Orofacial Myofunctional Therapy

Mouth breathing has unfortunately become more prevalent in our society.  Maladaptive habits such as bottle feeding or extended pacifier use, eating highly processed foods, daily stress, nasal allergies, and exposure to environmental pollutants, have caused us to develop smaller jaws and longer faces.  Having a restricted airway due to enlarged tonsils or adenoids, a deviated septum, or a restricted lingual frenum (tongue-tie) can also cause us to mouth breathe.  With nasal disuse, our noses become blocked even further, so the body compensates by positioning the head forward to ensure our airway is open and we can get enough oxygen. When breathe through our mouth, the tongue adopts a low-resting posture, and the muscles in our face and throat become weakened.  This can impact the quality of our sleep and puts us at risk for developing sleep disordered breathing, such as snoring and sleep apnea.  Proper tongue rest position is also crucial in providing stability to the jaw and enables our facial muscles to relax. Without a proper tongue posture, our jaw muscles begin to work harder causing the orofacial muscles to become fatigued and imbalanced potentially leading to jaw pain, neck pain, muscle soreness and headaches. Over time, this adapted muscle memory often leads to dysfunctional patterns in chewing, swallowing, occlusion, and breathing— known as Orofacial Myofunctional Disorders (OMD).  Symptoms of mouth breathing and orofacial imbalances include dry mouth,  chest breathing, a receding chin,  dental problems, snoring, bad breath, rhinitis, grinding or clenching of the teeth, and excessive fatigue.