benefits of Pediatric Feeding Therapy
With routine feeding therapy sessions, your child can master the skills they need to successfully nurse, eat, and drink and experience:
- Better tolerance of a variety of foods
- Improved ability to feed themselves
- Reduced stress or anxiety around mealtimes
- Increased independence
- Better overall health and nutritional intake
- Reduced incidence of gagging, choking, or vomiting at meals
- Increased ability to socialize and enjoy meals
- Increased self-confidence
Schedule a Pediatric Feeding Therapy Evaluation
If your child has trouble nursing, chewing, swallowing, or eating a variety of healthy foods, our expert feeding therapists can help. We’ll work with your child to build the skills they need for confident and independent feeding to improve their overall health and quality of life. To schedule your child’s pediatric feeding therapy evaluation, call The SpOT Clinic in Owens Cross Roads, Madison, or Gulf Shores, AL today and we will be happy to help you get started.
CONTACT US FOR MORE INFORMATION
Do you have questions or would you like to set up an appointment? Reach out to us using the contact form below and one of our staff will be happy to help!