Making Myofunctional Therapy Possible From Home
Myofunctional therapy may still be new to many people, even though practitioners have been using it as part of care for years. Maybe a dentist, hygienist, orthodontist, or another healthcare professional has suggested looking into myofunctional therapy. Or perhaps you’ve learned that you mouth breathe, snore, have difficulty keeping your tongue in the right resting position, or experience jaw discomfort, and started exploring what could be contributing to it. Then you come across someone offering myofunctional therapy virtually, from the initial assessment through treatment, and naturally wonder how that can work through a screen. Can oral function really be assessed virtually? How are exercises taught and practiced from home? And what does treatment actually look like? For those exploring virtual care for the first time, here’s what the experience can look like.
Starting With a Myofunctional Therapy Assessment
Before treatment begins, your myofunctional therapy journey starts with a detailed assessment. Your therapist needs to see how your tongue, lips, jaw, and facial muscles are functioning before deciding what to work on. For a virtual assessment, you may be asked to provide photos and videos before your appointment. These can give your therapist a closer look at your facial posture, lip posture, tongue position, and other features that may be difficult to assess during a video call alone. During the appointment, your therapist can guide you through specific movements while watching on camera. You may be asked to show how you position your tongue at rest, move your tongue in different directions, open and close your jaw, or create different lip movements. They may also observe your breathing pattern, swallowing pattern, and how your tongue and lips coordinate during certain tasks. Putting these observations together helps your therapist determine if myofunctional therapy is the right fit for you and what areas may need attention.
What Happens During Virtual Sessions
After your assessment, your therapist will create an individualized treatment plan based on their findings. This will include a set of exercises selected to work on the specific areas identified during your assessment. For children, a therapy kit may be mailed to your home with tools that help make their exercises more engaging and fun. Depending on the treatment plan, this may include a tongue depressor, whistles, blowers, and other carefully selected tools that bring a playful element to their practice. During each virtual session, your therapist will demonstrate the set of exercises planned for that stage of treatment. You’ll practice each movement on camera while your therapist watches your technique, provides feedback, and makes adjustments when needed. Between sessions, you’ll have exercises to practice until your next appointment. Many practitioners use an app that you can access right from your phone or laptop, so you can easily pull up your exercises, rewatch the demonstrations, and see what you’ve been assigned.
Monitoring Progress During Treatment
Your progress can be checked in a few different ways between virtual sessions. Some therapists may send a survey before your next appointment to see how the exercises from your previous session went, what felt easy or difficult, and if you noticed any changes. Your therapist may also keep notes or a summary of your progress that you can refer back to throughout treatment. During follow-up sessions, you can talk through changes you’ve noticed, such as differences in sleep, jaw tension, breathing, or other concerns you started treatment for. This gives your therapist a better idea of how you’re progressing and what may need to be adjusted along the way. As you move through treatment, your exercises can be changed or built upon based on how things are going.
Connecting With Other Healthcare Providers
Myofunctional therapy can be part of a larger care plan, and referrals can happen in both directions. You may be referred to a myofunctional therapist by another healthcare provider, or your therapist may recommend that you see another provider for additional support. Depending on your needs, this could include:
Dentist or orthodontist: You may be referred for myofunctional therapy to support concerns involving oral function, tongue posture, or orthodontic treatment. Your therapist may also recommend checking in with your dentist or orthodontist when dental care is relevant to your treatment.
ENT: An ENT may refer you for myofunctional therapy if concerns around breathing or airway function are part of your care. Your therapist may also recommend an ENT assessment if they notice something that needs further evaluation.
Tongue-tie provider: If a tongue tie may be affecting function, your therapist may recommend an assessment with a qualified provider. If a release is recommended, myofunctional therapy may be included before or after the procedure.
Chiropractor: A chiropractor may refer someone to a myofunctional therapist when concerns around jaw tension, posture, or muscle function come up. A myofunctional therapist may also recommend working with a chiropractor when they feel it could complement the rest of the person’s care.
Sleep specialist: A sleep professional may refer you to a myofunctional therapist when oral function or breathing patterns are relevant to your care. Your therapist may also recommend a sleep assessment if sleep-related concerns come up.
Speech-language pathologist or other therapist: Another provider may recommend myofunctional therapy when they feel it could complement your existing care. Your therapist may also collaborate with another professional when their expertise would be helpful. The exact referral process will depend on your needs and the providers involved. One benefit of virtual myofunctional therapy is that your care doesn’t have to be limited by location. You can work with your myofunctional therapist virtually while seeing other healthcare providers in your local area when an in-person assessment or treatment is needed. Your therapist can help connect the dots between different areas of care, communicate with other providers when appropriate, and make recommendations based on what they’re seeing throughout your treatment.
Can Myofunctional Therapy Really Work Virtually?
At first, myofunctional therapy may seem like something that needs to happen in person. After all, you’re working on precise movements and muscle patterns, so how does that translate to a screen? The reality is, many clients are already doing this successfully from home. I work virtually with adults, children, and families around the world, including clients working through tongue-tie releases, nasal breathing concerns, sleep-related concerns, jaw tension, and other areas of oral function. For many people, being able to do their therapy from home makes care much more accessible without taking away from the work itself.
Thinking About Starting Myofunctional Therapy at Home?
If you or your child has been dealing with concerns around breathing, sleep, tongue posture, jaw tension, or other oral function concerns, let’s start with a conversation. I work with kids, adults, and families virtually from Ontario, so you can access myofunctional therapy from home, wherever you are. Book a consultation and we’ll talk through your concerns and what your next steps could look like.
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