Feeding Therapy
Is your child struggling with eating? You know your child best, so don't wait to get help if your child is having trouble breastfeeding, bottle-feeding, or eating solid foods. Getting help early, through feeding therapy with a licensed speech language pathologist, can prevent problems with eating and can foster a healthy relationship with food for you and your child.
Our approach
Feeding difficulties in children are frequently misdiagnosed as "behavioral" in nature. Most often though, refusing food or negative meal time behaviors, stem from an underlying structural, sensory or motor difficulty. Negative mealtime behaviors can be made significantly worse when feeding is addressed without properly identifying the underlying cause. When a behavioral approach used to address feeding challenges, rather than a neurodiversity affirming approach to feeding therapy that focuses on the sensory, motor and emotional aspects of eating, this often leads to increased mealtime stress, lack of generalization of feeding skills, trauma and is ultimately ineffective in resolving feeding difficulties.
At Speech in Motion, we believe it is critical that feeding difficulties are appropriately evaluated and that treatment plans focus on positive experiences and interactions with foods, encouraging clients to explore the foods in a playful and safe way.
Sessions focus on increasing a child's awareness and exploration of a variety of food properties, including texture, temperature, color, smell, appearance, shape and taste.
We consider each client's unique learning style, sensory and motor differences and history with feeding challenges.
Parents and caregivers are a critical part of the process and our sessions focus heavily on family involvement and home carryover.
Signs of feeding difficulties
- Poor weight gain or unintentional weight loss.
- Reoccurring choking, gagging or coughing during meals.
- Reoccurring vomiting
- More than once incident of nasal reflux
- History of eating and breathing coordination problems, with ongoing respiratory issues
- Parents reporting child as being “picky” at 2 or more well child checks
- Inability to transition to baby food purees by 10 months of age
- Inability to accept any table food solids by 12 months of age
- Inability to transition from breast/bottle to a cup by 16 months of age
- Has not weaned off baby foods by 16 months of age
- Aversion or avoidance of all foods in specific texture or nutrition group
- Food range of less than 20 foods, especially if foods are being dropped over time with no new foods replacing those lost
- Infant cries and/or arches at most meals
- Family is fighting about food and feeding (i.e. Meals are battles)
- The child is difficult for everyone to feed.
Are you concerned about your child's feeding? Schedule a free phone consultation today to see if feeding therapy could help.
Early Feeding Milestones- According to ASHA
Birth to 3 Months
Birth to 3 Months
Birth to 3 Months
What can my baby do?
- Holds head up when supported.
- Turns head towards nipple and opens mouth.7
How does my baby eat and drink?
- Latches to nipple.
- Sucks and swallows
What should my baby be eating and drinking?
- Breast milk and/or formula
4 to 6 Months
Birth to 3 Months
Birth to 3 Months
What can my baby do?
- Brings hands to the breast or bottle.
- Pats breast or bottle.
- Brings hands or toys to mouth.
- Starts to sit up in cradle position and holds breast or bottle during feeding. Sits supported in highchair with straps and when reclined.
How does my baby eat and drink?
- Opens mouth for spoon.
- Uses tongue to move food to back of m
What can my baby do?
- Brings hands to the breast or bottle.
- Pats breast or bottle.
- Brings hands or toys to mouth.
- Starts to sit up in cradle position and holds breast or bottle during feeding. Sits supported in highchair with straps and when reclined.
How does my baby eat and drink?
- Opens mouth for spoon.
- Uses tongue to move food to back of mouth for swallowing.
What should my baby be eating and drinking?
- Breast milk and/or formula
- Infant cereal mixed with breast milk or formula.
- Smooth baby foods (purees) with no lumps or chunks.
6 to 9 Months
Birth to 3 Months
9 to 12 Months
What can my baby do?
- Holds head up when sitting upright.
- Leans forward to receive foods.
- Still needs support from highchair around waist and legs, including footrest.
- Reaches for toys and food.
- Picks up food with fingers.
- Brings foods to mouth with hands and starts to feed self..
- Tries to hold spoon.
How does my baby eat and drink?
- Starts to dri
What can my baby do?
- Holds head up when sitting upright.
- Leans forward to receive foods.
- Still needs support from highchair around waist and legs, including footrest.
- Reaches for toys and food.
- Picks up food with fingers.
- Brings foods to mouth with hands and starts to feed self..
- Tries to hold spoon.
How does my baby eat and drink?
- Starts to drink from a cup, but may bite cup edge or straw; some liquid spills out of mouth.
- Drools less.
- Moves food around mouth using tongue.
- Munches.
What should my baby be eating and drinking?
- Breast milk and/or formula; may start drinking small amounts of water.
- Smooth baby foods (purees) with some lumps (minced and moist) like mashed potatoes, applesauce, oatmeal, or pudding.
- Soft, chewable, solid foods cut into strips like a pancake, toast, or cheese.
9 to 12 Months
Birth to 3 Months
9 to 12 Months
What can my baby do?
- Holds bottle or sippy cup with both hands.
- Sits upright in highchair with minimal assistance.
- Holds spoon during meal.
- Feeds self with fingers.
How does my baby eat and drink?
- Takes a small bite from a larger piece of food.
- Begins chewing food on both sides of mouth (called “rotary chewing").
- Closes lips during swallow.
What
What can my baby do?
- Holds bottle or sippy cup with both hands.
- Sits upright in highchair with minimal assistance.
- Holds spoon during meal.
- Feeds self with fingers.
How does my baby eat and drink?
- Takes a small bite from a larger piece of food.
- Begins chewing food on both sides of mouth (called “rotary chewing").
- Closes lips during swallow.
What should my baby be eating and drinking?
- Soft, bite-sized foods like sliced banana, cheese cubes, or pasta.
- Breast milk and/or formula; may drink small amounts of water
