extended tongue thrust / gag reflex - what therapy is available?

[Catubodua]

Not sure if this should be here or in Life with a Babe, but  ....   Our son, whom is otherwise developing at average rates and is 11 months old, is having a big issue with food.  He will not eat any amount of solid food, and if anything gets in his mouth he will projectile vomit.  It doesn't matter if I hide it in other food (as an example, I placed a tiny, tiny piece of egg in his fruit one day and he vomited).  And, it's even food he seems interested in eating - like a pizza crust.  He'll lick it, and seems to like it, but the moment a crumb breaks off and gets in his mouth - vomit.

I've brought this up with his Ped a few times and I keep getting told to not worry until he's over a year old.  Well, I don't see this changing much in just a few weeks.  So, I'm wondering, what types of therapy are available for this?

Our Ped advised us to put little bits of whatever we are eating on his highchair tray and let him explore & be messy and we've done that.  We've also offered him various items to taste (like teething biscuits or puffs).  he's interested in the food, wants to play with it, and will sometimes even bring it toward his mouth to try, but it always ends up the same as above.

Any help / input is appreciated. 

[Buzzer Beater]

No help here, just wanted to say we are in the same boat, but only at 7 months. DD has a serious tongue thrust and gag reflex, all the way to vomitting. The thing is, our ped freaked out that she is not "eating 3 meals a day" (give me a break) and sent us to the OT for a consult. We went since DD also has a bad latch and we wanted to see if they could be related with palate/lip/tongue issues.

Of course the OT couldn't find a thing wrong, I'm fine with the situation after reading threads here and researching elsewhere. We're going to stop worrying about our slow pace.

How much does your DS weigh? Does he seem healthy and active? I wouldn't worry yet, I think it's just a variation of normal. I'd do what you're doing (it's what we're doing) and keep offering. The gag and vomit is really no fun tho, huh. 

[Catubodua]

thanks for the input

he weighs around 23 1/2 lbs and he's plenty active & healthy otherwise.  he's staying around the same percentages on his growth charts and his motor skills are really good - it's just this one little issue.

and, yes, the gag then puke is seriously no fun.

funny how different Peds can be. 

[slgt]

FWIW, DD #1 did not start solids until 11 mos. We did not have good luck with purees - but she was fine once we gave her real food.

[Asiago]

I agree with Buzzer Beater and your pediatrician.

I tend to question the current signs of readiness that are so frequently written about, I'm not sure that they neccesarily indicate a baby is ready to eat solid food.

My reasoning is that there are many that we are unable to view, such as the maturity of the gastrointestinal tract, an individual's digestive enzyme production level, and the immune system that fights off food borne illness. These all  play a considerable part in eating and digestion. We usually do not know an individuals current state of development in these areas, as each baby differs.

 I do believe babies know when they are ready and also if something doesn't feel right, as if they are being pushed beyond their readiness. Babies know their readiness in other areas. They lean forward onto their knees, rock and ulitimately move a limb in order to crawl and we sit back while they learn and we let them pace themselves. We follow their lead. My belief is that they also know when they are ready for solids or when they are being pushed to do something that doesn't feel natural.

It sounds as if your little one is on his journey and investigating solids. I would imagine when he is ready that he will reach out grab it, chew and swallow -along with a bit of gagging as he learns to move food in his mouth. Until then he is going to investigate and learn all that he can about it

Edited by Asiago - 1/2/11 at 7:11pm

[melissa17s]

My dd had the same problem when she was close to 1 year.  It is more common with bottle fed than breast fed babes, but can happen with breast fed like dd was.  We went to a speech pathologist and she helped us train dd's gag to the back of her mouth. We had to do exercises with our fingers in her  mouth and with a special baby tooth brush.  Also,  she had a special regime for the types of foods we introduced because some were easier than others to eat.  

I think you need to ask your doc for a referral.  At some point it will be a problem because toddlers need more than just milk to grow.

[SwanLake]

Hi,

Sorry you are going through this. I am a speech therapist and recommend that you find an early intervention clinic in your area and have an occupational therapist of speech therapist help you learn techniques to help your child enjoy eating food. Since you child seems to have a sensitive gag reflex it will be best not to "hide" chunks of food and allow him to have control over what is going to his mouth.  Good luck!

[Catubodua]

Just a small update for those who are interested -

My son was evaluated by the Birth to 3 folks and they see three delays – fine motor control, expressive language and his feeding issues. I’m waiting on another call from them to get our goals and action plan set up and to have them start working with him.

We’re also scheduled for a feeding evaluation tomorrow at a local children’s hospital feeding program. So, hopefully things will get rolling soon. We’re still in the same place we were – no “real” food.

[Buzzer Beater]

Please let us know how it goes... I may be following in your footsteps, as we've had no progress here either, and no babbling at all.

Did they think your ds would "catch up" after working with them? Is he babbling?

[Catubodua]

i'll keep you posted.  both the birth to 3 folks who did the evaulation & the feeding program person i spoke to on the phone believe that this is something they can fix with therapy and that he should be able to function at his level after treatment.

as for babbling - i had to smile when i saw your question.  when is he NOT babbling?  i swear he goes from being sound asleep to waking up chattering and then the chattering barely stops all day.  it must be very difficult for you to not see progression there either.

another thing about all of this - he's losing ground on height/weight and it's driving me bonkers not knowing if it's just normal (most kids have growth spurts and slow growth periods) or if it's related to his feeding issues which is keeping him from getting the energy he needs to grow.  the last thought makes me crazy and worried about whether he'll be able to catch up height/weight and would he be the same as an adult if he was starting to eat normally.

[Buzzer Beater]

Well we are still good here on the weight, she has been a peanut so far, but went from the 12th to about the 25th percentile in a few months. No wonder since she nurses all night. Our big picture is... bad latch, late tongue thrust (resolving), no interest in solids, huge gag reflex, and no babbling. Should be an interesting 9 month checkup.

[Catubodua]

well, we are still waiting for therapy to start.  we've got our plan in place, and i submitted all our financial documents so that things can get going and we're just in waiting mode.

but!  this weekend he actually put a puff in his mouth voluntarily!      he didn't eat it, but i don't even care.  we also played a game where he put puffs in my mouth and i got to put a puff in his mouth. 

and!!!! he was chewing on a pizza crust and the tiniest little piece broke off and instead of vomiting he swallowed it.  i am beyond happy.  i guess sitting there with little kids who are all eating has made him think it's ok to try it.