What Is A Myofunctional Therapist?

Myofunctional therapy is one of the most exciting emerging fields in modern healthcare.

Myo was once considered the best-kept secret in medicine, but not anymore.

Myo is in the mainstream!

There’s a real sense of excitement around the field as more research gets completed and more large organizations start talking about and teaching myo and airway-related programs.

But despite all the growth of the field and the progress, we still sometimes get asked: “What is a myofunctional therapist?”

Before answering that question, we need to talk about myofunctional therapy in general.

Myofunctional Therapy

Myofunctional therapy (also known as orofacial myofunctional therapy) is an exercise-based treatment system. Think about it like physical therapy, only for the mouth, tongue, and face muscles, and you’ve got the idea.

Myo exercises are prescribed for adults and children. They relate to tongue tone and placement, breathing, speaking, chewing, and swallowing, and they help to address a wide range of health problems and conditions, including:

• Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA)

• Upper Airway Resistance Syndrome (UARS)

• Sleep-disordered breathing

• Snoring

• Tongue-tie

• TMJ pain and tension

• Orthodontic and surgical relapse

• Craniofacial growth and development

• Cosmetic facial appearance

• Headaches and other facial and neck pain and tension

• Postural issues

• Digestive problems

It would take a long time to cover all the possible conditions and symptoms that myofunctional therapy can help with, but we tell all our patients that there are four specific goals for their treatment.

The Four Goals of Myofunctional Therapy:

1. Nasal breathing

2. Lip seal

3. Proper tongue posture

4. Correct swallowing pattern

If patients can master these four goals, they’ll definitely get the results they’re looking for, and these same goals (and how to achieve them) are what we teach our students on the MyoMentor 12-week myofunctional therapy training course.

When we first mention these goals to our patients, they often laugh because, as far as goals go, these don’t sound too difficult. After all, how hard can it be to breathe through your nose, close your mouth, and put your tongue in the right place? And who really has trouble swallowing anyway?

But, as many of my patients would agree, it’s far more complicated than it sounds.

Let’s put it this way – if it were easy for everyone to do those four things, then myofunctional therapists wouldn’t have jobs, and the fields of myofunctional therapy and airway medicine wouldn’t be experiencing such exponential growth.

The demand for myofunctional therapy services is huge and will only increase in the coming years.

So, back to our original question: What is a Myofunctional Therapist?

A myofunctional therapist is a cutting-edge health professional providing state-of-the-art treatment to patients.

Most myofunctional therapists have a background in dental hygiene or speech-language pathology, but we have students from a wide range of healthcare professions, including dentists, doctors, and body workers.

These professionals teach patients exercises to accomplish the Four Goals of Myofunctional Therapy, guide patients through pre and post-tongue-tie surgery exercises, and help patients achieve optimal health.

Myofunctional therapists will be among the most sought-after professionals in coming decades as the connection between the mouth and airway and overall health becomes better understood.

If you want to learn more about changing your career and integrating myofunctional therapy into your practice, please feel free to get in touch.