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Behavioral Therapy

Eating is a complex skill that involves the whole body work together to ingest, swallow, and digest foods for nutrition. These challenges are often associated with medical complexities, oral motor delays, sensory feeding difficulties, and behaviors that may lead to disruptive mealtimes. Difficulties with eating may lead to poor weight gain, limited diet or intake, delayed development, and loss of general health and growth.

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At High Hopes Development Center, our team offers medical, oral-motor, sensory, and behavioral-based feeding evaluations and therapy for children whose congenital/acquired medical issues or delays affect feeding. Our therapists will work with both you and your child, using specialized training and experience, to improve your child's feeding abilities.

Children who may benefit from feeding therapy may demonstrate:

  • Difficulty with chewing foods

  • Refusal to accept certain textures

  • Decreased interest or motivation in eating

  • Avoiding, gagging, or sensitivities to certain textures

  • Dysphagia, children with a history of aspiration or swallow dysfunction

  • Delayed oral motor feeding skills

  • Vomiting associated with eating by mouth

  • Difficulty with transition from tube feedings to oral feedings

  • Failure to thrive

  • "Picky eaters" with a very limited diet and variety of foods

Our clinicians are trained in:

  • Sequential Oral Sensory (SOS) Approach to Feeding

  • Food Chaining

  • Beckman Oral Motor Approach

  • Pediatric Massage Therapy

  • Myofascial Release (MFR)

  • Lactation Counseling

  • Neurodevelopmental Treatment (NDT) of feeding

  • TR-eat Model

  • Additionally, our team remains up to date on evidenced-based research practices and continuing education

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